Eploy
New Member
Hi everyone,
I work at a pet store where we have a few betta's. One of the bettas has been lethargic for a few days. The first day I noticed this, I did a big water change. The day before we recieved new fish and more than I had ordered, so there was a significant increase in bioload, the nitrate values were a little high (can't remember the concentration unfortunately, nitrite and ammonia were fine). I thought the water change helped, but the next day he was the same. We seperated him in a quarantine tank and he hasn't improved, but also hasn't passed. I hoped to find out what was wrong with him, but I don't know.
So he's been lethargic staying at the bottom of the tank. When he's laying down the only sign of him being alive is his gills moving. Every once in a while he comes up for air, and he does swim when disturbed. I've thought of swimbladder issues, but he seems to be able to swim fine. He can get to the surface quickly, swim around a bit, descend and hold his position in the middle, but he doesn't do that for long. I don't see any parasites on him and haven't seen him rub. We've had him for almost two months now. The fish he's been sharing water with act normal and we have had no deaths in that tank for quite a while.
I also haven't noticed any injuries, but to be honest Iooking at example pictures I'm not entirely confident I'd catch it.
Do any of you know what it might be and what I can do to help him? Thanks in advance.
The photo of him against the black background is from the first day I noticed him being lethargic.
The second photo is the most recent of him in the quarantine tank.
The photo's of him flaring up are from when we just recieved him (for the record the two betta's were only in each other's view for 5 minutes. The plakat lives in a different tank, out of view)
I work at a pet store where we have a few betta's. One of the bettas has been lethargic for a few days. The first day I noticed this, I did a big water change. The day before we recieved new fish and more than I had ordered, so there was a significant increase in bioload, the nitrate values were a little high (can't remember the concentration unfortunately, nitrite and ammonia were fine). I thought the water change helped, but the next day he was the same. We seperated him in a quarantine tank and he hasn't improved, but also hasn't passed. I hoped to find out what was wrong with him, but I don't know.
So he's been lethargic staying at the bottom of the tank. When he's laying down the only sign of him being alive is his gills moving. Every once in a while he comes up for air, and he does swim when disturbed. I've thought of swimbladder issues, but he seems to be able to swim fine. He can get to the surface quickly, swim around a bit, descend and hold his position in the middle, but he doesn't do that for long. I don't see any parasites on him and haven't seen him rub. We've had him for almost two months now. The fish he's been sharing water with act normal and we have had no deaths in that tank for quite a while.
I also haven't noticed any injuries, but to be honest Iooking at example pictures I'm not entirely confident I'd catch it.
Do any of you know what it might be and what I can do to help him? Thanks in advance.
The photo of him against the black background is from the first day I noticed him being lethargic.
The second photo is the most recent of him in the quarantine tank.
The photo's of him flaring up are from when we just recieved him (for the record the two betta's were only in each other's view for 5 minutes. The plakat lives in a different tank, out of view)
