Sanyu Stopped Eating

[Katiexo]

Hi everyone I came across this webpage and thought this would be the easiest way to get an answer.

My betta Sanyu is nearly a year old he's a very pretty pink with purple and red splotches. He lives in a bowl I know is too small (1 gal), however I am a university student and have restrictions. I make sure I keep it clean so he doesn't get ammonia poisoning or sick.

He gets a daily diet of 4 pellets a day and every few days replaced with freeze dried blood worms or little bits of shrimp. Last week he decided he didn't want to eat his pellets anymore and since this is the nutritional food, I'm kind of concerned his health is going to begin to deteriorate. Nothing has changed in our routine and the food is also the same, he only eats the bloodworms now. He swims around or sits on his castle and is always alert looking at me. His colours are not faded either.

Could he just be bored of the food, or is this something more serious? Thank you for your help I really love him and I don't want anything to happen!

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum....

To start-the 1gal is fine provided that you maintain water quality.....

We need some more information and a pic if you can post one too...

In the 1gal-how much and how often are the water changes, water temp, filter, live plants, additives used, any tank mates, what kind of food and how old is it.....how long has he been off his staple diet.....no other symptoms...just stopped eating his regular food.....

[Katiexo]

So here are some pictures, a close up of him and then what he is living in.

I am kind of embarrassed that I can't have the set up he really deserves, he should have filter and heater especially because they are tropical fish. As you can see I think the heater would take up too much space as well as a filter. I'd take out his castle but he loves laying on it when he is taking a break and also likes laying in the leaves.

He has been on the exact same diet since I got him a year ago, same regime. I actually used to feed him more, twice a day but the water got really dirty very quickly, so I cut back to once a day. He always gobbled everything I put in up until last week that is.

As for water changes I do about a 20% every other day and a full water change cleaning decorations and gravel every Sunday.

The not eating the pellets really is out of the blue, he now will go to eat them, take them in his mouth and spit them out again so I make sure to watch and take them out if he doesn't eat them. Like I said before however, he still eats his freeze dried bloodworms.

[earthworm88]

What a handsome betta....

Here is a summary of questions which will give us a better and thorough understanding of your situation....

Housing
What size is your tank?
What temperature is your tank?
Does your tank have a filter?
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration?
Is your tank heated?
What tank mates does your betta fish live with?

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish?
What is the frequency and amount of feeds daily?

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change?
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change?
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change?

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

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

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed?
How has your betta fish's behavior changed?
When did you start noticing the symptoms?
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?
Does your fish have any history of being ill?
How old is your fish (approximately)?

[Katiexo]

Most of the questions you just posted I've already answered or you can see them answer when you look at the picture. I will tell you the ones that I haven't or you can't see for yourself.

~Housing is all answered (picture)
~I mentioned food in the initial post
~Maintenance answered except the only thing I add to the water is water conditioner.
~No I have not tested his water, but since I upkeep it so often I don't think anything is the matter with that especially since nothing has changed in terms of type of water used or water conditioner
~He looks the same, he acts the same (alert and active), I noticed him not eating his pellets last week, I have not given him any treatment, he has never been ill, he is 1 yr old

[earthworm88]

Originally Posted by Katiexo

Most of the questions you just posted I've already answered or you can see them answer when you look at the picture. I will tell you the ones that I haven't or you can't see for yourself.

~Housing is all answered (picture)
~I mentioned food in the initial post
~Maintenance answered except the only thing I add to the water is water conditioner.
~No I have not tested his water, but since I upkeep it so often I don't think anything is the matter with that especially since nothing has changed in terms of type of water used or water conditioner
~He looks the same, he acts the same (alert and active), I noticed him not eating his pellets last week, I have not given him any treatment, he has never been ill, he is 1 yr old

Apologies if you felt that my post was being redundant.

[Oldfishlady]

I would buy a new food....your current food may be out dated....its a good idea to replace food 1 yr from the day you cracked the seal......

[Katiexo]

Yeah that is exactly what I am thinking, maybe it just isn't good anymore and he decided it last week. I am prone to panic about my pets, I want to them to be happy and healthy!

Oddly enough I just put a pellet in again today to see and he ate the first one. I tried another he spat that one out but when I went to take it out and moved it a bit he ate it .

I will definiately buy him new food though. Thank you for your help and answering so quickly! I look forward to being a part of this forum.