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I've had similar problems, although my pH is higher than yours, about 8.5. And the city website says the pH is 9.2 on average! ugh. My water is very hard too. My fish always just die in the same way, and their symptoms don't match any symptoms I've ever been able to figure out. No medications...

You could see if you can convince someone to take him for a month to get him stronger for the journey since it would probably be hard for him to ship him now. I've never shipped a fish so I dont have much advice there, but I have received a lot and the ones in bigger bags always see to be...

Why do you want to breed, because your fish is building a bubble nest and think they want to breed? Bettas just build nests and want to breed but they're just fish so it's not like he's sad if he can't make babies. Breeding bettas is quite stressful on both the male and the female, I don't think...

Well if you had somewhere to put the remaining guppies, you could feed the filter with ammonia until you get the girls, then you can keep the bacteria alive. I wouldn't put guppies with the female bettas though.

Yeah feeder blocks are more likely to kill them than just not feeding them. I haven't used the automatic feeders, but I've heard there is some risk of spilling and over feeding. If you do use an automatic feeder try to get one that would only feed the bettas once of twice during the vacation...

All my tanks have a film it's nothing to worry about as long as you're sure it's not from soap or some other chemical. If you want to eliminate it then just make sure the filter output is disturbing the water surface, then it won't be noticeable. If you put filter media in from your mature tank...

Well that photograph is magnified a lot so it sounds like your worms are planaria. Otos are very sensitive to ammonia, so even a small spike could kill them. The new guppy is already stressed from the move so ammonia is likely to kill them too. I think your first step is to do water changes...

I would only use Epsom salt on a sick fish with bloating, not on a healthy fish. Fish aren't meant to live their lives in Epsom salt. If it really seems like constipation and she won't eat a pea you could try some daphnia, which works as a laxative and is more appetizing than peas. I don't...

I always wonder the same thing, Assaye. I know Attison's Betta Spa claims to bind to toxic ammonia making it safe, so I wonder if those breeders use a similar water conditioner. Also, their water is probably a lot softer than water in the United States, so that would help make the ammonia less...

Or you can always soak a pellet and see how much they expand. I use a non betta specific pellet, I forget which brand, but the ingredients are good. It doesn't get any bigger when soaked, and none of my bettas have had problems with it. I don't like the Hikari anymore, I've had a lot of bettas...

If you divide some sections in the pond I would be careful to make it so the bettas can't jump the dividers. I wonder if there would be some way to make 1/2-1 gallon boxes for the males out of the craft mesh that people use for dividers, it seems like it would be more secure than rock dividers...

The glofish is weird for a glofish but there are definitely zebra danios that have fins like that so it seems within their genetic capabilities.

I'm glad to hear other people get as sad as me though, everyone always tells me I'm being ridiculous for crying and getting all upset and having funerals when my poor fishies die. :( I don't feel so bad when they're clearly very old though, it's mostly bad when they get really sick and die...

I agree, I think from the position of the bulge it might be constipation. I would put him in a breeding net right away if he's having trouble swimming, that way it won't be hard for him to get air. If you don't have on, you can come up with some creative way to help him sit up near the...

You can't cycle it if there's no filter in it, but I really would recommend putting a sponge filter in it to make your life easier. Without a filter, probably every 4 days, depending on the fish. You would probably want to get a test kit and test daily for a few weeks to get an idea of how much...

Yeah, I had an HM orchid marble mustard gas named Molly that I was very attached to, her tank was right next to my bed and I would always play with her, had her for about 2 years. She was so cute and friendly, every time i got home she would buzz to the front of the tank from her coconut shell...

Are you thawing and re-freezing the worms though? Because this is a bad bacteria hazard, I'm the kitchen manager in my sorority and that's what the health inspectors told us. You could smash the cube while it's still frozen then put the rest back in the freezer and just take one chunk each time...

Now you should figure out how much time you need before the nitrates are unacceptable. Or you could just change like 25% a week. First you'll want to test in another couple days and make sure the tank is really processing ammonia. If it has, then a week after your water change test again and see...

I would go with Honeythorn's method. Plastic storage tanks are great for housing bettas, inexpensive, and you can use it to store stuff when not using it for him. I just want to point out that if you can't take much tank water home (parents don't want it in the car or something) then make sure...

Darting like that is a sign of stress, often due to a water quality problem. If you used an accurate liquid test kit then I think you can assume the ammonia/nitrite/nitrates aren't the problem. Was this behavior right after you transferred him to the new tank, or has it been awhile? I would...

