What does Walmart DO to them?

[Prizm]

I can't figure it out--My new Walmart "rescued" fish is acting the same way as the last one did when I first brought him home. He won't eat, and seems overall stressed and timid. (My first betta now happilly swims around his bowl and flares at all who pass by.) Now, I know Walmart probably doesn't breed for quallity as does more reputable breeders, but why are the fish in such poor condition? They are in tiny cups..what happens to them to put them in such a state? Granted, cups aren't good permenant homes, but I think there must be more to the story. My little guy has a half bitten off tail (which is why I bought him).

 

[Crab Paste]

I can't speak for walmart as I'm in England but I think it's the case with most if not all fish, they will be stressed by being brought home. Thankfully, I've never seen a Betta in a cup in any LFS here in England, thought there may be some around.

Also a lot of Bettas wont eat for a few days until they begin to recover from the stress. They also need to acclimatise to local water conditions.

 

[Prizm]

Poor things. I even gave him some brine shrimp which he ate and then spit out! Somthing bit almost half of his tail off too. My "elder" fish is by far more adjusted and isn't phased by full water changes.

 

[Kiarra]

Well, see, it's not always Walmart. The fish just have bad luck to begin with.

First of all, they're bred by the thousands, usually in another country. Then they're shipped here in little tiny bags (which is actually better for them in the long run, but they don't like it much, and it's a lot of stress). THEN they're packed in those little cups by the transhipper and then shipped to Walmarts around the country. Where they may sit for a very long time, with (depending on the Walmart) no food, no water changes, and being jiggled around a lot.

I got two of mine fresh out of the box at Walmart, hadn't been there any longer than it took for me to get my hair dyed. One of them has a severe swimbladder problem and can't swim to speak of. The other one had his tail caught in the lid of his cup and had to chew it off to free himself...he has less than an inch of tail left. Wasn't Walmart's fault on either of them.

That's not to say that Walmart is a good thing---more often than not, it's really, really not. But it's not ALWAYS Walmart.

 

[FishEnthusiast]

Poor things. I even gave him some brine shrimp which he ate and then spit out! Somthing bit almost half of his tail off too. My "elder" fish is by far more adjusted and isn't phased by full water changes.

It is possible he bit off his own tail from the stress too. I have a betta that is a bit of a self mutilator. He swims really fast until his tail is by his mouth and then...nip nip. It has decreased in time. Just keep giving him lots of love and he should be fine. About the feeding. I have had my new boy for three days and he hasn't eaten yet. I wouldn't worry about it yet. Just keep offering small amounts of a variety of foods and he will eat eventually. Good luck

 

[Crab Paste]

Poor things. I even gave him some brine shrimp which he ate and then spit out! Somthing bit almost half of his tail off too. My "elder" fish is by far more adjusted and isn't phased by full water changes.

Just try and be patient, I know how frustrating it is seeing a Betta not eating but even a few days wont harm it. Even thought he's spitting food out at least he's trying which is a good sign. I'm sure someone will come along and help regarding his tail and any treatments. Two of my Bettas had pretty bad finrot when I bought them but they're recovering so well and it's great seeing the little fellows getting better each day.

 

[Prizm]

Oh, I'm glad you brought that up. I got Walmart to pour some "Melafix" into a baggy, to hopefully help with his tail (is this a good idea?) I'm a little worried about over dosing him with it though, because the instructions said one teaspoon to every 10 gallons (I think) and he is only in a 1 gallon. As is, I'm dipping the tip of the fish net's handle into this medication and then swirling the handle in the fish's bowl.

 

[Kiarra]

Melafix can be a good medicine, used with caution for dosage. Some people swear by it. I don't use it, personally, at all, and don't even own a bottle.

I prefer to use good old aquarium salt, clean water, and Blackwater Extract for healing all cases of fin damage, from whatever the source.

 

[Crab Paste]

I've used Melafix for both of my Bettas and the regrowth of their fins is very dramatic. Would they have grown back so well without Melafix I honestly don't know, but it hasn't harmed them at all and I used the stated doses.

 

[flautist]

I've used Melafix for both of my Bettas and the regrowth of their fins is very dramatic. Would they have grown back so well without Melafix I honestly don't know, but it hasn't harmed them at all and I used the stated doses.

Same here, but I only use it in really bad cases.

For a one gallon, your best bet is to get an eye-dropper that has measurements in mL on the side. It's .5 mL/gal.

 

[Crab Paste]

Same here, but I only use it in really bad cases.

For a one gallon, your best bet is to get an eye-dropper that has measurements in mL on the side. It's .5 mL/gal.

I use the pipette that came with my Methylene Blue (which I never use), it's only 1ml. You can't be to careful when dosing.

 

[BettaMomma]

I'd love to chime in and answer your question....
"What does Walmart DO to them?" but I would end up going on and on and on for days about everything that goes on in that whole process. I'm not a huge fan of it and I wish with every ounce of my being that they would get out of the bizz of fish torment. OOops, I mean fish retail.

 

[Prizm]

I should have commented on this on my last post, but I'm at work and can only write sparatically--That's just aweful about your fish's tail (and maybe mine, as you pointed out!) I had no idea how horribly they are shipped!

 

[BettaMomma]

On the subject of fish tails - I have a betta who's trying to grow his entire tail back. The entire thing was severed off and I found him sitting on the shelf @ WM waiting for some caring soul to come take him home. My guess is that pretty much the same type of thing happened to him as what happened to Kiarra's boy.

 

[OrkyBetta]

my only guess as to the tails is-maybe they chewed them, or got finrot, and employees or handlers tried to "fix" them, a little DIY surgery if you will. People think they can do that to animals instead of treating them.