Am i worried for no reason?

[Pilot00]

Hi pps! This post is made mostly to put my mind at ease because i cant quite figure out if there is anything wrong with Piou (my VT). I have him for almost two months now and he is been healthy, active, playfull and eats like a little pig. But lets go over the basics shall we:

Housing
What size is your tank? 37g (IF i made the convertion right its 130 Liters)
What temperature is your tank? 27 Celcious
Does your tank have a filter? As per the last month Yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? Yes
Is your tank heated? Yes but due to high heat in Greece at the time the thermostat is off the water temp is stable on its own. I check if its functional though and it is.
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None currenlty he is the king of the castle :)

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Betta micro pelets and blood worms. (Sera brand). Had to force him on blood worms for about a month though due to no availability of pelets, he is on both for about 2 weeks again though.
How often do you feed your betta fish? 6 times a week. 2 doses of micro pelets a day. About 2-3 micro pelets per dose. On the sixth day i give him a couple of blood worms and on the 7th day he is fasting.

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Weekly
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? About 30%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Declorinator and i used a fert two times about a month ago in order to save my java fern and christamas moss.

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
pH: 7-7.4
Hardness:Dont know
Alkalinity: Dont know

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? No changes in appereance
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? He seems to stay on the bottom or hang in a cave or plant, up untlil he sees someone enter the room then he begins to swim at the front of the glass and dancing puffing his gills etc.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? 2 days ago
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? No treatment bc i dont know if he is sick.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No
How old is your fish (approximately)? I have him for 2 months, the fact that he grew up a couple of cm when i got him must mean he is relatively young.

Now with that covered the real question: Two days ago he started hanging around in the bottom. The gravel inside the fern a cave whatever he seemed to like. When i enter the room, it takes 2-3 secs for him to realise and then he comes out from whereever he is and comes to greet me at the glass. He stays there,swiming around for as long as i am in the room and then retreats again. There doesnt seem to be any signs of desease, his body is good, his belly is what some people describe as healthy rounded, his eyes are ok. He even jumps in an attempt to bite my nose when i hang directly above him. I just dont know why he is lethargic when noone is arround. Could it be possible that he has grown an attachment to me and he feels lonely? That sounds a little silly...but do they do that?

Also this last week i have been keeping the lights on the aquarium off and as a result it got only little indirect sunlight. I had a diattom bloom for no apparent reason (or rather because of the ferts) and i was told to keep the light off. Could it be possible the lack of light to have put him into 'sleepy mode'? I know bettas dont like bright lights but...

Anyway advice is welcome. Sorry for the huge post.

[shellieca]

It doesn't sound to me as if there's a problem. Even though it's warm weather where you are, do you have a thermometer to check the water temp.? If it's less than 75 he could be less active. How long have you been keeping the lights off? Mine have a tenedency to be less active with the lights off. If you're having algae problems lessen the length of time you have them on. Mine are on 8 to 8-1/2 hrs a day. Or you can split the light time, I've heard the break in light disturbs the algae process, so have them on 4 hrs have them go off for an hour & then come back on. If you don't have a timer you might want to get one, i love them. All of my Bettas get excited when I come close to their tanks, they do form an "attachment".

[Pilot00]

Yes i do have a thermometer. Temperature is stable between 26-27 celcious.
That would be around 80 i think in F.

I have been keeping the lights on for 8 hours as well for the plants, but since i found the diatoms i switched them off alltogether, that would be for 3 days i think.

Perhaps its the light then, he might just getting cozy in there, like when there is moody weather and people dont like to get out of their beds!

God i love those fish too much!

[shellieca]

Originally Posted by Pilot00

Yes i do have a thermometer. Temperature is stable between 26-27 celcious.
That would be around 80 i think in F.

I have been keeping the lights on for 8 hours as well for the plants, but since i found the diatoms i switched them off alltogether, that would be for 3 days i think.

Perhaps its the light then, he might just getting cozy in there, like when there is moody weather and people dont like to get out of their beds!

God i love those fish too much!

LOL, I can relate. I have 4 tanks right now, 3 10g & a 46g & unfortunately they're not all in the same room so I find myself going from tank to tank to watch them. Try turning the light on for a few hours & see what he does.

[MSG]

If the lights are off and you're not around, of course it's going to take them a while for mr betta realize you're there. My HM betta definitely appreciates being in my room, and you can see a huge change in behavior when he's left in a hospital tank.

Using a automated timer with the lights is better that randomly switching it off for long periods of time. With no light the bettas will sleep/hibernate/zombie mode.

How would you feel if you were hungry and there's no lights around so you're bumping into things. I would just stay where I feel safe & wait for the light to appear before I wander too far from my comfort zone.

[Perseusmom]

Mt Betta seems more active when the light on his tank is on, he really loves to explore every inch of his tank when its on. Try leaving his light on for a couple of hours and see how he does.

[Pilot00]

Well, i switched the lights on and Piou seems to be a lot more active. You were right, it seems that he got sleepy without lights.

Thanks, might i ask something else? I have a programe of sorts on how to feed him. 5 days a week i give him micro pelets twice a day (two pelets each), one day i give him bloodworms and on sundays i fast him. Is this a good way to feed him?

[MSG]

I don't feed freeze dried worms. My bettas won't eat them, they just stare at it. Everything else they gladly eat.

I know someone who fed his betta ONCE every 2 days and that betta lived at least 3-4 years.

[shellieca]

Originally Posted by Pilot00

Well, i switched the lights on and Piou seems to be a lot more active. You were right, it seems that he got sleepy without lights.

Thanks, might i ask something else? I have a programe of sorts on how to feed him. 5 days a week i give him micro pelets twice a day (two pelets each), one day i give him bloodworms and on sundays i fast him. Is this a good way to feed him?

That's fine. Are you feeding freeze dried or frozen blood worms? If freeze dried I suggest getting frozen instead. I feed mine pellets once a day for 4 days, frozen blood worms on Sat., frozen Brine shrimp on Sun. & fast in Friday. The frozen comes in little sheets of cubes like mini ice cubes, I feed the big tank a whole cube & the 10g tanks a half, you can even quarter it if need be. The frozen foods tend to sink so it also gives them something to scavenge or graze for which I like.

[Pilot00]

They are dried not frozen. Sera brand : http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/fish/f...ra_food/195667

That and some micro pelets is all i can find here at the moment. Got any suggestions on what to supplement his diet with? Aside from petshop food.
Do they eat anything home made? I heard about peas but peas are vegetables and as far as i know bettas are carnivores.