Betta laying at bottom of tank, not eating or moving

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RAvirani

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
May 31, 2014
Messages
24
Hi guys,


A few days ago, I went to feed my fish and found my betta sitting on the bottom motionless. She would not move until i tapped the side of the tank a few times. Ever since then, whenever I look, she is sitting at the bottom somewhere. When I tap, she moves a bit, gets air but just goes back to sitting there. Another thing to note is that when she is sitting there, her gills are moving but her fins on her cheeks are not.

Please help!
 
Tank temperature? Take size? Is it cycled? Some more info such as the tanks ammonia nitrite nitrate ph would help us aswell as a picture!
 
Fishanatic,

The water temperature is 76 degrees, 10 gallon tank and it is cycled. The water test results are:
- Nitrate 10ppm (Safe)
- Nitrite 0ppm (Safe)
- Hardness 70ppm (Soft)
- Chlorine 0ppm (Safe)
- Alkalinity 150ppm (Ideal)
- pH 6.9 (Neutral)
I could not get a picture because she is inside of one of the toys in the tank but I will try to get one soon.

Thanks!
 
Last edited:
Isn't 86 a little high? Is the betta the only fish in the tank? Does it have access to air?

When my betta looked like this, I did a 50% water change and added a bit of aquarium salt. I also treated her with a fungus/bacteria fizz tab ( low dose). I would just start the aquarium salt and see if that works. Are the fins clamped? Does it come up for air or food? Would love to hear more. I brought mine back from a similar situation. Good luck.


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SNorlin,

Hi. Sorry the 86 is actually supposed to be 76. Also, she is in a tank with one glow light tetra and two albino tetras. The fins do not seem to be overly clamped, and she does come up for air. She does not really come up for food right now though but if I drop a bit in when she comes for air, she eats a little bit before going back down to the bottom. As for your recommendations about what I should do, I will start her on aquarium salt but I do not know what kind of "fungus/bacteria fizz tab" to get. Do you have a specific one in mind?

Thanks!
 
I would wait and see what the aquarium salt does ( be very careful with the measurements) also, if you have a light on, I would turn it off. The idea is to make things easier for the betta to make itself better. Did you already provide us with the water quality stats? Anything new you have done to the tank recently? How long have you had the betta?


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Also, if you are considering any treatments, make sure to remove any carbon in your filter ( if you have any). I learned that the hard way. :( I used jungle fungus clear fizz tabs that I got at Walmart. Be very careful what you use with the betta as there are some meds out there ( like Pimafix) that will do harm. Keep us up to date.


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SNorlin,

I am going to put aquarium salt in right now and I have used it before so I am pretty clear on how much to put. I will be sure to turn off the light. The water stats are above. I haven;t done anything new to the tank lately and I have had the Betta for just under 1 year...since she was a baby :). Also, I am still curious as to what kind of "fungus/bacteria fizz tab" to get. Did you have a specific one in mind?

Thanks!
 
Do you have a quarantine tank? If so, I would use it. Just make sure temperatures are the same and water quality is good. I'll check in tomorrow morning. :)


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SNorlin,

I found something called JUNGLE FUNGUS CLEAR TANK BUDDIES on Petco's website. Do you think that these would do the trick?

Thanks!
 
Yep, that's it. But remember to predisolve the portion as it can stain.


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SNorlin,

Ok. Thanks for all of the help and advice. I will try it and keep you posted!

Thanks!
 
Good luck. Would love to see a picture of your betta when it is feeling better. It might also help to lower the water level so the betta doesn't have to go so high to breathe, just remember to adjust the meds. Do you have real plants in your tank? Bettas love live plants, specially those they can lay on the leaves. :)


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SNorlin,

I will send pictures soon - maybe tomorrow. I do not have any live plants because there is not too much natural light where my tank is located but I have fake silk ones that she seems to love. I will try lowering the water also. It is a 10 gallon tank so that should not end up being a problem. Thank you for all of your help and I will keep you posted!

Thanks!
 
Good luck and best wishes to your betta! She sounds like she's in good hands.


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Just want to add my 2 cents, don't treat with salt more than 10 days in a row at once. Do a full water change after 10 days. If you use it again, wait at least 10 days in between. Organ damage can occur if exposed to salt for too long and/or too frequently.

Good luck with your fish :)
 
Ravirani, how is your Betta doing today?


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Good point dragon. :)


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Thank you :) I always like to mention it because I feel like people either don't know/it's overlooked/not thought of.

In general that would go for any fish. I've also read don't use salt for cories (I've found conflicting information on that though), but I'd err on the side of caution with them.

Obviously it's different for brackish water and salt water fish... :p
 
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