Is my Betta dying or sick?

[BettaMommaMak]

Hi I’m new to the forum and I need some help! My Betta Rocky is not doing well. I have had him over a year now and has been acting very strange the last few days. I recently moved him from a community tank to a single species tank of 2.5 gallons with a filter and heater. For some reason now he won’t eat, has been hiding out either at the back of the tank near the heater and filter or sitting at the bottom of the tank. I can’t see any physical signs of illness other than his colour seems to have faded slightly. The water parameters seem good other than the ph seems a little high; ph 7.6, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate is 0 too for some reason ( it is a cycled tank and I’m not sure if that is an issue)... Could he have an illness or is he on his way out? Or is he just stressed from the move?
I should note that he wasn’t really acting himself in the community tank before I moved him, hence the reason for the move.
TIA for any suggestions you may have

 

[Colin_T]

if you can post a picture it helps. If you have trouble putting the image on here just put a link on here to the image, which can be stored at a free image hosting website.

A pH of 7.6 should not be a problem unless you had him in acid water (pH below 6) before.

0 Nitrates is not uncommon in a clean tank. If you have 0 nitrate in the tap water then water changes will dilute the tank nitrates to 0. Plants will also absorb nitrates.

If he is hiding and not coming out then he feels insecure/ unsafe. Make sure you have some floating plants like Water Sprite (Ceratopteris species) in the tank. Make sure the heater is working and the temperature is not too cold.

What have you been feeding him?

 

[BettaMommaMak]

The temp is at about 78 and I wouldn’t say he’s hiding so much as just not his typical friendly self and not eating. I have put some Indian almond leaf in his tank hoping it will help.
I feed him a variety of food, from flakes, pellets and dried blood worms, but he never seemed to like the blood worms much. He’s just laying in the front corner at the bottom of the tank now, so not hiding at all.
I’ve included a picture, but it’s not the clearest. I’ll try to get a better pic.

 

[Colin_T]

He's definitely not a happy camper

Turn the pump off for a minute and check the surface of the water and make sure there are no oily films developing on the surface. It will show up as a metallic blue rainbow tinge. A bit like a detergent film when washing up.
If there is an oily film you will have to wash the tank out and rinse everything off.
Make sure you turn the pump on after checking

Make sure you don't have any cream, soap, perfume, deodorant, grease or anything else on your hands when working in the tanks. And don't use any bug sprays, paint or smoke in the room with them.

Bettas are labyrinth fish that take in air from the surface, and anything on the meniscus (surface of the water) can potentially affect them when they try to breath.

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Try feeding him some live food. Mozzie larvae are an excellent fish food and can often be found in buckets of water that have been sitting outside for a week or more. They are also found in the plastic trays under pot plants. Just scoop the mozzie larvae up and rinse under tap water then put in tank for fish.

Aphids are regularly found on roses and make an excellent fish food. As do most small flies and moths. Just make sure they are free of chemicals & pesticides.

Go to the local petshop and get some live brineshrimp. If your fish ignores them he is not normal

You can also try frozen bloodworms or frozen but defrosted prawn/ shrimp. Get a frozen shrimp and defrost it. Take the head off and peel the shell off and pull the gut out (long black thin thing in the middle of the tail) and throw in the bin. Then use a clean pr of scissors to cut the prawn tail into small bite size pieces and offer a bit at a time to the fish, you can feed it to your other fish too. Feed him as much as he can eat and remove any uneaten food straight after.

With live food, aphids will float on the surface for a day or two and can be left there for him to pick on. Mozzie larvae will live permanently in water but will eventually pupate and hatch out so only put a few in and let him eat them, unless you want mozzies in the house. Brineshrimp are in saltwater so only offer a few at a time and let him eat them before offering more. They can live in fresh water for an hour or so but remove any that die and sink to the bottom.

 

[BettaMommaMak]

Thanks so much for all that info! I’ll give it a shot and see what I come up with. I really don’t want to lose him

My hubby thinks he is depressed because I moved him from the community tank to a single tank... is that possible?

 

[Colin_T]

My hubby thinks he is depressed because I moved him from the community tank to a single tank... is that possible?

Yes it is possible. However, you mentioned that he was acting off colour for a few days before you moved him so there is something else wrong. Depression might be part of it but not all of it.

When he recovers you might get him a girlfriend, but we'll talk about that after he recovers

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Do you have any floating plants in his new tank or his old tank? If not perhaps look at getting some Water Sprite (Ceratopteris species). It is easy to grow and can provide cover for labyrinth fishes, who normally sit just under the surface amongst the plants.

 

[BettaMommaMak]

Lol... a girlfriend! That’s what he needs

I don’t have any floating plants, but I will see if I can get some.

I don’t have any film on the top of the tank either, so I don’t think that’s the issue. Perhaps I need to move him back into the community tank and see if he perks up again, but I also don’t want to stress him out any more.

 

[Colin_T]

If you have a plastic plant in the other tank, pull it out and let it float in his tank and see if that helps. If it does, then leave it floating in his tank until you get real floating plants.

It's preferable not to move fish about too much, so I would try live food and floating plants for a few days and see how he goes. If he doesn't pick up after the live food then we will need to investigate further.
If he doesn't eat live food then he might an internal issue or another problem.

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You could try putting a small mirror next to his tank and see how he reacts. He should notice his reflection in the mirror and see it as another male. Then he should flare his fins out and try to attack it. If he does then leave the mirror there for about 10 minutes before removing it, he will think he chased it off and it might make him feel better.

 

[NickAu]

Can you please answer the following questions.

How big is the tank?
Has it got a heater? What is it set to?
Has it got a filter?
How strong is the current?
Is it cycled?
How often do you change water?
How much water do you change?
Do you vacuum the substrate?
What additives or chemicals do you use? Eg De Chlorinator?
Do you use tap or bottled water? If bottled water please give us the brand.
Do you have a water test kit?
Can you tell us the readings for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?
When you clean the tank can you tell us exactly what you do.
What do you feed him? how much? how often?
Any tank mates? What sort how many?
How long have you had the Betta?
Has he got a history of illness?
Any plants or decorations? Please give details?
Can you provide a close up photo of the fish?
Can you provide a photo of the tank?

 

[thrujenseyes]

I moved him from the community tank to a single tank

that shouldn't be the issue because beta are not community fish and don't belong in a tank of such....although if the other tank had better water quality and real plants and lots of room and hiding places then maybe he is a little bummed as this doesn't have much room and appears to have plastic plants.
A tank that small is very hard to keep cycled so maybe the water quality isn't quite right and he's feeling the effects.
poor guy...he looks like he's a handsome fella
I'd make sure the water is stable and then get him lots of nice plants