Very timid betta

Sgooosh · Oct 6, 2024

Hi! I just got a beautiful golden betta for like a dollar (the store marked him off for some reason) and he’s currently in a semi-temporary 2.5gal planted. He is super skittish and darts away whenever I approach him. I’m wondering what I should do in order for him to not be stressed out when I approach him so he accepts food?

fishorama · Oct 6, 2024

I would say go slow when approaching the tank. Let him know you are the "god of food" & reward with just a flake or a slow sinking pellet at a time. Don't overfeed, bettas can get overweight. But 2 or even 4 times/day should help him get over his shyness. He'll soon love to see you coming! Of course you'll need to vacuum out any food he doesn't eat. There's a learning curve for both of you, be patient..

We'd love to see a pic of him, he sounds pretty.

Sgooosh · Oct 6, 2024

fishorama said:
I would say go slow when approaching the tank. Let him know you are the "god of food" & reward with just a flake or a slow sinking pellet at a time. Don't overfeed, bettas can get overweight. But 2 or even 4 times/day should help him get over his shyness. He'll soon love to see you coming! Of course you'll need to vacuum out any food he doesn't eat. There's a learning curve for both of you, be patient..

We'd love to see a pic of him, he sounds pretty.

okay! I’m used to big tank with tons of fish and not a single fish so i’m a bit nervous lol! I’ve already turned the lights off for his tank, so here’s a picture of another fish for now lol

fishorama · Oct 6, 2024

Nice! But I still want to see your golden betta soon...How's that for nagging? Back in our betta days, "golden" wasn't an option, mostly red & blue with some variations/combos of those.

Colin_T · Oct 7, 2024

make sure the water is clean
have a dark substrate on the bottom of the container
have floating plants to provide shelter
give it a few weeks so the fish can get use to the new habitat

Sgooosh · Oct 7, 2024

fishorama said:
Nice! But I still want to see your golden betta soon...How's that for nagging? Back in our betta days, "golden" wasn't an option, mostly red & blue with some variations/combos of those.

lol I’ll make sure to do that first thing in the morning! Yeah! I’ve never saw anything like this one either, and to think it was on sale for 1.50

Colin_T said:
make sure the water is clean
have a dark substrate on the bottom of the container
have floating plants to provide shelter
give it a few weeks so the fish can get use to the new habitat

okay, I used river rocks for the substrate, and made sure to add lots of plants from my other tanks

Sgooosh · Oct 7, 2024

fishorama said:
Nice! But I still want to see your golden betta soon...How's that for nagging? Back in our betta days, "golden" wasn't an option, mostly red & blue with some variations/combos of those.

Colin_T said:
make sure the water is clean
have a dark substrate on the bottom of the container
have floating plants to provide shelter
give it a few weeks so the fish can get use to the new habitat

Hey guys! I finally got a good photo of the fish! He is very very smart! I have successfully trained him (only after one trial!) on being hand fed with tweezers!

fishorama · Oct 7, 2024

Thanks. He's really different! That was fast learning curve after only a couple days. I'm thinking his shyness is gone! Your tank looks nice with live plants but what is that algae? clump under him in the last pic? Looks like something I try to remove from my tanks...I could be wrong...

Big gravel, small tank can be hard to clean well. Do you have a small gravel vac that you can stick down almost to the bottom? It'll take some time to learn the technique. But you said this was a temporary tank so do the best you can.

Colin_T · Oct 8, 2024

Did he have the black head and black patch on the side of the body when you got him?
The shop might have medicated him (overdosed) or chlorinated him and this could be bruising from chemical poisoning and should clear up over a month if the water is clean.

Sgooosh · Oct 8, 2024

Colin_T said:
Did he have the black head and black patch on the side of the body when you got him?
The shop might have medicated him (overdosed) or chlorinated him and this could be bruising from chemical poisoning and should clear up over a month if the water is clean.

yes, he had a black head when I got him, but it has gotten more vibrant over the days, the black parts on his body are starting to clear up though, I'm thinking that he is going to have blue/black head and yellow body once he fully recovers.

fishorama said:
Thanks. He's really different! That was fast learning curve after only a couple days. I'm thinking his shyness is gone! Your tank looks nice with live plants but what is that algae? clump under him in the last pic? Looks like something I try to remove from my tanks...I could be wrong...

Big gravel, small tank can be hard to clean well. Do you have a small gravel vac that you can stick down almost to the bottom? It'll take some time to learn the technique. But you said this was a temporary tank so do the best you can.

The algae is some algae that I have "controlled" in my main tank, it grows very compacted and I added it to hopefully aid the cycle as it's a new tank.
He is definitely less shy! He's still very scared of my fingers and will only eat from a tweezer, but that's alright for me.

I also noticed that he has some red spots developing in his fin, which might have been why he was marked down, but I'll do daily water changes and feed him well, and if that doesn't work i'll result to salt.

fishorama · Oct 8, 2024

Have you tested his tank for ammonia & nitrite? Red streaks or spots are cause for concern. You're doing what I do first, lots of water changes. Keep them up. They can work miracles! But if the red spots get larger, streaky or more of them, it may be time for an antibiotic. Salt can help with certain things but not most bacteria. Post another pic or 2 in a couple days.

& TY for the algae clump explanation, lol. But again, test!

As for the "finger shyness", try holding the tweezers down gradually closer to the food. He's new, you're both learning the "house rules". Fish & keepers learn by doing & hungry fish are often willing to try if you go slow. Try to wait a while before offering a 2nd bite & change up the foods. The food god(ess) should always decide what & when. He's made very good strides in only a few days. Reinforce that!

Sgooosh · Oct 8, 2024

fishorama said:
Have you tested his tank for ammonia & nitrite? Red streaks or spots are cause for concern. You're doing what I do first, lots of water changes. Keep them up. They can work miracles! But if the red spots get larger, streaky or more of them, it may be time for an antibiotic. Salt can help with certain things but not most bacteria. Post another pic or 2 in a couple days.

& TY for the algae clump explanation, lol. But again, test!

As for the "finger shyness", try holding the tweezers down gradually closer to the food. He's new, you're both learning the "house rules". Fish & keepers learn by doing & hungry fish are often willing to try if you go slow. Try to wait a while before offering a 2nd bite & change up the foods. The food god(ess) should always decide what & when. He's made very good strides in only a few days. Reinforce that!

I havent tested yet, but I'll test as soon as I can.
If this gets worse, I'm definitely going to use antibiotics!

Thanks for the training tips! I will start doing that and hopefully he will learn to eat dropped food!

fishorama · Oct 8, 2024

LOL, or you'll forever be handfeeding him (not terrible for a spoiled pet

). As you go along, try lowering you hand gradually until you're just above the substrate. Then drop a bite so he has to pick it up all by himself. You're both doing great!

Sgooosh · Oct 9, 2024

fishorama said:
LOL, or you'll forever be handfeeding him (not terrible for a spoiled pet ). As you go along, try lowering you hand gradually until you're just above the substrate. Then drop a bite so he has to pick it up all by himself. You're both doing great!

Thanks! He seems to not be scared of my hand anymore!
Ill try dropping it WITH the tweezers nearby if he can recognize that it is food.

Sgooosh · Oct 9, 2024

oh, and something else, as you can see in the photos, his fins are missing a little bit, weirdly curled, and also not very flared out like other photos of veiltails that I see. Will he eventually gain the strength to look like this? or will he just stay as he is?

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Very timid betta

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