[bethm1986]

Housing
What size is your tank? 5 gal
What temperature is your tank? 78-80
Does your tank have a filter? yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? yes
Is your tank heated? yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? betta flakes and pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? once daily

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? weekly
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 20-40%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? water conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters? haven't tested

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

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? sides of fish have turned gold. scales have a black outline. only her sides are a gold color, her face and back are still red. white star shape near caudal fin
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? loss of appetite, not swimming as much
When did you start noticing the symptoms? 2 days ago
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? no, not sure how to treat or what it is
Does your fish have any history of being ill? don't know...haven't had her long
How old is your fish (approximately)? no idea. purchased from pet shop.

 

[wystearya]

I am not an expert, but I think the gold color could be 'velvet'. Maybe look that up and see if it matches what your seeing?

At least until one of the more experienced people reply!

 

[bethm1986]

I am not an expert, but I think the gold color could be 'velvet'. Maybe look that up and see if it matches what your seeing?

At least until one of the more experienced people reply!

thats what i thought too but it looks different than the pics of velvet i have seen. i turned off her lamp to her tank and she perked up a lot. so i'm wondering if the lamp was making her water too warm. a lot of her color seems to be coming back also, so maybe she's gonna be ok. *fingers crossed*
thanks so much for trying to help!

 

[MollyJean]

Bish do better on a normal day/night sleep schedule, so if you're leaving the light on all the time, that might be part of the problem.

 

[bethm1986]

Bish do better on a normal day/night sleep schedule, so if you're leaving the light on all the time, that might be part of the problem.

Thank you! I feel like an idiot right now! I can't believe this was such an easy fix...lol