I found an Abandoned betta, now what?? (longish, sorry)

[Kittenfish]

Warning, long (sorry):
I found a crowntail betta fish in a little bowl outside my dorm building, near a dumpster, in filthy water, half frozen. :( Coincidentally enough, I had been (attempting) to cycle a ten gallon tank, for about a week, so I scooped him up, put him in a baggie, and let him float in the water in my tank until he perked up, which he did, considerably.

I fell in love with him, named him Archimedes (Archie for short :p: ) and after 24 hours of slowly acclimating him to the water in my tank, I let him loose. He seems to love his new home and is happily frolicking.

:help:Now my dilemma: I have never had a fish or a fishtank before, not even a childhood goldfish in a bowl torture setup. He is in a ten gallon (long) aquarium, alone. It has a TopFin 10 filter (it hangs on the side and has a carbon packet). I hope this is ok, and not too weak, or too strong for a betta. There is a long airbubble pump thing along the bottom of the back, and a heater rated for a 10-15 gal. tank. It also is decorated with plastic plants in the corner, and two little caves, which he likes to rest in.
I fed him a tiny pinch of freeze dried bloodworms which he devoured (he is so skinny :().
I checked the water parameters with a kit I picked up at a LFS, and since the tank had only been running for a week with no media, and no fish, so ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites were all zero. The water here is kind of hard, the pH was 8.0, and I added the recommended dose of lowerer, but it did nothing, so I let it be. The temperature stays at a constant 80 degrees, whether the heater is on or not.

Any advice on how not to kill him would be appreciated. I have grown to adore him in the past 24 hours. Also, I dont really plan on adding anything else to the tank, it'll be just for him (unless I should). Thank you!

[BrkD]

because your tank isnt fully cycled, constantly check your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates. since your betta has been in filthy water probably most of his life, he may have adapted to the bad water conditions so watch out for OTS.

[ddot]

just keep checking water daily, and change if necessary. he has a much better chance with you. I know in college $$ is short, but bio-spira will help speed up process of cycling if necessary. nice fish though.

[Kittenfish]

because your tank isnt fully cycled, constantly check your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates. since your betta has been in filthy water probably most of his life, he may have adapted to the bad water conditions so watch out for OTS.


Pardon my not knowing much of the lingo, but what does OTS stand for? And thanks for the advice, I have checked his water once per day, and have a five gallon bucket of dechlorinated water sitting out, to do smallish, or larger, water changes if anything gets dangerous.

[ddot]

he saying that since the water he came from was so bad that a change in water conditions and ph so fast could put him in shock. hes still better off.

[Omega]

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=11026&d=1170053987

I like how this fish looks in this shot. Very nice.

[BrkD]

Pardon my not knowing much of the lingo, but what does OTS stand for? And thanks for the advice, I have checked his water once per day, and have a five gallon bucket of dechlorinated water sitting out, to do smallish, or larger, water changes if anything gets dangerous.


oh. my apologies..OTS means old tank syndrome. since your betta has been living in bad water conditions with high ammonia, nitrites etc, it has adapted to the water in order to survive. when you add your betta to a new tank with clean water, it can put him into a shock.

The water here is kind of hard, the pH was 8.0, and I added the recommended dose of lowerer, but it did nothing

it is best not to play with chemicals to change pH. a stable pH is better than a fluctuating pH

[jessicar613]

He's very pretty. I bet if you've had him in clean water for a day, and he's happily frolicking like you say, he'll be fine. And have a much happier and hopefully long life with you. It was meant to be, I guess; there you were with an empty tank already cycling, and there he was, needing a home.

I can't believe anyone would do that to a living creature btw. :(

[Kittenfish]

Thank you for the advice, BrkD, and after about 5-10 drops of the lowerer, and no change, I read these forums and decided to leave it alone, as he is probably used to the local water already, and thank you for the complement on the shot Omega, he's darting around, and its hard to get a clear picture. =)
I added 1/4 cups of water every 45 minutes- 1 hr. from my tank into the ziplock baggie I floated him in to even the temperature out, over a period of about 24 hours, hoping it would ease the transition a little, since when I found him he was in only about two cups of water total.

