BettaGirl28

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So,I've had my betta Eros for about a two weeks and he was in great health at the time.I made sure to clean his tank and decorations before placing them inside and I added conditioner to the tap water.I allowed the water to be filtered for about a week before getting him and dosed the water with bettafix to prevent any diseases since the betta before had passed away possibly from a bacterial infection.Everything was thoroughly cleaned after the other fish died as well. He's now in a 5 gal tank with plenty of hiding places and plants,no direct light,only fish and kept warm between 78 to 80 degrees.He seemed to be doing fine until today.He's still eating and isn't sluggish but his coloring is dull and his fins look clamped.His tail fin also looks a little ragged but not really bad.Today he was darting all over his tank and bumping the glass walls aggressively.He also had a floating log that he seemed to enjoy before now that he jumped on top of and was above the water.Luckily I was there to put him back in the water before he could harm himself but after he would lay his head on the log and rest.I kept an eye on him for a while to make sure he wouldn't do anything to hurt himself and after a while he went inside the log and started nudging the log aggressively.I finally moved the log out of the tank because I was worried he would get caught on top of it again while I was asleep.I'm really confused on what to do in order to calm him down or help him.Any advice would be much appreciated.
 
Could you tell us the levels of ammonia and nitrite in the tank, please. It is possible that when you cleaned the tank you killed the filter bacteria so the tank is no longer cycled and ammonia is building up.
The first thing to do when a fish's behaviour changes is to test the water and do a water change of about 50%. If it is a water quality problem, the water change will help. And if there is ammonia and/or nitrite in the water you will need to continue doing water changes daily until the tank is cycled.

Water changes will also remove the bettafix from the water. I know the company claim it is suitable for bettas but the aromatic substances in all the products ending in -fix can interfere with the labyrinth organ of both bettas and gouramis.
 
How many times have you changed the water since you got him I bet the ammonia is thru the roof.
What brand of water conditioner do you use?
Bettafix is rubbish.

I would do at least 50% water change straight away
 
I don't have a way to test the ammonia or nitrate levels on hand at the moment but I did test his ph levels and it was at 7. I know there's various methods to do water changes and I was wondering what the best one would be for him.Hes now stopped darting around and is hiding instead. Also if I'm not to use bettafix what should I be using to treat my sick Bertas?
 
You do really need to buy testers for ammonia and nitrite as those are the things that can make fish sick and kill them. Liquid testers with test tubes are more accurate than strips.

There is really only one way to do a water change, though the exact method can vary.
You need a siphon tube (something like this ) and a bucket to remove the water, and unless the tank has lots of live plants growing in the substrate, that should be cleaned at the same time. If you have gravel on the bottom of the tank, push the end of the siphon tube into the gravel until the muck stops coming then do the next bit. Even if you haven't done all the gravel, stop when the tank is half empty. Be aware where the betta is at all times as they are nosey fish and will come and see what you are doing and you don't want to hurt him.
Replace the water with freshly run, dechlorinated tap water that has been warmed to the same temperature as the tank water - feeling the temp with your hand is close enough. Pour the water in carefully so you don't churn up the substrate or distress the betta. With my betta's tank I use a jug to ladle the water from the bucket, and pour it through a a yoghurt pot with lots of holes stabbed in it as a sort of colander.

Some people just scoop water out of the tank, but this does not clean the substrate. Some people remove the betta from the tank to clean it but this can be very stressful for the betta, more stressful than leaving him in the tank. As long as you know where he is at all times so you don't hurt him it is perfectly safe to leave him in the tank.


Until you can test for ammonia and nitrite, I would do a water change very day. Once you have testers, use those to guide your water changes. You need to test the water every day and do a water change whenever the reading for either of them is above zero. Once the levels stay at zero for a week by themselves, you can start doing weekly water changes.




The -fix medications aren't really medicines, they are preventatives. They are more like our antiseptics, fine for keeping a wound clean to stop an infection starting but if the wound does get infected we need a medicine to treat it. If a fish gets sick, you need a medicine to treat that sickness, not a general preventative.
Most fish illnesses are preventable by keeping the tank water clean. And a lot are treatable just with extra water changes.
 
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I did a 50% water change this morning but he's still acting weird and he jumped on top of his log again. I'm getting an ammonia test kit soon but for now what can I do about his odd behavior? Or is there not much I can do? I'm just worried about him getting stuck on the log and drying up. He's also hiding a lot more than he usually does.
 
I did an ammonia and 6-in-1 test kit on his water.His ammonia levels are normal,his nitrate and nitrite levels are normal,his ph is neutral,his chlorine levels are normal and his alkalinity is good.His water was hard but I don't know if that has something to do with it.
 
Hi

Not trying to be rude but " normal " means nothing, we need the actual numbers.

Far to often we hear the word " normal " and when we get the numbers it is anything but normal. The only safe level for ammonia is zero.
 
I got strips because there weren't any liquid tests available.So,I can't give you numbers only ranges.
 
Hi,

You said you've had him for about 2 weeks and you did a 50% water change a day or so ago; had you done a water change for him at all prior to the one you've just done?
 

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