Swimming Erratic and Skittish

[Dallasfm1111]

This morning when I woke up I noticed that my Betta was swimming erattically around his 1 gallon tank. He also seems a bit nervous, he usually doesn't jump around when I approach the tank, but today he seems scared. Yesterday, he seemed at peace and hanging out around the top of the tank. I fed him Omega One Betta Buffet and 2 Betta Pellets this morning and he ate all that I fed him. I changed out 20% of his water after I noticed his erratic behavior. The temperature of his water is 78 degrees. What do I need to do?

Housing
What size is your tank? 1 GALLON
What temperature is your tank? 78 DEGREES
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
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? N/A

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Omega One Betta Buffet, Top Fin Color Enhancing Betta Bits, and Betta Pellets with Krill and Stabilized Vitamin C
How often do you feed your betta fish? Twice a day

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? I just purchased him 3 days ago. I just did a 20% water change with Petco’s Bottled Betta Water.
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 20%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? When I use tap water I add Nutrafin Betta +plus Tap Water Conditioner, but I'm currently using Petco's Bottled Betta Water

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters? No, I don’t have any testing equipment, but I can get some. I was told that I wouldn’t need them for the first week.

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

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? He looks fine, except for the erratic swimming behavior
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Yesterday he kind of just hung around the top of the aquarium, this morning he was swimming erratically and very skittish.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? This morning
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I don’t know what to do
Does your fish have any history of being ill? New fish
How old is your fish (approximately)? I just purchased him 3 days ago

[earthworm88]

Hi Dallasfm, welcome to the forum.
I am not sure what this betta bottled water is (sound more like a gimmick to me), but as long as the water in the tank is clean and free of unwanted chemicals, your betta will do very well.

Ideally, if you can have at least a 2 gal tank for your betta, i think he/she will be happier. However, currently for your 1 gal tank, you should change 100% water every other day if you take out the uneaten food and waste. His change of behavior may be his way of objecting to whatever the current water chemistry is now, so it would be good if you have your own water testing kit to know what is going on. Honestly, take the advice given by the LFS people with a grain of salt and do your own research.

Good luck with your betta!

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum......

Usually erratic swimming is due to sometime irritating him....usually it is chlorine/chlorimane...to rule this out....make a 50% water change and dose the dechlorinator for the full volume of the tank and see if this helps....if not, it may be parasites.......heavy metal can do this too-but due to the type of water you are using I wouldn't think that would be an issue......

I agree that these bottled waters are somewhat Gimmicky and not needed.....I would get your Betta acclimated to your tap water along with dechlorinator.......make 25% water changes daily using dechlorinated-like temp tap water for 4-5 days and then get on a regular schedule of twice weekly.....

In 1gal unfiltered without live plants-water change of twice weekly...1-50% and 1-100% should maintain water quality-provided that uneaten food is removed within a reasonable time and the Betta isn't overfed.....

The 1gal is fine to keep a single long fin male long term- provided that you maintain the water quality...IMO/E and experiments....

[tracyalexa]

One of my first guys used to do this. I came here and they said change the water. I did...it worked. ;)

[Dallasfm1111]

BluRay seems to have calmed down some, with the 20% water change that I did earlier, but he still seems a bit restless. So, I will do another 30% water change to see if that helps. Thanks so much for all of your help, it is greatly appreciated!

[Dallasfm1111]

Earthworm88 - I was going to purchase a 2.5 gallon aquarium, but it won't fit on my desk, so I opted for the 1 gallon. However, if the water will need to be changed every two days I will probably invest in a 2.5 gallon aquarium. Thanks for your advice!

[earthworm88]

Originally Posted by Dallasfm1111

Earthworm88 - I was going to purchase a 2.5 gallon aquarium, but it won't fit on my desk, so I opted for the 1 gallon. However, if the water will need to be changed every two days I will probably invest in a 2.5 gallon aquarium. Thanks for your advice!

Dallas, according to OFL, you could do less frequent change even with a 1 gal tank. I guess it really depends on what type of food you feed, how quickly you remove the waste and uneaten food etc. So nothing is really set in stone. For example, I have 2 gal tanks, and I change mine 100% two times a week and seems to work for me and my bettas.
So good luck with your betta and enjoy!

[Dallasfm1111]

I did a 50% water change to BluRay's aquarium and he is now swimming around normally now. He seems very happy and relaxed. Thanks again for all of your assistance, it truly did help.