Why can I not keep bettas alive?

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pzuzu

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Sep 23, 2005
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Hello,

I've got a ten gallon tank where I used to keep different things in before I got my bigger tank. I always wanted to get a betta because I love their appearance, but never wanted to do the whole bowl thing. So now that my 10 gallon tank is vacant, I thought it would be the perfect thing for a betta. I relandscaped it to have a lot of hiding places away from the filter and the air wand. Then I got 4 white clouds, which I had always heard they were compatible with bettas. I waited a little while until everything was back in check. My tank specs went a little haywire with the missing bigger fish, but it didn't take it long to come back to normal. I ran all the tests, it was ready. I got a betta. He lived about three days. One morning I wake up and his mouth is white, so put some melafix in there. By evening the white quickly spread halfway through his body, and by midnight he was dead.

I took him out, did a water change. Waited a few days, and got another betta. This one lasted two days. Then I got another betta. He lasted one day. What the hell? I can't try again. This is turning into a massacre. I really want a betta. What in the world could be wrong with my tank? The white clouds are still alive and perfectly healthy and happy. I was thinking maybe it's because I keep buying the bettas from Wal-Mart. Should I get one from petsmart instead? But they all looked completely healthy when I got them. I pay very close attention before I pick them out. And when I put them in the tank, they seem happy to be out of those small little cups.

Anybody got any ideas?

Thanks!
Fernando
 
Yes, I have a heater. I have it set to 80. I read that was a good temp for bettas. Some say 75-77 if they are well-bred. Higher if not sure. I figured it was wal-mart...so I set it to 80.

Perhaps I just had bad luck. The white clouds are still going strong though... they've been in there now for about three weeks. No problems. Just the bettas.

Anybody have any suggestions?

Thanks!
Fernando
 
we got ours from wall-eye mart. It's still goin, we have it in a 2.5 G vase in the kitchen, with a banna root plant and a tiny pleco, it seems to do fine with a 100% water change out every 3 weeks
 
Maybe they are not acclimating well to your water. I would try acclimating them in a small fish bowl or something first, adding a little bit of your water at a time. It could be stress from water or temp changing when going into your tank.

Just a thought...
 
NorthStar said:
we got ours from wall-eye mart. It's still goin, we have it in a 2.5 G vase in the kitchen, with a banna root plant and a tiny pleco, it seems to do fine with a 100% water change out every 3 weeks
Click to expand...

EVERY 3 WEEKS! You have got to be kidding...Anything that is surviving in there is out of sheer determination....Get the pleco out of there...
 
The treatment, or lack of it, that bettas typicly get usually mean they are damaged to the point of being half dead to begin with. Amonia levels build up quickly in such small containers and seriously impair their ability to obtain oxygen from thier gills. A betta that has not been through alot of such stressors should be able to get all it's oxygen needs from it's gills. If he has to go up for a bubble alot he isn't getting enough and is more apt to fall ill to other things.

I had a walmart betta for 2.5 years and he was never very energetic or strong. The contrast with the betta I got that was displayed in a circulating range with more water volume and a constant working biofilter is considerable.
This new betta has no difficulty darting halfway accross the 55 gallon tank. He also doesn't need to supplement his gill oxygen intake with surface air.

Conditions of houseing befor you get a fish really makes a difference in their lifespan and health. Betta's in good condition should be able to reach 5+ years easily. But unless you know exactly what and how that betta was cared for unfortuneatly you can't expect a normal lifespan out of every betta.
 
Thanks all for the help. The interesting thing about this is that a friend of mine got a betta from wal-mart at the same time as I got my last one. Hers is still alive and she put it in a half-gallon bowl after me trying to tell her she needs a bigger place for a betta. She insisted they like small spaces. I insisted they do better in tanks. Mine is dead, hers is completely alive and healthy looking.

Coincidence? Or is there truth to what she's saying? My water parameters are great. My ammonia levels are at zero, nitrites are at zero and nitrates are at 10. This tank has been set up for a while and is well cycled. I have housed a lot of creatures in it over the months with no problems.

But these bettas just don't wanna live. I'll try getting a betta from a different source. Perhaps wal-mart bettas aren't acclamated to live in tanks, but to remain their lives in tiny quarters. I don't know.

If the next one doesn't live, I might just have to call it quits. I certainly don't want a fish in a bowl.

Fernando
 
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