[Omega]

Raising pH with chemicals (baking soda) sometimes can make sense but lowering it with chemicals never makes sense. Funny how it works that way. Does that make sense?

[ralpf]

Very handsome Betta, try not to overfeed him, they are little pigs and will eat everything you give him. He will have his own personality and will be forever gratefull to you for saving his life. If you ever feel like addiding other fish for company please check and see if they , 1) Need the same water requirements and temperature, 2) Will not nibble his fins and 3) are not overly territorial. My Betta did not get along with Swordtails for example and it took a while for him to accept the two Otos I put in his tank. Other than that My Fritzi sure is a feisty little guy.

Good Luck with him and your tank!!!

[dorkfish]

Note the 24 hour aclimation... should be fine.

[SmallFishi]

Wow he's really pretty how perfect you found him with that nice big tank for him.. :dance2: I hope he makes it and has a long happy life with you.
Do you have the betta food? I don't think they eat regular flake food.

[TKOS]

I would suggest getting some betta pellets.

As for fishy friends? Perhaps a trio of cory catfish would be good. If pygmies are available then 5 (they are harder to find).

The filter is fine. I agree there is little reason to worry about the pH. Just acclimate any new fish the same way you did with the betta.

With just the single fish in such a large tank (large for him) I doubt you will see much of an ammonia spike and if you add live plants may never see the accumulation of nitrtaes. Still for the first whiel I suggest doing the checks on water conditions and at a minimum doing water changes weekly regardless of how things look. At least 25-50% of the water changed out will make for a healthy fish.

[DebbyS]

I think if this site offered "Fishkeeper of the Day (or Week or Month)" awards, you should win one.

[H3D]

just keep checking water daily, and change if necessary. he has a much better chance with you. I know in college $$ is short, but bio-spira will help speed up process of cycling if necessary. nice fish though.

Definitely get some Bio-Spira and add it to the tank ASAP.

[wataugachicken]

i think a 50% water change every other day will be enough to ensure the safety of the fish during the cycle. one betta in 10g means lots of dilution for the minimal waste he puts out. toxins really shouldn't build up, just make sure that all the food is eaten, and don't overfeed. uneaten food falls down into the gravel and just rots. since the tank isn't cycled, it might get fungus on it as well. not good.

[Kittenfish]

I think if this site offered "Fishkeeper of the Day (or Week or Month)" awards, you should win one.

:) Thank you so much!! Its sad to think that anyone could abandon ANY creature like a piece of trash, even if this one is scaly instead of furry. I'm just glad I was there at the right place in the right time. Unfortunately, something like this happened last year too, where my roommate and I found a cup (like, one of those typical red plastic party cups) with two goldfish and a baby koi -fish inside of it :mad2:. Some student was going home for winter break and just left it out by the dumpsters, so my roomie and I drove for three hours all over the nearest town looking for a fishstore to take them, we finally found one that would, and when we checked back this year, the goldfish handnt made it, but the koi-fish was in a smallish indoor growout pond and was beautiful and healthy :)

Thank you all so much for the advice! I picked up betta pellets, and I will be sure to only feed him what him can consume in a few minutes or less. I will monitor the water closely, and I think it will be a tank just for him, as I dont want to risk getting an incompatible species (I live in an 10x10 cubby hole with another person, I have no room for another tank if the tankmates didn't get along :p:) Also I hope that one betta in that size tank might make the water conditions a little easier for a beginner like me to maintain.
Thank you all for the kind help, I've been trying to do my studying to keep him a healty, happy little thing. As a plus, watching the tank while I study, and hearing the sound of the bubbles and filter has dropped my stress levels from college down a lot! He's helping me as much as I helped him. :)

[TKOS]

Agreed. A single betta in a 10 gallon will make taking care of him a breeze. Adding some live plants like java Fern or crypts will make it even better as they will consume some of the waste product in the tank. Also if you have to leave for a week you don't have to worry about teaching others to do water changes etc....

[DaisyTattoo]

I have a single betta in a 10G all by his lil lonesome and he loves it that way. It does make taking care of the tank a breeze. Much easier than the other tanks, thats for sure.

[hondaman]

Kudos for the save!

I say let the guy have his own space. Its easier to take care of. My betta loves it that way too.

