Is this normal betta behavior?

[despreauxb]

I recently got a betta. I've always read that they hang out at the top of the tank but mine likes to hang out in his skulls and he keeps swimming like this. I really haven't seen him eat much either. He's housed with 2 mollies and an assistant snail. He's in a 10 gallon tank with live plants, is he stressed?

 

[UnknownFishies]

The mollies probably shouldn’t go in a 10 gallon. He might be stressed and adjusting to the tank.

 

[Ellie Potts]

It's kind of hard to tell with just those pictures, but he could very well just be taking a nap. Betta fish love to rest in whatever spot they deem comfiest; betta beds, a leaf, I suppose a decorative skull. What do you mean he's not eating much? Is he eating at all? Or just not ferociously? Are you feeding the right amount and what are you feeding? Is he showing any other signs of stress or disease? Stress lines, faded color, flaring, clamped fins, et cetera. If not, I would assume the little dude is just asleep. It's also perfectly normal for new fish to be stressed out when first introduced, he's still adjusting.

It'd be great to know your water parameters as well.

 

[Circus]

If he is not eating much, it could be because of his tank mates. Before I knew better regarding water hardness, I kept a betta in with my guppy fish. The guppies would bully the betta away from any food, so the betta became lethargic until it was moved.

 

[Sgooosh]

my opinion

mollies shouldnt be with bettas, they are on the opposite sides of the hardness scales like @Circus said
what is your ph and gh? they might have a hard time adjusting depending on this

 

[despreauxb]

It's kind of hard to tell with just those pictures, but he could very well just be taking a nap. Betta fish love to rest in whatever spot they deem comfiest; betta beds, a leaf, I suppose a decorative skull. What do you mean he's not eating much? Is he eating at all? Or just not ferociously? Are you feeding the right amount and what are you feeding? Is he showing any other signs of stress or disease? Stress lines, faded color, flaring, clamped fins, et cetera. If not, I would assume the little dude is just asleep. It's also perfectly normal for new fish to be stressed out when first introduced, he's still adjusting.

It'd be great to know your water parameters as well.

I tried posting a video of how hes swimming but it won't allow me. I got him omegs one betts buffet pellets and some flakes and have seen him eat it maybe once or twice. I feed him about 2 pellets twice to 3 times a day and have offered him bloodworms once. Im not sure what water parameters you mean but according to my API testing everything seems to be in range

 

[UnknownFishies]

I tried posting a video of how hes swimming but it won't allow me. I got him omegs one betts buffet pellets and some flakes and have seen him eat it maybe once or twice. I feed him about 2 pellets twice to 3 times a day and have offered him bloodworms once. Im not sure what water parameters you mean but according to my API testing everything seems to be in range

Upload to Youtube and post/paste link here

 

[despreauxb]

my opinion

mollies shouldnt be with bettas, they are on the opposite sides of the hardness scales like @Circus said
what is your ph and gh? they might have a hard time adjusting depending on this

Oh! Everything i looked at said that mollies was recommended to be housed with bettas! My last ph was 7.4 and im unsure what gh means

 

[itiwhetu]

Mollies and Bettas are not a good mix

 

[Ellie Potts]

I tried posting a video of how hes swimming but it won't allow me. I got him omegs one betts buffet pellets and some flakes and have seen him eat it maybe once or twice. I feed him about 2 pellets twice to 3 times a day and have offered him bloodworms once. Im not sure what water parameters you mean but according to my API testing everything seems to be in range

By water parameters, I mean pH, GH, ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates, and maybe even temperature just for the sake of being thorough. If you've checked that they're all ok, I would assume that's not the issue and it's the stress of moving. Is he being bullied by other fish? If he didn't take the bloodworms you offered, that's pretty weird. Never met a betta who wouldn't fight scale and fin for those things. Next time you feed something high quality like bloodworms, take note of how the fish interact. Are they scaring him off? I agree that Mollys and Bettas don't go together all that great, seems to always be some power dynamic. Little jerks.

You can upload the video on youtube first and then share it (an annoying process, I know, but it works). If this is too daunting, please describe how he's swimming. In a tired lethargic way? Is he struggling to stay upright? Does he seem to be floating upwards against his will? Or sinking?

 

[Ellie Potts]

Oh! Everything i looked at said that mollies was recommended to be housed with bettas! My last ph was 7.4 and im unsure what gh means

GH means "general hardness" and is essentially the number of minerals in your water. It's actually more important than pH, despite what we assume when we enter the hobby.

 

[despreauxb]

Upload to Youtube and post/paste link here

 

[Ellie Potts]

This swimming pattern isn't all that concerning to me for a new fish, but I'm also not a frequent betta keeper so I'd trust someone else more.

Beautiful guy tho!

 

[despreauxb]

By water parameters, I mean pH, GH, ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates, and maybe even temperature just for the sake of being thorough. If you've checked that they're all ok, I would assume that's not the issue and it's the stress of moving. Is he being bullied by other fish? If he didn't take the bloodworms you offered, that's pretty weird. Never met a betta who wouldn't fight scale and fin for those things. Next time you feed something high quality like bloodworms, take note of how the fish interact. Are they scaring him off? I agree that Mollys and Bettas don't go together all that great, seems to always be some power dynamic. Little jerks.

You can upload the video on youtube first and then share it (an annoying process, I know, but it works). If this is too daunting, please describe how he's swimming. In a tired lethargic way? Is he struggling to stay upright? Does he seem to be floating upwards against his will? Or sinking?

Thats a bad quality video of it lol and I dont really see the mollies bothering him. They did the first day but haven't really cared since. And I JUST found about about water hardness. I thought everything I needed to check came in my API but I pulled this off my towns lists

 

[itiwhetu]

The problem with concentrating to much on hardness GH, we start to ignore the fundamentals of fish keeping, whether the fish likes acid or alkaline water. To often on this forum site we see acid loving fish living in alkaline tanks and not doing well. We need to consider both parameters equally.