I Have To Know...

[Betta_Shark5678]

Hi again!

You may have read my earlier post "cory fin trouble". If so you'll know that the cory I'm going to be talking about in this post died a few weeks ago.

So his death is really bugging me. I want to know why he died, I'd like to get corys and don't want them to die. The tank was uncycled. Is that enough to kill the cory and not the betta?

That's it thanks in advance!!!

 

[ZephyrStarPlaties]

Cories are "scaleless" fish, so they're sensitive to water quality. An uncycled tank would definitely be the problem.

 

[Betta_Shark5678]

Uncycled tank leads to sick cory, sick cory leads to bullying by betta, bullying by betta, and being sick leads to death. Thanks! I will make sure this never happens again if I can help it!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Bettas are far hardier than many other fish to uncycled tanks, because they have the ability to draw oxygen straight from the surface due to their labyrinth organ.

In general, it is widely recommended to do a fishless cycle before adding any fish. But, if not, at least read up greatly on the fish-in cycle. A properly done fish-in cycle is just as acceptible as a fishless cycle. The key to a fish-in cycle is knowledge. If you don't have a test kit, you need to get one before you invest in anything else. The test kit will need to include ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. pH is nice to have, but far less important overall.


Articles for both methods are linked in my sig.

 

[Betta_Shark5678]

Thank you, those articles were very helpful!!

Tomorrow I will have had betta fish for two years, and I will have been researching them for almost two years. I researched bettas for over a year and a half before I ever came across the term "cycling", that was when I joined this forum.

The only reason I started researching them was because I wanted to breed them, I was quickly overwhelmed. Then my betta got sick, I found out it was velvet (I wasn't very good about water changes...). $60+ later I moved my first betta from a half gallon tank to a 2.5 gallon tank!

Now that I actually understand cycling I'll be able to care for my fish better. So thanks again!