My male betta seems to be shivering

[tsogamraf]

I think there might be something wrong with my male betta. Yesterday I found him just laying at the bottom of the tank and wouldn't move (like he usually does) when he hears me say something. Afraid he was dead, I went to pick him out of the water and he swam away from me. Then I noticed that he looked like he was shivering (i.e. his movements were not as fluent as they usually are, but more of a stuttering). Does anyone know if there's something wrong with him?

Here's some general info about the tank he's in:
10 gallon
Filter and Heater included
live aquatic plants
glass pebble stones
2 very small african dwarf frogs as tank mates

Help?

 

[jlk]

Can you post your water parameters (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, ph) & what you are using to test them? How often do you do water changes?

 

[tsogamraf]

They're all where they're supposed to be, just using a simple starter kit. I put him in a healing tank by himself. I think he might just be getting old. I bought him from a pet store and I've head him for a little over a year. :/

 

[LyndaB]

They're all where they're supposed to be,

What are your exact readings?

What is your temp?

 

[tsogamraf]

76˚F for the temperature. Ammonia and nitrite is somewhere between 0 and .25 ppm (it's a weird guess the color of the water test). I know they're supposed be at zero, but they're low enough, right? Nitrate is at about 10 ppm.

 

[LyndaB]

No, they're not low enough. Ammonia and nitrite need to be 0. Otherwise, you can consider the water toxic.

You need to do an immediate 50% water change to lower the numbers.

Bettas like temp at about 75-80, perhaps yours needs things a bit warmer.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

The age of one or two is not old! I have had a Betta live to 5 and have heard of some living to 7 or more. As said you need to get the ammonia and nitrite down. Have you changed anything in the tank recently? Filter media, substrate, etc? How long has the tank been set up? Is he showing any other signs of illness? Clamped fins, spots, heavy or fast breathing, flashing/scratching, etc?

 

[tsogamraf]

He's been in the tank for almost a month now. He seems fine in his healing tank atm, except he's looking a bit... grey, I guess is a way of putting it, around his face. I haven't added anything new to the tank recently that could have offset the levels. The tests I'm using are a bit confusing . I got them from a lab in the university's department and it's a colored water test that's kind of hard to tell the difference between certain parameters. I just retested and it's looking more towards the zero color than an in-between color. Should I keep doing water changes? If so how often?

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Keep the ammonia and nitrite as low as possible. Turn the temp up to 80F and see how he does. Let us know if he does it again or your worried about him still.

 

[LyndaB]

The tests I'm using are a bit confusing . I got them from a lab in the university's department and it's a colored water test that's kind of hard to tell the difference between certain parameters.

Not being comfortable with your test kit will add a lot of stress to this hobby.

I would suggest you get yourself an API master kit. You can get them at kensfish.com for about $23.

 

[tsogamraf]

Thanks guys! I'll let you know if anything gets worse.