Male Crowntail, Sick?

[funkyhoney]

Hey guys and gals, i was just heading down to my parents bathroom to take some photos of the male crowntail that my mother has had for about a year now and show him off to you all when i got there he noticed me and came up for food as usual, but as i got the camera ready i saw that his gills were sticking way out, and not retracting or anything. i'm no expert on bettas but i do work in an aquarium and keep tropicals and i'm quite sure something isn't right.

here are some photos of him, any ideas what's going on?

for reference, he is kept in a small 1-2L wine glass shaped bowl, i know it's not the best thing but he's not my fish and they want him on the bathroom bench; he also gets fed twice daily and has his water changed every weekend. i don't personally do this but i'm quite sure it's done correctly, and he gets the correct water treatment and even some salt.

 

[1ncubu5]

looks like he was flaring at you, nothing to worry about

 

[funkyhoney]

that's what i thought at first, i looked at him 10 minutes later and was still doing it... maybe he just hates me.


i'll check him again, thanks

 

[1ncubu5]

lol 10 minutes, he must really hate you! lol only joking. Yea i'd give him another check, I know mine likes to flare at me when i first switch the light on, if you did that try cehcking him without the main light on

 

[zoekin8yg]

hes just flaring. Way too small a jar and way too few water changes though.

 

[kribensis12]

In real life bettas live in pools of water, just like if it rained so a 2 gallon tank is plaenty big, but 2 liters isnt even a gallon!!!!!!!!

 

[Jaded12]

Yeah he's just flaring, nothing to worry about. IMO the bowl is a bit small, but... he looks healthy and happy... So he must be being well taken care of

 

[funkyhoney]

ok i thought he may of just been angry with me thanks all

yes i'm aware it should have about 10L (~2G) but it's not mine and they won't but it in anything larger, unfortunately most all pet stores/aquariums just sell tanks/cups around this size and the next thing up is generally a bowl that would be too big for a desk or bench top environment.

having said that if i can't convince them to change the water more often i'll do it myself and it is over a year old and still looking quite well.

also, i can't do anything about this, but at my work we have about 50 bettas all kept in about 500ml cups, some of them have been there a long time

 

[liz2]

I would think he is bored, and if in a bathroom when anyone goes in he just flares at them. Has he got no weed or anything in his vase? Boring life, mine is in the bathroom but she has bigger tank...not getting at you if he aint yours,

 

[zoekin8yg]

In real life bettas live in pools of water, just like if it rained so a 2 gallon tank is plaenty big, but 2 liters isnt even a gallon!!!!!!!!

NO they live in rice paddys!

 

[Jaded12]

In real life bettas live in pools of water, just like if it rained so a 2 gallon tank is plaenty big, but 2 liters isnt even a gallon!!!!!!!!

NO they live in rice paddys!

Common misconception, bettas actually live in slow moves streams and fairly decent sized ponds in the wild, and only for a few months in the summer when everything dries up do they live in the small bodies of water people are convinced they live in 24/7.

I'm sure it also need not be mentioned that the wild bettas that live in those conditions are NOT the same domesticated bettas that we keep today. Todays bettas have been specifically line bred for hundreds of years for color and finnage and (except for the thai bred fighters that stay true to their wild lines) are not anything close to their wild cousins, their lines are weaker and they are just in general not as hardy as wild bettas and therefor should not be compared to them.