i don't know what to do?

[Peppercat86]

I got my Betta last Sunday (18th)

Housing
What size is your tank? He started off in a small critter keeper but he is now in a 2.5 gallon tank as of this past Saturday.
What temperature is your tank? 78 right now, sometimes 80.
Does your tank have a filter? no
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no
Is your tank heated? yes, adjustable heater.
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none
he just has little colored pebbles, some glass stones, a leaf hammock and a desk lamp for light.

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? I have BettaMin 'tropical medley flakes', 'tetra betta floating mini pellets' and 'top fin freeze dried bloodworms' the problem is, i don't think i've ever seen him eat. i started out with the mini pellets but i never saw him eat those (i put 3 in the tank) so i bought the flakes the next day..still never saw him eat, i put bloodworms in the tank on saturday, and he didn't eat those. so as far as i know, he hasn't eaten in the whole time ive had him.
How often do you feed your betta fish? once a day, a few flakes, they just remain there though.

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? i was changing it every day with the critter keeper since the water got foggy within hours with my tap water (and conditioner) but on Saturday I used bottled spring water and conditioner and it's stayed clear.
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 100%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? top fin betta water conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters? I have not tested my water.


Symptoms and Treatment
I don't think my Betta fish has eaten since I've gotten him. I haven't seen him eat, and I've never seen any droppings when I've cleaned the tank. He was only really active the first day I had him and then only sometimes in between. When I got him a new 2.5 tank Saturday, and he explored it a little. Saturday night I noticed what looked like his fin was falling apart, fin rot, so I bought him 'Bettafix' yesterday (sunday) after reading about it online, but now i'm reading good and bad reviews and not sure what to do! I also bought him aquarium salt. He swam a little after I used both in the tank, but for the past 15 hours he's been at the top of the tank, barely moving, just floating there. Many times I think he's dead, poke near him to check and he swims away but always comes back to the top and just stays there. Days before he was staying at the bottom of the tank. I'm thinking maybe the pet store sold me a bad fish? What can I do for him? I'm afraid to use Bettafix. I appreciate any and all help, thank you.

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum and sorry you are having problems......

How did you acclimate him to the new water when you first brought him home.....

Its not uncommon for a new Betta to not eat for the first week-10 days in a new environment.....if you have any mosquito larva offer some rinsed larva to see if you can stimulate his hunting/feeding response or roll some pellets in some fresh crushed garlic juice to see if that will stimulate his appetite any......

In a 2.5gal unfiltered tank-water changes of twice weekly-1-50% and 1-100% should maintain water quality-be sure and remove any uneaten food....too many 100% and you can stress them too much unless they are due to treatment in a small QT container....

If you are going to use bottled water-mix it 50/50 with your tap water along with the proper amount of dechlorinater-often bottled water will be missing the minerals needed for long term health...the foggy water is most likely bacterial bloom and will resolve with a 50% water change and time with a new setup....

Love to see some pic......

[Peppercat86]

When I first brought him home, I had a bottle of 'betta water' that I bought from the store that was room temperature and i put him in that. it wasnt enough to fill the critter keeper so i went out and bought conditioner, and then filled it with tap water, keeping the temperature the same. It fogged up over night, and after that i was doing 100% water changes every day.
Should I go ahead and change 50% of the water, with tap water now? Is there a way I can do this causing him the least stress? I'll have to empty it into containers to remove the food, and keep the water.
I also don't have a proper fitting lid yet, just glass over most of it but around the heater I put paper over the opening when I'm not around to keep an eye on him.

This is the set up..minus the plant because I thought it may have hurt his fin. The sun does not directly shine onto his tank. I tried to place him on a shelf but he didn't seem to like it, and I tried to place him to the side of the table away from the window but he wasn't active then either... he was really active near the window in the beginning.


Edited to add: Could he still be getting used to the new tank? He didn't seem to like the idea of having all that space. In the critter keeper he stayed at the bottom and would swim to the top for air. Now it seems like there's too much space inbetween and he rather stay at the top? He's definitely still alive.. when I put a pencil in the water to get the water moving, he swims all around, but then goes back to the top, and doesnt move. I don't mean to harass him, I'm just trying to get a good look at his body/head to see if there are any changes.

[Oldfishlady]

Some Bettas can get stressed when placed in a larger space too fast-some need to be move to larger spaces in steps until they adapt.....if you didn't acclimate him to the new water chemistry before you added him-he may be suffering from some osmotic shock issues-always add small amount of the new water to the Betta while still in the old water to slowly acclimate them-especially when new and/or 100% water changes......it is also important to try and keep the water temp between new and old water within a few degrees to prevent temp shock issues.....

I would make some 25% water changes with like temp dechlorinated tap water for the next couple of days and see if that will perk him up and on day 3 make a 50%-dose the dechlorinater for the full volume of the tank on that water change......with partial water changes I would leave him in the tank and this will help with stress issue and water changes...

Keep us posted.....

[Peppercat86]

well i had changed the water 50% before seeing your second post with tap water(and water conditioner), the fogginess went away yesterday. i let the new water get to the same temperature as the tank water. then i saw you said to do 25% a day but since i had already done 50% i didn't change it at all yesterday fearing i was changing it too much for him. he's still not eating or doing anything. i've offered him pellets soaked in garlic juice, more bloodworms and flakes. i dont have any mosquito larva. his fin looks much better since yesterday.

[Peppercat86]

Sorry for the double post, I don't see where to edit my post (even though I did this before on a previous posting)

I got '5 in 1' test strips...
Right now..
PH: 5.5
Total Alkallnity: 80
Harness:75
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0

As for ammonia, i don't see that the test strip allows me to test for that even though it gives the colors on the color chart.
He also was given a Marimo moss ball the other day in place of the plastic plant. I've gradually increased the water to stay at 80/81.

[Silverfang]

Woah, Ph is 5.5? That's extremely low. Bettas might be fairly tolerant but that is a likely cause of trouble. You said you use test strips, so the readings might not be the accurate. Do you have a pet store near by you can get your water tested at?
I know most pet stores will do the testing for free.
You might also want to take a sample of tank water and tap water, see if the source water is the issue.

[Peppercat86]

half of the water is currently bottled spring water (with conditioner) could that be a problem? Saturday is when I used all bottled water, besides having a new tank (and that's pretty much when he stopped moving about) I have Petsmart I can go to. Should I change to complete 100% tap water? I was doing that before, with fogginess. I'm scared though to change any more water I don't want to further traumatize him. I'll just take sample water and tap water to them.

[Peppercat86]

How can I test my water accurately? My test strip readings were completely different from Petsmart's. They said my ammonia was high, among other things, using test strips, and then pointed out the same test strips that I used earlier to buy that apparently are not accurate. They only tested my tank water, I didn't add conditioner to my tap water sample I brought so they were unable to test that. 'Prime' was pointed out to me, so I bought it and just added a drop a few minutes ago. He just swam back and forth, the most he's done in days, but retreated back to a top corner.

[Silverfang]

IF the ammonia is high, then do a water change, a 2.5 gal two a week should be sufficient, one 100% change and one 50% change.
And yes, Prime is a good water conditioner, it's one of the two best. They should be able to test your tap water, with or without conditioner, my guess is they were just too lazy.
When you feed him, does he eat all the food? IF there is food left in the water that can raise ammonia levels.

On another note, I have the same tank, and I have it stuffed with fake plants and decor. Many bettas are happier with lots to explore, and can be put off by the open spaces.