Lost Two Betta Fish In One Weekend :(

[livelongspock]

Hello,
 
I have had fish tanks in the past, nothing fancy, 10 gallon tanks with a variety of tropical fish.  I have kept fish alive for years.  We haven't had fish in, oh, 10 years or so.  My kids have been asking for a pet.  I bought my son a betta fish for his 10th birthday.  We bought a 1 gallon tank (with filter) and I have a heater, if I need it but it has been fairly warm the last few days.  Betta #1 (Spock) was brought home on Friday, we followed the pet store directions about conditioning the water and letting it sit for several hours and letting the water that we brought the fish home in and the tank come to the same room temperature.  In went the first fish.  He darted around like crazy with gills flaring, it was like he couldn't breath. He died by morning
 
The next day, we went back to the pet store and said we did everything they asked, there was something wrong with the fish.  We got water a different water conditioner and a new fish.  They tested the water for us, they said it was high ph (7.6) and the new conditioner should handle that.
 
In went fish #2 (this was last night).  He also darted around and blew out oxygen bubbles when he went into the tank.  After completely freaking out, he hid behind the filter most of the day.  Once I found him stuck to the filter so I turned it off.  He didn't eat his food this morning. By this evening, he was floating at the top in the middle of the tank. Now, he is floating at the bottom (in an upright orientation).  I keep thinking he is dead but if I try to scoop him, he will move a little.  Tapping on the tank doesn't make him move.  I think he will be dead by the morning.  My son is going to be SO upset
 
I assume their is something wrong with our water.  Our pet store said they could only test for ph.  What else could be causing the poisoning in the water???  It isn't an old enough tank to have a nitrate or ammonia issue, right?
 
Please help!

 

[LyraGuppi]

Welcome to the hobby! Sadly, my first steps were this way. Not fun
 
Fish breath out and excrete something called ammonia. The ammonia is extremely poisonous to them, meaning that it must be taken out to keep the fish alive. One way to do this is to (in the case of a one gallon tank) is to do 100% water changes every two days. This is not only is annoying to do, but is very stressful to the betta. The second way to keep ammonia down is to cycle your tank. I recommend reading this for further info, but I'll explain it simply.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/421488-cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first/
A fish will breathe out and excrete ammonia, which, if no nitrifying bacteria are present, will stay in that poisonous state. The two types of nitrifying bacteria convert the ammonia down into a less toxic form, giving your tank much less workload..usually one water change a week is good. If there is no cycle, a filter is partially useless.
 
Ammonia (very toxic to the fish) -> Nitrite (still toxic, but less than ammonia) -> Nitrate (only toxic in large numbers, but water changes and plants take care of this)
 
Here is the betta caresheet that will answer alot of questions.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/423364-betta-splendens-caresheet/
 
The death of your first betta sounds like either:
Ammonia in the water (some taps have it, sadly)
Cold water (bettas need 78-80 degrees F water)
Untreated water (what did you treat the water with? Heavy metals in the water can harm a fish)
 
The second is sounding like:
An ammonia problem
Cold water
Stress
Untreated water
 
Try buying a liquid test kit for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. This will help a bunch.
Personally, I'd recommend trying to return the fish, and start over. Buying a bigger tank should be the first order of business if you wish to keep him, the minimum for a single betta is 2.5 gallons, but for water stability I prefer 5<. I'm running out of time to write much more, so hopefully any questions can be answered by more experienced fishkeepers.

 

[NickAu]

Sorry to hear that, Bettas are such nice fish. It's not your fault.
 

We bought a 1 gallon tank (with filter)

Way to small for a Betta in my opinion.
 

The next day, we went back to the pet store and said we did everything they asked, there was something wrong with the fish.  We got water a different water conditioner and a new fish.  They tested the water for us, they said it was high ph (7.6) and the new conditioner should handle that.

I would not be going back there, All they want to do is sell you stuff. If as they said " the PH was high " They should have advised you not to get a Betta, And reccomended some other fish. And there is no such thing as water conditioner that lowers PH in a safe stable way, There are way more factors involved than " Just add a cap full per gallon of water " can handle.  If the store you went to knew what they were doing they could have tested your water and given you all the numbers, PH Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, GH, KH. I bet the PH test was also messed up also.

 

[nic1]

How long has the tank been set up for?
Did you cycle the tank?
I wouldnt go back to buy fish from that store if they just sold you another fish with a different water conditioner without getting to the bottom of the issue...  correcting the problem then going back once the water is stable.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

The best thing I can offer you is this: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/423364-betta-splendens-caresheet/
 
I highly recommend you read it and follow the steps included by Wildbetta to have success with your next betta.  They are wonderful fish, but they have certain minimum requirements and failing to meet those will result in your results.  Sadly, the LFS you are going to is actually setting you up for failure.  That could be from a lack of knowledge on their end, or a lack of care.  I don't care to speculate.

 

[BiggTexx]

Sorry to hear, but you have been given quite a bit of good advice already. The only thing I would expand upon is what Nick mentioned, and that is 1 gallon is really not sufficient for any fish at all. a 5 gallon would be perfect for a single betta, and possibly a snail.
 
Now, not all Bettas are the same, some being more rough and 'violent' than others, but if you could go to a larger tank you may find a few more fish are still possible to be housed with a Betta provided there is enough hiding places, such as plants:
 
10+ gal - Betta and 6-7 Pygmy Corys or 6 Ember Tetras (not both)
20+ gal - Betta and 1 Clown Pleco (Clown Pleco's need driftwood)