Sick Betta... need advice.

[Meagan.Marie]

I am not sure what is wrong. he is eating and coming up for air but then he goes back to laying on the rocks. He has been doing this for about 12 hours. I treated him with betta revive but I have to go away for the night and I wont be home till saturday. So its really only one day where I wont see him. Should he travel with me? I have a little 1/2 gallon tiny tiny little "betta habitate" he are in 2.5 gallon mini bow aquariums right now. with a heater. My concern is that if I do take him with me I have no way to regulate the temp and they are tropical fish. What should I do. He was fine yesterday until he ate an old peice of flake food that came out of the filter when I accidentally knocked it in there... I really am torn between what to do. He is kind of flashing too. but mostly just laying on the rocks next to the heater.

Any advice?

 

[tyspot1000]

Is this tank uncycled? If so, have you been doing your Daily water changes?
If not, this could be the problem. The ammonia and nitrite are effecting him.

 

[Meagan.Marie]

I have been doing 50 percent water changes daily and I dont really know what the problem is. because my readings with the API are .1 for ammonia and the rest are zero.

 

[dkpate]

.1 is alot, it needs to be .25 or lower. Keep doing water changes, even if you have to do 2 a day.

 

[Meagan.Marie]

I took harry potter home and sadly he passed away this weekend even in a fresh bowl.

 

[dkpate]

Did you re-acclimate him when you got back?

 

[Meagan.Marie]

He died at home but yes when I got home and put him in the glass bowl I did re-acclimate him... I treated him with betta revive in the bowl too and he just wasn't too responsive to anything. He died sunday morning before I left. Good news is I got back and merlin was doing well and swimming more with his 48 hour fast. He is a pink veiltail very pretty. But much more active with fasting. He was getting fat and I just can't help it he dances for food whenever I come over so i always give in and feed him a pellet... I am bad but he is just too cute. I am cycling the other tank fish less now and testing merlins twice a day his ammonia has stayed under .25ppm Lots of water changes and it will be a slow cycle but I think he will be okay. My roommate has decided to call my next fish king Arthur. But he will have to wait a while.

 

[dkpate]

Sounds like Merlin is doing GREAT!
Remember their bellies are only as big as their eyes, and you don't want his belly to explode.

 

[Meagan.Marie]

I remember which is why i need to not feed him so much but he is too cute. he even swims up to the filter waterfall and lets it push him down over and over again. Its cute and he seems to enjoy it because He always goes back. Plus he has been playing in his plants and decorations swimming through them, not rubbing on them because I watched he is just chillen haha. Do you know about feeding him half a pea a week. does it help?

 

[dkpate]

I feed my bettas peas once every week, just to "clean" them out. Not a half a pea though, only a piece as big as their eye.
Try holding a hand mirror up to his tank, or have him chase your finger instead of feeding him. They like that, and it's good exercise for them

 

[Meagan.Marie]

He does chase my finger it is nice. I suppose a pea is rather big but a smaller peice would be good should I just go to walmart and get a bag frozen peas? It sounds easy enough let it thaw take the skin off cut it into a smaler chunk and put it in the tank. Merlin is very aggressive he puffs even when he sees his reflection on the tank so i doubt a mirror is necessary.

 

[dkpate]

I buy a bag of frozen peas, but they need to be boiled, not just thawed, and make sure he KNOWS your finger is in there with food before you drop it. He should chase it. Yes to the peeled part too, no skins. I boil mine in the microwave in a coffee cup for 2-3 minutes, then run them under cold water, pop the middle out onto a spoon and mush them with my finger.
I understand he flares at his reflection, but it's not interacting with you, the mirror is. I put my finger in the water and let mine chase them. My boys get SO excited when I walk into the room, and they start showing off.

 

[Meagan.Marie]

Bettas are such interesting fish, if only people realized this. I will boil it in a cup and I was testing his water today with the API test and he started chasing the water vial. it was pretty funny.