/an/ - Animals & Nature » Thread #332372

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Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 06:58:00 No.332372 View View Reply Original Report

Quoted By:

Hi /an/. I have a question for you.

I got a Crowntail betta fish about 2 weeks ago from PetSmart. Yes, I know, PetSmart isn't the best place to buy them, but the one near me is very clean and they take good care of them.

Anyways, ever since I got him, all he does is sit on the bottom of his tank. He won't eat either. I've even bought him new food (Bio-Gold pellets AND Blood Worms).

I've had betta fish before, and they never acted like this. He doesn't look sick at all, so I'm not sure what the problem is. I put a mirror up to him, and it took him 5 minutes to notice it. Finally, he grew that little flap of skin that they grow when they're mad. Then he swam away in disgust.

Today, we went back to PetSmart and I bought another one. He's perfectly fine and eats like a pig. I can tell this one is healthy and normal.

So here's my question. Do I put the other one out of it's misery, or is there anything I can do for it? I would never hurt an animal, but I don't want him to be suffering. I've nicknamed him "Emo Kid" because he's miserable. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

pic related: it looks just like him

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 07:21:00 No.332382 Report

Quoted By:

He could just be lazy. I knew somebody who had a betta who just slept on the bottom most of the time. Otherwise.. temperature problems? He could be cold.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 09:16:00 No.332433 Report

Quoted By: >>332453

Check out http://www.ultimatebettas.com/. They can answer any question you could possibly have about betta fish.

tigerfeather !CrwtTbFNxQ

tigerfeather !CrwtTbFNxQ Sat 01 Nov 2008 10:15:00 No.332453 Report

Quoted By:

>>332433
This, and see if warming him up makes any difference. You can get little 2-5 gallon undergravel heaters for around $15. How big of an environment and how often you change the water can make a big deal too.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 12:28:00 No.332506 Report

Quoted By: >>332509 >>332516

throw the guy into a ten gallon tank. I had a betta that acted like that and he wouldn't eat for over a week. I stuck him in a 25 gallon tall tank and it forced him to become active since he had to swim all the way up to get air. After letting him live in that tank for a few weeks or so he became really healthy and then I moved into a ten gallon for a long time and now he's living in a little bowl just fine and my two female bettas are chilling in a 55 gallon :P

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 12:39:00 No.332509 Report

Quoted By: >>332514 >>332515 >>332601

>>332506

That is incredibly cruel and stressful for the fish. There are better ways to handle a lethargic fish!

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 13:11:00 No.332514 Report

Quoted By: >>333212

>>332509
pfft petafag. The betta was doing excellent. He lost his laziness as soon as I stuck him in a nice big tank for him to stretch out. I've seen people try to take care of the betta still in the little bowl and they inevitably die and it's so little maintenance when you keep them in a large tank. Op I bet a nice little 10 gallon would do your guy some wonders. And a ten gallon wont be as nearly as "cruel" as a 25 tall tank.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 13:13:00 No.332515 Report

Quoted By:

>>332509
I think it's less cruel than letting it die slowly in his bowl. I Just gave the guy some tough love and he has never been better

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 13:36:00 No.332516 Report

Quoted By: >>332518

>>332506
No to little bowls. 10g tanks for bettas are perfect with a small heater. They are tropical fish which need cycled water and heat. The bowl thing is a pet store gimmick to get people to buy them. A 5g would probably be ok as well.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 13:50:00 No.332518 Report

Quoted By: >>332520 >>332521

>>332516
what is that idiot talking about? five/ten gallons is great. the natural habitat of the betta is not a cold bowl. ideally they'd have lots of warm, quiet water with some surface cover. the only thing to be concerned about is current from the filter, but that's an easy fix.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 14:08:00 No.332520 Report

Quoted By:

>>332518
Someone didn't read the post. I said a 5/10 gallon was fine...learn to fucking read before you post.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 14:09:00 No.332521 Report

Quoted By:

>>332518
lulz who's an idiot? hurr durr

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 14:33:00 No.332523 Report

Quoted By:

OP here. Thanks for the help. Maybe I'll try a bigger tank. I know the temperature isn't the problem.

Anonymous

Anonymous Sat 01 Nov 2008 20:45:00 No.332601 Report

Quoted By:

>>332509
What's cruel? Letting a Betta live in a ten gallon tank? They like having more room.

Although I don't understand why anon put him back in a little bowl after giving him the freedom of a bigger tank, but whatever.

I've read that Bettas can actually get depressed. I don't know if it's true, but it's pretty obvious they don't like living in little fucking bowls all their lives, so you can't really blame them for just lying there.

q1 Sun 02 Nov 2008 23:54:00 No.333212 Report

Quoted By: >>333246

>>332514
It's a stupid idea to keep a betta in a 25 tall tank because in nature, they don't live in water that deep. Their natural habitats are barely a foot or so deep. Also, if it tends to stay at the bottom, it could be because of a bloating problem (feeding too many bloodworms will do that), and they may not even be able to get to the top, so they may end up suffocating. They breath on the surface with modified gills, so they have to be able to reach it.

As far as a lethargic fish, keep the water warm and clean, and keep the current to a minimum. If it can't get to the surface, lower the water level, or provide lots of plants to rest on when it does reach the top to breathe. Try to feed it parts of a cooked pea. Also, buy some water conditioner and Bettafix. Crowntails are easy to tell if something is wrong by the thickness of the spines on their tails. Bettafix will treat him for any possible diseases he got from the store.
Tank size isn't too much of a problem. I personally keep mine pretty successfully in a 2 gallon, but five or ten is good too. Stay away from bowls or little novelty tanks.

q1 Sun 02 Nov 2008 23:59:00 No.333216 Report

Quoted By:

Also, if you're going to put a betta in a bigger tank with other fish, do some research first. Don't put it with aggressive fish that will nip at their tails, or any other fish with longer tails, like male guppies. That will just make the bettas more stressed.

Truthfully, crowntails are pretty slow in general because their fins are so much bigger. If you want a really active betta, get a plakat or a female. Plakat males are really aggressive and fill flare at you all day because they're the closest to a natural betta splendens and are still selectively bred for fighting.

Anonymous

Anonymous Mon 03 Nov 2008 00:54:00 No.333246 Report

Quoted By:

>>333212
They don't only breathe air from the surface, though... they have gills and they use them. Their labyrinth organ is a secondary system and as long as they wander up to the surface every once in a while, they're fine.

I had my Betta in a 20 gallon community tank for 6 years without a single problem. He was a very active swimmer and hung out wherever he wanted in the tank.

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