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Keray92

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Hello! I need tips and recommendation and how to destress my beta. Last week I bought a male black mustard beta (Goldie) from the local PetSmart. Iā€™ve talked to the fish department worker about proper ways to take of Goldie. He was able to give me some information but I knew I needed to do more research. After reading multiple websites and watching YouTube videos, I realized my 1 gallon wasnā€™t the ideal tank size (though Goldie loved it compared to the small container he was in).

Yesterday, bought a new tank and cycle the water in 24 hours (did the same thing with my 1st one. Recommended by worker). Today I managed to put my beta in the new tank. At first, Goldie was exploring but then he suddenly stopped and now only swimming around the top surface of the water. He does his oxygen bubbles and he stays in one area for a bit. Iā€™m a bit worried since heā€™s leaning a bit when he stands still. I donā€™t think itā€™s his bladder. I only feed him a few pellets every other day. (Last meal was yesterday morning)

is he still getting used to the tank? He was a little inactive with the 1st gallon but the next day he was swimming a lot and creating nest bubbles. After doing more research, Iā€™ve realized I made another rookie mistake by not acclimating him with the new tank. Iā€™ve checked the ph of the water. Everything looked normal on the strip. Temp is 80f.

Also, are the oxygen bubbles different from the bubbles nest? Iā€™ve noticed the bubbles disappears when he released it. Hereā€™s a pic of my betta with his new tank. Thanks! Anything information helps!

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Welcome to the forum! So glad you got him a bigger tank, however, 24 hours is not a proper cycle. Tanks need at least two weeks to fully cycle. It often takes up to a month. Now that he is in the tank you will have to do a fish-in-tank cycle which isn't ideal but is doable. I will find the link for how to do it for you to read.

Do you by any chance know your ammonia, nitrate and nitrite levels?
Did you dechlorinate you water?

Please never believe anything a pet store employee tells you, unless it is a small private store and you know they are knowledgeable.

Invest in a API master test kit. This will help you with the initial cycle and in the long run help you keep his water top notch. It's kind of pricey but 100% worth it
Good luck! Tag me if you ever need any help!
 
 
JuiceBox52's link explains what cycling is but as you now have a betta in the tank, you can't use the method in the link.

A fish-in cycle involves testing the water every day for ammonia and nitrite, and if either of them show above zero doing a large enough water change to get them to zero. As long as the new water is dechlorinated and at roughly the same temperature as the tank water, even a 90% water change can be done.
If you don't have a test kit, change half the water every day until you have one.

You can speed up the cycle by adding Tetra Safe Start, and putting live plants in the tank. Feed the betta once every other day or even once every 3 days. He will not starve. Less food = less ammonia being made.
 
Here I explain, cycle a tank is when you put ammonia and nitrite down to 0 by using nitrosomonas bacteria to "eat" ammonia and turn them to nitrite then another bacteria name nitrobacter and nitro spira will "eat" nitrite and turn them to nitrate, you can speed up the process by buying the ā€˜bacteria bottleā€™ I would recommended tetra safe start. Its a copy paste post so dont expect more of it :rofl:
 
I have used Tetra SafeStart Plus to cycle my bother-in-laws tanks and it works. As far as plants, I would recommend water sprite, anacharis and hornwort. They are fast growing and will absorb the ammonia. Also they can just float or you can "plant" them in the gravel, they easy to care for and will absorb what they need from the water.
 
Welcome to the forum! So glad you got him a bigger tank, however, 24 hours is not a proper cycle. Tanks need at least two weeks to fully cycle. It often takes up to a month. Now that he is in the tank you will have to do a fish-in-tank cycle which isn't ideal but is doable. I will find the link for how to do it for you to read.

Do you by any chance know your ammonia, nitrate and nitrite levels?
Did you dechlorinate you water?

Please never believe anything a pet store employee tells you, unless it is a small private store and you know they are knowledgeable.

Invest in a API master test kit. This will help you with the initial cycle and in the long run help you keep his water top notch. It's kind of pricey but 100% worth it
Good luck! Tag me if you ever need any help!

Yes, I've checked the levels using a strip (though I heard the strips aren't reliable) I'm going to the local aquarium store today to get a better test skit. Thank for the cycle information. I didn't know it took so long to fully cycle the tank! Yeah, I believe the employees are just doing their job. However, it makes me upset on how they're treating betta fishes. I just want Goldie to live a happy stress free life.
 
Thank you for responding to my post. Today, Goldie looks better. He ate his pellets and actually exploring more of the tank. I have two moss balls and one live plant to absorb the ammonia. I'm going to get one more sprite, anacharis, or hornwort. In addition to that, I'm going to buy the indian almond leaf for his tank. I've read it does wonders to their health and naturally lowers the ph level. I'm glad I've found this website.
 
Yes, I've checked the levels using a strip (though I heard the strips aren't reliable) I'm going to the local aquarium store today to get a better test skit. Thank for the cycle information. I didn't know it took so long to fully cycle the tank! Yeah, I believe the employees are just doing their job. However, it makes me upset on how they're treating betta fishes. I just want Goldie to live a happy stress free life.
Never believe what a fish store employee tells you, always research before you buy. I do what is called a planted/silent cycle where I have plants in the tank first and after a week or two I start adding the fish in small groups. The plants take care of the ammonia.
 

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