Betta Not Eating

[Valkyrie]

My big betta, Lazuli, spent the summer outdoors in the bog garden (and loved it!). He is now easily the biggest betta I have ever seen in my life, so I keep him in a 5 gallon acrylic tank with lighting, a couple silk plants, and marbles as a substrate. Marbles tend to be harder to keep clean than sand or even gravel, but I've been diligent and careful about water changes (30-35% weekly) so it retains healthy water quality. Ever since I first brought him in a few months ago, he's been going for the betta food I have for him with a will. It's just recently that he's stopped eating. There are only a couple reasons I can think of right now:

--It might be too cold for him. But, he's in a pretty warm spot and it doesn't seem to bother my other, smaller crowntail betta at all, which is in a 1 gallon tank kept on a shelf just below him (hey, doesn't cold sink?).

--There are tiny white worms in his tank. I have no clue what they are. They seem harmless and I think he brought them in from the pond but I'm not sure--they may be from the tank's former resident, a tiny sick goldie that ended up dying. I have tried more than once to get rid of them, even washing the tank and all its decorations in scalding water two or three times at one point, but they won't go away. I usually see them on the glass or feeding off his recently uneaten food (which leads me to think that they aren't parasitic) but once in a while I see them actually crawling on Lazuli himself which, needless to say, REALLY creeps me out !!! I have no clue how to get rid of them.

And I have no clue why Lazuli isn't eating or what I might be doing wrong. I'm going to try a few frozen bloodworms and see if I can bribe him...

 

[_cRaCkEr_]

Try putting few salt in his tank.

Or this is the best conditioner that I've been doing.

I'm aging Ketapang leaves like 2 days or so til the water gets dark brown.

Then place the Betta to the aged water.

They are becoming more alert, eats a lot and more bubbles.

This is good especially for breeding.

And Banana leaves is for Fighting.

This is the Thai way of rearing Bettas.

And my way to.

But I'm no Thai

 

[Valkyrie]

I already use salt. What are ketapang leaves and where can I get them?

 

[Synirr]

I imagine they either are Indian almond leaves or are something very similar

 

[ral]

They are Indian Almond Leaves. They lower pH, so if your water is soft already, it may not have the desired effect. Place the fish and the leaf in the water about the same time (that way the fish gets acclimated to the lowering pH gradually and does not suffer a pH shock). You can remove the leaf 2-3 days later. After that make small water changes so that the pH gradually goes back up.

The leaf releases tannic and humic acids may be useful for inhibiting many types of bacteria including cyano-bacteria and are fairly benign for your fish. Pretty good for conditioning a healty fish. Have used them to treat sick fish, and have not reached any conclusion if they help or not. They do make the fish scales look brighter after "conditioning."

To get rid of the worms, try nuking the tank and decor. Scrub the glass. Small while worms usually show up in overstock tanks. They are pretty harmless, and am kind of surprised he is not eating them.

Not eating could be a sign of illness or stress. Water quality migtht have change too much when you moved him back indoors. Is he large or bloated? Could be signs of dropsy. If you have a mild antibacterial, I would put a mild dose. A 100% water change would be good too.

30-35% changes: Even is a larger tank like 5 G's your going to have to do a 100% change at least once a month to reduce the ammonia level of the water.

 

[afireinside]

I need to say something.
After reading this month's issue of Aquarium Fish Magazine, someone had a case similar to you. Now, as my freind is borrowing my magazine, I don't know what the cure is, but those white worms you are describing are Nematodes.

 

[Amerce]

I need to say something.
After reading this month's issue of Aquarium Fish Magazine, someone had a case similar to you. Now, as my freind is borrowing my magazine, I don't know what the cure is, but those white worms you are describing are Nematodes.

If they are nematodes this is an informative website

http/www.nysaes.cornell.edu/ent/biocontr.../nematodes.html

 

[soritan]

nematodes, if they are, are a product of a nutrient rich environment... in an aquarium setting, this usually means that you are 'over feeding', or that something in the tank is rotting. if they are nematodes (small, small, hairless worms that 'wiggle' to swim), then nuking is a very radical solution. my betta, Furin, actually ate them whenever they turned up. the easiest way to elminate nematodes, is simply to remove the nutrient source -- feed less, remove the rotty bits, etc.

'over feeding', could simply mean that the food you are giving your finickiy fish is rotting in the tank and the worms are going, 'omg!yay' and propagating.


do you Know what temperature the water is? have you Tested your water for ammonia/nitrites/nitrates, or do you Assume that everything is perfect?

may i ask what you've been feeding him?

 

[ral]

Thanks soritan... was told they show up in overstock tanks... so I got a larger one. But I guess it could be a case of the owner feeding too much.

 

[soritan]

Well, if the tank is too small for the occupants, one would figure that the waste and spoilage game would probably move a lot faster, don't you think? That sounds like it'd be a logical step, to me... a bigger tank would 'foul' less quickly.

I had masses of nematodes in my 10g when I was fishless cycling. Who knows what they were eating, probably micro-organisms that were living off the ammonia, or the bogwood, or that single strand of anachris I had back then. *shrug*

Generally speaking, fairly harmless.

If they're nematodes.