My boy Ghost will sidle up to a plants or decoration slowly, then strike at it with his side. He's done it since I got him. Do betas get itchy? Otherwise he seems like a perfectly normal specimen of betadom. I don't see any signs of a disease. He doesn't do it constantly. A handful of times a day, he goes around and does this on 2-3 things in a row, then cruises on like normal. He's laying under his decoration right now, peeking out at me.
Yes. this is normally what I would call "flicking" which is an early symptom of irritation caused by in most cases, ich. If there are any different behaviours with your fish and you notice small spots, then he most likely will have ich if this does occur. I can provide a bit of information about ich if youd like
What temperature is the tank at right now? and how big of a tank? I have to agree it could be an early onset of ich, which within the next couple of days he should have a couple white specks. If he does, there's a bunch o' us that can help
He's been doing it for three weeks now, but I have yet to see any spots on him. I'll try to remember to bring my water test kit from home. I'm doing half changes every 3-4 days currently. Water temp is usually 75-77.
Feel bad tho, I think I about gave the poor thing a heart attack this morning because I had to come in to work way early...and he's never had his light turned on at 5 AM before. Note to self: Next time just leave him in the dark till normal light time. I brought him a moss ball though, maybe it will make a good peace offering. He's looking at it in it's cup very curiously.
Ok, now he's flaring at it. Silly fish.
One thing I have noticed - his tank does not have a filter...the one that came with it was just too strong. A film tends to start forming on the top of the water, no idea what it's from, I've been suctioning it off. Any thoughts?
He's been doing it for three weeks now, but I have yet to see any spots on him. I'll try to remember to bring my water test kit from home. I'm doing half changes every 3-4 days currently. Water temp is usually 75-77.
Feel bad tho, I think I about gave the poor thing a heart attack this morning because I had to come in to work way early...and he's never had his light turned on at 5 AM before. Note to self: Next time just leave him in the dark till normal light time. I brought him a moss ball though, maybe it will make a good peace offering. He's looking at it in it's cup very curiously.
Ok, now he's flaring at it. Silly fish.
One thing I have noticed - his tank does not have a filter...the one that came with it was just too strong. A film tends to start forming on the top of the water, no idea what it's from, I've been suctioning it off. Any thoughts?
Probably just "surface film", which are organic stuff like oil that haven't been pick up by filters.= u need a filter/ surface filter
Here is a picture of him from this morning. I'm still new at this - he looks fine to me, but maybe other eyes can see something I am missing? The only thing this picture made me notice is how much more vivid his colors have gotten since I bought him.
Ich isn't the only thing that causes "itching" on fish- could be a number of things ranging from flukes, parasites or even slime coating sloughing off. If he's been doing it for a few weeks with no other signs of ich, then I wouldn't consider it.
Betta tanks do not need a filter- the film you are seeing most likely is the natural protein that is on many tanks naturally- I have a female that is constantly having a build up of protein on her surface. It doesn't harm the fish, but can get thick. What you can do to keep it in check (and to make breathing easier for the betta) is just gently wipe the surface of the tank with a clean paper towel- it should help remove some of it. Oils can be at the top- make sure that nothing is sprayed in the air near the tank.
What size tank is it? Doing partial changes every few days is actually not ideal in a tank- even in one without a filter. For tanks under 5 gallons (and above 1 gallon) you would be looking at doing 1 50% and 1 100% water change per week at the most.. anything more you are not allowing the pathogens to build up and actually doing a disfavor to the fish. Water can be too clean/sterile.
He looks like a healthy double-ray crowntail. He's a cutie :)
(If he continues to scratch keep an eye on his body and look for any sores or scales missing, etc.. something is making him itch like that.. it's not natural)
Check out the eBook Betta Fish Care Made Easy
Similar Threads
I've had males forget there was something there, and when they touched it they panicked and darted away. 
