[whitecloud7]

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help me out. I don't know what I'm doing wrong but this is the second betta fish I am about to lose in the past month. When I got my betta home I used the water he was already in and pH tested it and added more water to the bigger bowl (1 gallon bowl). I made sure the temperature was the same, used Start Right water conditioner, and made sure the pH matched. Everything was clean, used no soaps or anything like that. Just have glass marbles at the bottom and an aquarium castle in the center. He has not eaten. I've tried giving him a flake, a betta pellet, and a freeze dried worm treat for bettas and he just won't touch it. I've had him about a week now. And another thing is he tried to eat the first few days. He'd grab the pellet and spit it back out, grab it again, spit it back out. Did the same with the freeze tried treats. Now he just doesn't even bother.

Now my city has chloramine and has detectable amounts of ammonia in the water (I tested it once, it was surprisingly high). I know about ammonia being converted to ammonium in acidic water, however I did not want to shock him as his pH was really high like 7.6. I'm wondering if this is ammonia poisoning. Maybe I should purchase gallons of spring water from the grocery store. Will I still have to add Start Right to it? Or do you think I should just get the water to 6.8 so the ammonia does not harm him? Any advice would be great! Thanks.

Sorry I posted this same question on tropical fishkeeping.com and did not realize it was the same site! I apologize, I am new to using these forums and don't know how to delete it lol

 

[Rosso1011]

I wouldn't worry about the your new betta not eating and hiding just yet. Bettas can take a long time to adjust to their environments and part of that is not eating and hiding.

As far as the pH goes, my betta lives in water that has a pH of about 8. Bettas are really hardy and can tolerate water with a higher pH.

 

[gbose]

1) Not sure what Start Right is -- hope it's a de-chlorinator? If not, please do get/use one ASAP.
2) Do you have a heater? if not, what's your temperature in the tank. You want it to be 78 F or so.
3) 1G is way too small for any fish. I'd look for a 3-5G for a betta (I have mine in a 3G)

Good luck!

GB

 

[jCo72]

I've tried giving him a flake, a betta pellet, and a freeze dried worm treat for bettas and he just won't touch it. I've had him about a week now. And another thing is he tried to eat the first few days. He'd grab the pellet and spit it back out, grab it again, spit it back out. Did the same with the freeze tried treats. Now he just doesn't even bother.

I'm not an expert but my betta did the same thing when I first brought him home. I ended up buying 'baby' pellets and then even those he would spit back out. I began to crush them into smaller pieces so he'd eat them. He didn't like flakes. From what I understand, bettas can be picky eaters and often don't take to a new food right away. I'd either try a different type of pellet to see if he will eat that or give it a few more days.

Now my city has chloramine and has detectable amounts of ammonia in the water (I tested it once, it was surprisingly high). I know about ammonia being converted to ammonium in acidic water, however I did not want to shock him as his pH was really high like 7.6. I'm wondering if this is ammonia poisoning. Maybe I should purchase gallons of spring water from the grocery store. Will I still have to add Start Right to it? Or do you think I should just get the water to 6.8 so the ammonia does not harm him? Any advice would be great! Thanks.

I would try and keep your betta in water between 7.2-7.6. That's a fairly neutral range (slightly basic). Theres nothing wrong with water thats a little outside that range. I wouldn't try and disrupt the pH range as I've heard its hard to get back to good conditions using methods that won't hurt a fish. What was the ammonia level in the water?