Sick Betta

E

Esoter1c

AC Members
Dec 26, 2006
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Hey,

my girlfriend got me a Betta for christmas in a 1gal tank, with an air pump, but now I believe he is sick, he did come from a big pet store but she picked him up when he just arrived from shipping, but now he appears sick, he hasnt aten in about 7 days and he has some small fin rot and brown splots on parts of his gills, I've been doing ~50% water changes every 3-4 days. Anyone know what could be causing this? I've taken him out of his tank and cleaned his tank out and did a full water change, but it didn't seem to help, anyone have any ideas?
I'm almost tempted to just say screw it but I dont want to, usually he is a beautiful gold/yellow colour.

Thanks.
 
You have to monitor the water, do water changes if your ammonia or nitrites go above .25, or if your nitrates go above 40, even if you have to do it more than one time a day. I know that the pet stores are full of little bowls for beta's, but they cannot live in a 1 gallon bowl, he is slowly being poisoned to death if your chemicals are not right. He needs to be in a 5 gallon tank, with proper heating and filtration. But for right not, make sure the chemicals are right.
 
Sorry to hear about you situation. Honestly, no reputable LFS should be selling unquarantined fish. Bettas go through alot being shipped from overseas so it is possible that the stress of the whole situation has just gotten the better of him. Your best bet is to keep him in a quiet, darkened place away from activity. If that air pump is going like crazy, trim it back until it is just enough to break the surface of the water. They dont need them, but a little agitation will keep scum from forming on the top of the water. If he is looking rotty, hit him with maracyn 2. Keep your fins crossed!
 
if he is not eating try dribbling just a bit, like a pinch of kosher salt into his water after every couple water change or so. The added electrolytes may perk him up enough to start eating again. And god get him in a bigger aquarium... like a 2 gallon at least...
 
Yeah it wasnt my choice to get such a small tank, my girlfriend gave it + him to me as a Christmas gift (Even though she doesnt know much about fish, it was a really thoughtful gift and I still love it). This store she got it from is a big pet store, they don't take good care of their fish, and when I setup my 30gal, Im not buying a single fish from them, they all look sick as hell. The betta looked fine when she bought it, because he was fresh out of the box from shipping (Im not buying any fish from them, we have a much better LFS here), they hadn't even had a chance to put him into those little glass jars they like to keep them in, he was still in the bag. Can I get a filter for such a small tank? I'll see what the cost might be to get a bigger aquarium but I don't want to spend too much, or if I do, what would be a good addition to the aquarium? I'll take a look around and see what my options are, Ill also try the salt and if that doesnt work then melafix/primafix a shot.
 
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Well I've tried treating the water with pimafix, no luck.
Then I went to my LFS and they recommended Betta Fix Remedy, no luck.
I've also tried adding salt, no luck.
So I went out and bought another 1gal tank to house one of them in (I don't have any room for a larger tank, because of renovations), since before they were together with a divider...
And so far, after 5 days, both are still not eating.
They haven't aten since Christmas, I don't understand how they are still alive!!
I do 50% water changes every 3-4 days so they're tanks are nice and clean. I really don't understand, can anyone offer anymore advice? I really don't want to lose them, they have lots of sentimental value!!
Oh and I have been checking ammonia levels every 2 days, and nothing has been registering.
 
You mentioned above that you wanted to know if there were any filter options for such a small tank. I have a betta in a two gallon and I use a Red Sea nano filter for it (a similar filter would be an Azoo Palm filter) they are specifically made for tanks up to three gallons. It really helps the condition of the tank and keeps the water sparkling clean. It only costs about $9 and the filter for a 4 pack are about $3.50. Well worth it if you are looking to help your betta out and keep the tank healthy. It's one of the best things I could have done for my betta. Good luck!
 
Because theyre in such small tanks I dont keep tabs on the water temperature, but it would be about the same as the temperature of my room I guess, which is 72 F.
I went out and bought them some Brine Shrimp today, to see if they would eat that, and they did! However obviously Brine Shrimp will be kind of expensive to feed all the time, so I'm hoping that they will start eating pellet food again, atleast some of the time (I've tried feeding them 2 different kinds of pellet food too).
 
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