Newbie betta owner needing advice?

[Flaire]

Thanks(:
I think I'd definitely agree that he's a delta with some EE, and I think you're right, the top part of his tail looks cut off.
As far as names go, I'm still a little stumped. I'm not sure if I want an elegant sounding name, or cute and short. What I've come up with so far is:
Illusion
Ori
Louis
Ruben
Astro
Jigsaw
Any suggestions?

[BettaPirate]

I like Ori and Astro :)

[Flaire]

His name is Astro, I decided. (:
Now, I know bettas aren't active 24/7, but little Astro is literally lying on his belly on the bottom of the tank. If I break the surface and swish my finger around, he moves and is active for a few seconds and goes back to what he was doing. Is he just resting?

[chardzard]

yea a bit of fin damage i think u got him in time too yea he a delta for sure keep an eye on him tho couse pet stores do very bad jobs of takeing care of bettas other than that nice looking fish

[AyalaCookiejar]

Originally Posted by Flaire

His name is Astro, I decided. (:
Now, I know bettas aren't active 24/7, but little Astro is literally lying on his belly on the bottom of the tank. If I break the surface and swish my finger around, he moves and is active for a few seconds and goes back to what he was doing. Is he just resting?

He is likely resting. When was his last water change? What is the temperature of his tank? Does he have plenty of decorations? A resting spot near the surface? Lethargy can be a sign of many things. My blind CT is pretty much always lethargic because he is blind, and my older VT also does that at times, but he's old. My three new girls are never lethargic.

He is likely bored, has an issue with his water or is too cold.

[Flaire]

Okay, good. His tank temperature is currently about 75. I'm getting a heater in the next week or so, but for now I have a rather hot desk lamp shining on him that keeps him around the right temp. He has a broadleaf that has leaves close to the surface, but for whatever reason he isn't resting on it. I also have some grasses on the bottom. I just did about an 80% water change today.

[AyalaCookiejar]

You don't leave the lamp on all the time, do you?

Edit: it could also be shock, maybe from the water change. How did you do the water change?

[Flaire]

No, about 8 hours a day?
I slowly adjusted him to it, several hours ago. It was just this past hour that he's been really inactive.

[AyalaCookiejar]

The lights sound alright. There may be temp fluctuations when you turn it off which is bad. Personally, I wouldn't use the lamp for heat since you cannot leave it on all the time and they don't generally heat consistently, anyways. He will be okay at room temp until you get a heater. You can try wrapping the tank with a towel at night but there will still be fluctuations.

It sounds like he may be shocked, because of the timing. You remembered conditioner, yes? Do you add it to the new water before pouring it into the tank? Was it the exact same temp as his tank is? The good news is, if its shock from the water change, he will likely return to normal in a short amount of time.

[Flaire]

Ah, okay. I'll try the towel thing tonight. I was worried, because he lost a lot of color late last night but I woke up this morning and he was back to normal! So I suppose it must of been shock, which I'm not sure why because the water was conditioned and the same temp.