Lethargic Import

[monroe0704]

Housing
What size is your tank? 10 gallon
What temperature is your tank? 80 degrees
Does your tank have a filter? Yes, baffled
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? Yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Hikari
How often do you feed your betta fish? 2x a day

** This import has yet to accept any of the pellets, will switch to live food soon***

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Normally every 3 days or so
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 25%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Water conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?
I've only done PH right now, I'll pull out my saltwater kit and test for Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate later.

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH: 6.5
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Major fin rip from shipping.. pic was in other threads
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? He was active when I first introduced him after acclimating; now he is lethargic and laying on the bottom of the tank..
When did you start noticing the symptoms? I released him in to the tank at 11pm, noticed lethargy when I woke up at 7am
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I have been treating his damaged fins: Warm water, daily 25-50% water changes, low light, added some Melafix since his fin damage is worse than I've dealt with and I don't have any IAL on hand..
Does your fish have any history of being ill? Unknown
How old is your fish (approximately)? 3.5 months


I basically want to figure out if I'm doing all I can possibly do for this guy. I'd hate for him to pass knowing that I didn't try to provide the best treatment possible. The other imports are doing awesome! Swimming all over; Lyra is establishing herself as dominant female hehe. Orion is just looking so ill... I hope he's just cutting back to promote faster healing.

Any suggestions of things I could do differently? Or things to watch for? Food to provide him?

[monroe0704]

BTW, I prefer natural healing methods. If anyone (OFL ;) has a better method than Melafix then please suggest away! I hate using man made chemicals... but like I said, this is pretty extreme case for my experience.

[Dragonlady]

I am sad to hear your recent import is having problems. He will probably start eating again soon, especially if you offer live foods such as blackworms or live shrimp. To prevent possible fin rot after an injury, I generally use about a teaspoon per gallon of rock salt for about a week combined with daily water changes of equally matched water temperature. If there is no improvement in 1 week, I use the yellow powder, Marycyn 1 or 2 as a last resort. Being shipped from Thailand is very stressful to bettas, and stress is the cause of most fish illnesses.

[MrVampire181]

Did you acclimate over a long period of time (I did a 2 day acclimation on mine but my CT boy is still in his bag)? He probably needs some warm water, low lighting etc. Get some IAL in there soon and avoid changes in water chemistry.

[monroe0704]

The Thai water and my water were pretty close in chemistry, so I acclimated over 18 hrs. I did the same for both the other ones, and they are doing much better. But ya, I'm following all the warm water, low lighting.. I just gotta order some IAL now. But I'll be changing locations soon so I either need someone in the states to ship, or wait until I'm up in MN :/

[MrVampire181]

Hmm...I hope he recovers! It may just be shipping stress.

[monroe0704]

I hope so too! I'll keep everyone updated. Poor fellow. Oh btw, he seems to be rose tail?? Even when flaring his caudal overlaps itself.

[MrVampire181]

Ohm?

[monroe0704]

I don't think he's gonna make it :( Right now, before bed, he's laying on his side on the ground. He's still swimming up for air, but I don't like him on the ground like this. Poor Orion... we'll see if a miracle happens. I really really hope it's conserving energy...

[monroe0704]

Here's an update: He is still mostly lifeless looking on the bottom of the tank, but when he swims up for air he is a bit more active than what I saw yesterday. Maybe a sign of improvement, maybe not. Fingers still crossed, I really wanted to start my HM line with him!