new to fish keeping - HELP!

[timbojimbo]

Hello.. ok here goes:

background on my tank: 48 litres, has 6 neon tetras (one died yesterday - dont know why), 6 cherry barbs, a male betta and a female betta. has a living plant for the last 8 weeks thats just constantly grown and in gr8 shape (god knows how!) It is at about 25degrees C.

current problem: my female beta seems lifeless... falls to the bottom of the tank and is basically dying but occasionnaly swims then drops to the bottom again. he's probably dead by the time i've finished typing this :(

I tested the water for 6 things... nitrates/nitrite/ph, etc... all at good levels... also tested for ammonia.. none.

tank is only about 12 weeks old. please advise why 1) neon died y'day, and 2) why female betta seems to be dying as i type....


.... on further research it appears mixed signals on keeping male/female betta together. i was advised at pet store this was not a problem. also... if all of the readings are good e.g. amonia nitrites etc.. then do you still recommend water changes?

and finally.... this is what stops me a little bit because my water where i live is very hard.. i had to spend out on large amounts of distilled water .. i am scared about water changes now i know everthing in tank is good, as this will just put the hardness to high levels. it was off the charts until i spent the money to get it down but it is at a good level according to the test kit.

[Bladezero]

Hey welcome :)

You should never keep a male and a female in the same tank if not for breeding(and its not simple as putting them together) She's probably very stressed for a long time and got sick from something, first step isolate her or better, the male because he's got a better chance of not getting shocked from the move + you don't want him getting whatever is in the tank.

Neons can die for so many reasons but my guess, the thing that the female has he's got it and he's much weaker then a betta..

Can you please fill the sticky and add a picture?
http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=49233

Bottled water is bad for your betta and fish in general, it has no minerals that they need to live. Use tap water with Prime, if you think its to hard there are things that make the water softer.. Indian almond leaf is the best..

[timbojimbo]

didn't know about sticky, and will take a picture in a minute, although its futile as the female is now dead. sorry i meant about a 25% water change of distilled water because needed to get the hardness down. I always use the tapsafe stuff.

ps do you think i need a water change although all of the levels are really good? i havnt changed the water for about 3 weeks... this confuses me because if the levels of everything is good then why water change?

on a more pressing note: it appears the male is now at the top of the tank and in the corner and not moving much... bloody hope hes just taking it easy and he aint on the way out at well!

[Shadyr]

that sounds like a lot of fish for *calculates* 13G, but if the parameters were coming up OK...

My one useful bit of advice is to take the male or female out into a smaller tank if you can, as they will probably have issues. Can you tell if your girl is hurt? Torn fins or tail, scale damage? That could be why she is doing poorly.

Hope you get it worked out, losing any of your fish isn't good!

[Bladezero]

Sorry to hear she died.. Let's see what we can do to save who's left..
Waiting for an update from you

Suddenly changing PH or anything else in a drastic way can shock the fish and that makes their immune system almost useless for a while..
It's a slow process that takes days if not weeks..(to change in a aquarium not make them used to new waters..)

[timbojimbo]

[timbojimbo]

thank you. let me be a little clearer: these two bettas were added three days ago. the neons and cherry barbs are at max 1cm each.

also i have noticed, i think, that the male now has a rather white mouth. no other fin nips, or markings, or anything to either the now (deceased) female, or male. but indeed, this is a worry for the male now!


edit: what sticky should i fill out. and thanks for your concerns.

[timbojimbo]

Originally Posted by Bladezero

Sorry to hear she died.. Let's see what we can do to save who's left..
Waiting for an update from you

Suddenly changing PH or anything else in a drastic way can shock the fish and that makes their immune system almost useless for a while..
It's a slow process that takes days if not weeks..(to change in a aquarium not make them used to new waters..)

thank you for that, but to my knowledge... no major changes to the tank except maybe the tank where he came from to my tank is different.

[timbojimbo]

female betta R.I.P.

male betta of concern:




apologies for lack of clarity in photos (only got a mobile to use).. awaiting response..

[Shadyr]

Does this fit the bill?

Columnaris
•Symptoms: White spots on mouth, edges of scales and fins, Cottony Growth that eats away at the mouth, Fins rapidly disingrate, starting at the edges
Gray areas around head and gills, As the disease progresses the gray lesions may change in color to yellow/brown/red, Lesions often occur in front of the dorsal causing a “saddleback” appearance, Lethargic, Loss of appetite, Clamped, Gasping for air
•Treatment: There are 2 versions of Columnaris: chronic and acute. Chronic Columnaris can take days to progress while acute can kill within a day. It is contagious so isolate sick fish. If more than one fish shows symptoms then treat the entire tank. Perform daily 100% water change in small tanks or ¾ water change in larger tanks. Make sure to clean the gravel. Treat with Aq.Salt: add 1 tsp/gal Aquarium Salt 3 times, 12 hours apart so that you end up with 3 times the normal concentration. Do NOT raise the temperature as it thrives in temps over 85*F, however, lowering the temperature does not seem to help fight it. Combine salt treatment with Mardel’s Coppersafe, Maracyn I & II, API Erythromycin, OR API Triple Sulfa, combined with Jungle’s Fungus Eliminator (if possible).