Problem with New Baby Betta from Petco!

[dannycooper]

Hi, my friend gave me a baby Betta for my birthday last week and I got him a heater and a filter for his tank. He was being very active and fun for the first few days but now his fins have gotten very thin and he's become lethargic. He hangs out right next to the heater most of the time or at the bottom of the tank rarely moving unless I tap on the glass. He seems to be eating less and less as well.

When he was feeling good his fins were always waving around, now they are very thin an pinned back.

Here's a picture of him: http://cl.ly/image/1d19320n1p2T

Any help as to what I can do? Is he doomed??

[DragonFyre14]

How much does your filter disrupt the water? if there is a big current that could be stressing him out.

Is the temperature in your tank sufficient? Baby bettas need a slightly higher temp than adult bettas. I would suggest around 80-82F.

Are you feeding him enough? You mentioned that he seems to be eating less and less, perhaps he doesn't really like the food you are offering? are you giving him a variety of protein based foods? Babies need to be feed 2-3 times a day.

If you can get a hold of it, Indian Almond leaf is really good for bettas, especially babies.

[Creat]

I agree with DragonFyre14 I would also recommend removing the filter (do more harm then good at this point unless the tank is 10 gal or bigger. I would then do 100% water changes everyday helps remove hormone and makes them grow. Be gentle its easier to shock babies then adults. Then go get some high quality food if you cant find any specific baby fish food and/ or bloodworms (be sure to chop them up if you feed or they can choke) try tetra tropical fish crumbles their easy to break up into smaller pieces and have a good nutrition for babies.

[dannycooper]

Sounds good, thanks guys. I will take out the filter for now. Any tips on how to remove him from the tank when I'm changing his water? I use a net to retrieve him but that seems to stress him out quite a bit, wondering if there are any alternatives.

[Creat]

I just set the cup in the water and wait till he/ she swims in best way to catch them.

[sainthogan]

Originally Posted by Creat

I just set the cup in the water and wait till he/ she swims in best way to catch them.

This will get easier with time, especially if you feed him treats when he's in his cup such as bloodworms, then he will begin to associate swimming into the cup with food.