An extract from B C BETTAS
Missing Ventrals
This has been a major ordeal for us and we have finally got to the root of the problem. In fish
tanks there is bacteria that grows this is very normal if the bacteria is kept to normal levels. In
fry tanks this is quite difficult to do has it is not so easy keeping the bottom of the tanks clean.
We have resolved this issue by adding an airstone to the tanks to keep the water well circulated
and the fry of the bottom of the tank most of the time. Dry commercial foods can also be a
problem as this sinks down to the bottom of the tank and causes abnormal bacteria grown.
Every second day from when the male is removed we siphon the bottom of the tank and wipe
carefully with a sponge. We also only feed Microworms or other live foods for the first 3 weeks
this is the time period that the ventrals are most likely to be dissolved. Baby brine shrimp is also
a good option as they swim around the tank and will keep fry of the bottom, we stopped
feeding Baby Brine as we were getting lot of fish with Swim Bladder problems but this could
have been due to over feeding. I personally do not like Brine Shrimp in any form I find it bloats
the fish and is a very unnatural food for fresh water fish, they can also carry a lot of parasites.
But in saying this a lot of people feed it with no problems. Feeding live food also saves cleaning
up a lot of mess on the bottom of your tanks.