Yes I always advise people on what I think the correct number of water changes a week would be and to try to get a test kit if they can only use a 2 gallon tank. I think it's important to remember that those who are so adamant about keeping bettas in 5+ gallons are presumably just looking out...

Well I think we need to recognize the difference between breeding animals and keeping them as pets. Breeders are never going to have the same type of care as a person with pets will because they have too many animals. Look at snake breeders who use rack systems. The snakes are kept healthy but...

Well... I've been to some breeders houses to pick up fish to buy, many of these breeders are very respected and win in betta shows all the time. They also seem very smart and friendly so I trust their opinions. And while they keep their young males in 1 gallon containers (most of them have big...

Well it sounds like you're taking good care of him then and I wouldn't worry if I were you. Fish slow down when they age just like people. It's possible that he's finding his food hard to chew so you could try softening his pellets a little, and if he's not having trouble with blood worms then...

I'm confused as to why you're upset since some people did answer you before you posted this. People who don't know what to say or how to help aren't going to respond. Others don't come on everyday.

He sounds old to me too, I wouldn't medicate unless there is a specific disease symptom, because you will only put stress on his aging organs. 5 gallons heated sounds like a good tank. Is there a filter though? You can get away with not having a filter but I would put a sponge filter in if you...

Yeah the body really looks male to me. I've never seen a female shaped like that. But I'm not 100% sure.

MSG has been linked to problems in studies with humans and rats, but I don't think there have been any studies with fish. I wouldn't worry about it too much, I'm more concerned about the increased number of fillers in the Hikari Bio Gold, this change is pretty recent. Anyway, I'm not saying you...

A lot of my bettas have had clamped fins when moving into a new tank or with large water changes before they got more used to it. Keep him in a dark, clean tank with lots of hiding spots and he will probably cheer up. It is possible he's sick though, so look him over carefully and regularly for...

If you order pellets online I wouldn't order Hikari BioGold, I personally don't feed them to my bettas because they changed their recipe and now they contain MSG and fish meal is not the highest ingredient. I use Hikari micro wafers and Attison's Betta Pro (along with f/t bloodworms, daphnia...

I've actually never found a sponge filter at Petco, Petsmart, or any of the 5 fish stores in my area. They have the Small World Penn Plax sponge filters which are no good if you want a properly cycled tank, they don't really have enough sponge for bacteria and are a rip off. I have a couple from...

Can you put the bettas in containers that can float inside the tank? Then you can let the gravel settle and keep them separate but the tank water will still keep their containers warm. I'm not sure if you really need to let the gravel sit though, but I wouldn't leave the bettas cold all night...

Well then perfect opportunity to read about cycling! :) And after a few months and your tank is established I think snails or little shrimpies (which are very cute!) would be perfect mates for a 5 gallon tank, as you don't want to risk any fish bullying your betta. And in the mean time you can...

I know what it's like to be excited and want another fish, but I think it would be a good idea to take it slow. Get the bigger tank and a filter and heater, and once you have that tank all settled in and well decorated you will be ready to get another fish. Keep in mind to keep a betta with...

I think what you are looking for are the 5.5 gallon glass tanks with the plain black hood, I have a bunch of those, and the tank is usually around 8 dollars and the hood is around 15, a good deal and perfect for a betta because they're long and retangular. Most of the petstores around me carry...

Ok so I read on your post that your mom won't let you buy it. But is there anything around your house that you could use instead that's bigger than the 1 gallon? Tuperwear storage tubs are perfect and a lot of them are closer to 5 gallons. Anything bigger than 1 gallon is better. When is your...

24 right now, lol. But they're my boyfriends too (actually mostly his he's the expert, I just keep the bettas) and they're not all gravel-less. We have 5 display tanks, the others are basically holding tanks for breeding or for bettas. But we don't breed bettas at this point, don't want to deal...

Yes I agree that the gravel will affect the cycle and this is important to consider with a mature cycled tank. If you have a filtered tank then you want to keep this in mind. As far as I know though, gravel in a small tank won't be enough to support a colony of bacteria to keep the tank clean...

Yep that plastic critter keeper should be fine, and then you just need to save for a filter and a heater. But you can make your own sponge filter for really cheap! You just need a pump for like 5 bucks, airline tubing and stuff from around the house. But I would wait to get a fish till you have...

You can get epsom salts from any drug store, it's a people med too.