And Yet Another Problem....

[toomie]

Two days ago I acquired another male betta (there really HAS to be a Bettaholics Anonymous meeting someplace near me, doesn`t there??) and this one did not look or act sick, unlike some others I have brought home. I usually feel sorry for the sick ones and try to nurse them back to health. Anyway, I put him in his new temporary home, and he has been acting weird ever since. He is eating, but he mostly just lays on the bottom and looks, kinda shocked I guess. His dorsal(?) fin is up most of the time, but he mostly lays there and when he does move, it is usually in a darting motion. He seemed to be breathing fast, also. So just tonight (I know, I should have done this sooner) I decided to check the PH of his water and it was between 6.4 and 6.6, which is from what I understand, way too low? Could this be the cause of his behavior? I decided to do a water change, but before I did, I tested another jug of water I had aging, and the PH was exactly the same. I have been using spring water from the grocery store instead of tap water, because our tap water is very hard and I thought it would cause problems, as well as cause build up inside the filter, tank, etc.....This batch of water I bought was from a different store than the last stuff, and the newest betta was the only fish I had used it with so far.

I decided to check my tap water, and wouldn`t you know it, it`s a perfect 7!

So now I dumped out all the spring water, replaced it with tap water, treated it with dechlorinator, and have to now wait until it ages. But poor betta has nothing to sit in except the stuff that is no good for him. How long before it is safe to put him into the new water? Would morning be too early? (it`s 9:26 p.m. here in the eastern U.S.) I feel just awful, he is a beautiful fish and I bought him so he wouldn`t end up looking like all the other bettas that were dying in that store, and now I`ve almost killed him. He was actually starting to lie on his side on the bottom of his tank tonight. I sooo hope he makes it until morning.

Can anyone tell me if I`m doing the right things? I don`t have any PH up to add to his water and it`s late so no getting any tonight.

Please help. Thanks!!

 

[fatheadminnow]

You can add him to the tap water right after the water conditioner was added.

There is not need to "age" the water.

You don't want to use "Spring" water that is store bought, as it will lack in trace minerals that are good for the fish.

Hard water is not a bad thing, it makes you pH stay in one spot, rather than jumping up and down.

-FHM

 

[toomie]

You can add him to the tap water right after the water conditioner was added.

There is not need to "age" the water.

You don't want to use "Spring" water that is store bought, as it will lack in trace minerals that are good for the fish.

Hard water is not a bad thing, it makes you pH stay in one spot, rather than jumping up and down.

-FHM

Ow wow, seriously??? I read somewhere you should age the water to get the bubbles out of it, that`s what I have been doing all along!!! Great! I will go in and check temp of water to make sure it`s good.

Thank you so much!!!!!

 

[-SPB-]

Why are you waiting for the water to age. Once you put the dechlorinator in the water, it's pretty much ready to go.

I wouldn't get any of the chemicals that adjust the PH, this can cause more harm than good.

You can acclimatise the Beta into the tap water, Just like you do when you bring a new fish home. Put the Beta into a bag like you get from the LFS, with some of the old tank water in, then empty this water from the tank and put your new dechlorinated tap water in the tank. Then rest the bag with beta in water, then keep putting small amounts of the new tank water into the bag, every 5 mins or so for half an hour, then put the Beta into the tank.

 

[toomie]

Well, I now have him in his new water. I acclimated him first. Water temp is good. But he is just laying at the bottom of his tank, almost on his side. His gills aren`t even moving now, so I don`t know whether that`s a good thing or not. Before they were almost heaving. He isn`t dead, he does move a little, mostly just to roll his eyes at me, but he still looks shocked. His fin is standing up on his back, it looks like he`s alert, but he isn`t doing anything.

Could he just be exhausted from all the labored breathing? I don`t know what to do anymore. I`m starting to think I`m about to lose my first betta.

Oh yeah, there are bubbles throughout the tank. Not tons of them, but enough to notice. Don`t know if that`s a good thing or not either.

 

[Amunet]

Don't worry about the bubbles.

Are you sure he was ok when you bought him?

What is the water temp? Maybe the water is too cold.

Did you acclimate him properly when you first got him?

I would add some dissolved in some tank water aquarium salt to the tank. Not sure how much.. maybe half a tablespoon per gallon?

 

[toomie]

Don't worry about the bubbles.

Are you sure he was ok when you bought him?

What is the water temp? Maybe the water is too cold.

Did you acclimate him properly when you first got him?

I would add some dissolved in some tank water aquarium salt to the tank. Not sure how much.. maybe half a tablespoon per gallon?

Temp is 80F. I did float his bag for awhile in the new water, and added some of it to his bag before switching him over, but maybe I didn`t do that enough? He hasn`t looked right since I got him out of his bag. I saw him at the lfs a week ago, but he must have been new because his water was clean and he looked pretty robust and healthy (and he is a pretty little guy) so I figured he would be bought quickly. When I went there the other day, he was still there, and I thought he did look not quite as good as when I first saw him, but I couldn`t pinpoint it to say what it is. Doesn`t look like fin rot, no white spots, no white stringy bowel movements.... I just don`t know.

I checked on him this morning, still laying in the bottom corner of his tank, just staring at the wall, listing a little to his side. I put some food in for him and am about to go back to see if he ate it. He shows no sign of being interested in his food right when I put it in, but he has been eating. I don`t know how to treat him because I don`t know what`s wrong. The thing is, he LOOKS perfectly fine, just not acting right. Not even clamping his fins, his back fin is almost always up. Weird.

 

[Amunet]

That's so awful.. hmm.. I'd probably start treating w/ some sort of bacterial med. If nothing else seems to work, then maybe he has a bacterial infection that was made worse due to the stress of moving.
Maybe if he's still eating, try an internal antibacterial food (by itself, not along w/ another med).

 

[toomie]

That's so awful.. hmm.. I'd probably start treating w/ some sort of bacterial med. If nothing else seems to work, then maybe he has a bacterial infection that was made worse due to the stress of moving.
Maybe if he's still eating, try an internal antibacterial food (by itself, not along w/ another med).

Just getting back to this thread......

This morning I moved his tank to a new spot by another betta, and he immediately came to life, flaring and swimming around like Mr. Tough Guy. I let him do this for a few minutes, then put something between him and other betta so they couldn`t see each other. But now he seems to be fine, swimming around his tank, looking more relaxed. Could a change of scenery make that much of a difference? I think I will hold off on the antibiotic for now, unless he starts showing some signs of being abnormal again. Does that sound like a good idea?

Did I just buy a moody betta? lol