[Chickieepooh2u]

I am so glad there are people like you in this world!! Awesome save, the lucky little guy. I bet he just loves his "Mansion"!! lol

:thm:

[sharpie]

Wow he's really pretty how perfect you found him with that nice big tank for him.. :dance2: I hope he makes it and has a long happy life with you.
Do you have the betta food? I don't think they eat regular flake food.

o yes they do

[TheMightyQueenPixie]

There is a special place in hell reserved for people that "discard" animals.

He is actually quite a nice little fish and by all accounts looks very healthy.. Let him be in the 10 gal. 10 gals isn't big and you dont need to be stressing him with other fish. Bettas are territorial and if they have to keep "running off" an intruder they will. This can get exhausting. Some learn to ignore other fish, some never stop "defending turf".

[Caspar]

One of the reasons that Bettas are so tough is because they are labyrinth fish; meaning that they can breathe atmospheric air. In the event that Bio Spira is not an option for you, you should be able to pull through a fish-in cycle without any problems. Just remember to keep your feedings to a minimum and to keep your ammonia and nitrites below .25.

Looking over the aeration and temp of your tank you should breeze through the cycle especially if your ph is 7.0 or above.

Good Luck to you and Archie

[webcricket]

There is a special place in hell reserved for people that "discard" animals.

I sure hope so, I can't believe someone just dumped this beautiful fish!

He looks really good! One thing...I would not feed him as much as he can eat in a few minutes...bettas can and will gorge themselves to death. I would stick with 3 to 5 pellets a day, and the bloodworms as a weekly treat. It's also beneficial to skip a day of feeding.

He'll have quite a happy life in that 10 gallon!

[Junky123]

Please forgive my suspicion of the story.

How can a person who has never had, as quoted "I have never had a fish or a fishtank before, not even a childhood goldfish in a bowl torture setup" could use these terminologies?

To cycle a tank
slowly acclimating
water parameters
no media
ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites & PH
dechlorinated water
water current
LFS

For new fishkeeper, he/she must be one of the most brightest person I ran accross.

[Aroihkin]

Please forgive my suspicion of the story.

How can a person who has never had, as quoted "I have never had a fish or a fishtank before, not even a childhood goldfish in a bowl torture setup" could use these terminologies?

To cycle a tank
slowly acclimating
water parameters
no media
ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites & PH
dechlorinated water
water current
LFS

For new fishkeeper, he/she must be one of the most brightest person I ran accross.


Or they browsed around on this forum / other forums.

Plus if the ten-gallon was already cycling, it sounds like they intended to get fish? Sounds like some basic research to me...

[Kittenfish]

Please forgive my suspicion of the story.

How can a person who has never had, as quoted "I have never had a fish or a fishtank before, not even a childhood goldfish in a bowl torture setup" could use these terminologies?

To cycle a tank
slowly acclimating
water parameters
no media
ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites & PH
dechlorinated water
water current
LFS

For new fishkeeper, he/she must be one of the most brightest person I ran accross.

Sorry if I didnt come across as "authentically" new, I've been wanting to get into the aquarium hobby for a while now, but as I am at college, I am only allowed to have a ten gallon tank maximum, so I have been researching on this forum, and online in general for several weeks, and I didnt want to make the basic beginner mistakes and kill a bunch of fish. I just never expected to have anything other than a small community tank, so I didnt do much research on bettas, and when I ended up with one, I wanted some advice from experienced fishkeepers like those here on the forums, so my new pet would be as happy as possible. I know some of the basic terminology, because I read a ton of the back history of this forum since I registered. Hope that clears anything up! :joe:

[kellymarie1081]

Please forgive my suspicion of the story.

How can a person who has never had, as quoted "I have never had a fish or a fishtank before, not even a childhood goldfish in a bowl torture setup" could use these terminologies?

To cycle a tank
slowly acclimating
water parameters
no media
ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites & PH
dechlorinated water
water current
LFS

For new fishkeeper, he/she must be one of the most brightest person I ran accross.

why does it matter if they are new or not? regardless of what they said, they just want some help.

[wataugachicken]

it's not a matter of being especially bright (no offense to Kitten, of course). obviously she's been doing her research and can *gasp!* actually READ, which is more than i can say for some people who have been lurking around here for months and still want their bichir and guppies to live happily together.