Lethargic, White fuzz, Wont eat. NEW TO FISH

[MeaghanElizabeth]

ill do the water change now + the conditioner.

acclimitize him properly? how so? and im not sure there really is much of a warmer place... im in a condo - im a university student so not much of a big place haha

[MeaghanElizabeth]

Do you have an idea as to why he is staying near the top as opposed to the bottom? - ive read in many other threads that thats what other Bettas do when ill.

Any idea what is the problem?

[MeaghanElizabeth]

He is also most certainly covered in a layer of white fuzz :( what is this? Is it caused by stress and how harmful is it ?

[aokashi]

Originally Posted by MeaghanElizabeth

ill do the water change now + the conditioner.

acclimitize him properly? how so? and im not sure there really is much of a warmer place... im in a condo - im a university student so not much of a big place haha

andddd you're in canada T_T oh dear. the weather down her in NY just started getting cold. My tank dropped to around 78F today. So it's probably time for me to pull out the heater. :) I'm a uni student too. or college as they call it here.

So heaters... Most likely aim to get a 25w adjustable heater. make sure you raise the temp slowly.

Acclimitisation means to keep the fish bagged. let the bagged float in the water of the new tank.

about once every ten minutes, tip a spoonful of the tank water into the bag, after two hours, you can release the fish into his new home.

[aokashi]

fuzz could be fungus or bacteria, can also be the dreaded columnaris. you can start treatin him now if you have salt ( with no additives ie. iodine and anti caking agent)

1tsp/ gallon (again this is why it is important to know your tank size.)
is used a a general preventative. you can work up to 3tsp/ gallon slowly.

make sure you predissolve the salt in conditioned water. slowly add it bit by bit over time ( a few hours). stir to even out.

this is a conservative treatment. if it gets more severe you can look into purchasing furan-2 and maracyn 1 and 2 ( probably will get more expensive than the heater!)

floating is lokely a SWin bladder issue. in this case Id say it is temperature related

[MeaghanElizabeth]

he definitely seems to be floating. Should i not put more pellets in the water? I read tht if they dont eat it, you should take it out because it can poison the water? So i've been doing that today as he has not eaten :( i changed the water, he seems very disoriented and flustered, moving slightly but with difficulty it seems. As if he's tired.

[aokashi]

yes, take all uneaten food out.

You shouldnt try feeding him for a while. betta fish can survive weeks without food... let his Swim bladder fix itself first...

Bettas are tropical fish... he doesnt have the energy in cold water to move... try and keep him warm. if you have a large tub you can fill a bit with 82F water and place his bowl in there. you can refill with warm water every now and then to keep temperature as steady as possible.

it's a tiring method, but if you can keep it up, it works :/.

[MeaghanElizabeth]

Im worried the heat might make the white fuzz increase? I read that somewhere but i honestly wouldnt know what was best. Ill give that a go!

[aokashi]

well... ur well below tropical temperatures... minimum should be 76F

there is not proven connection between temperature and fungu:bacterial infections on fish however...
te recommended temp to lower the tank water to is about 76.

I'm off to bed! it could be that your fish is extremely temperature sensitive. or its the white fluff... OR its the sbd. goodluck!

[MeaghanElizabeth]

if a fish is stressed, would it usually react by having white fuzz or no? is that something different all-together?