My betta seems like he is down in the dumps?

Question

He is always staying down at the bottom of the tank.when i set something down on the table his tank is on,he jumps so much he mooves the gravel.it looks like he has scales or something coming off his head.his head is black and the rest is blue.please dont tell me im a bad fish owner because i only got him from the petstore on january 20th.plz help

he was like that when i got him

Answer 1

He's only been your fish for a few days give him a chance to adjust to his surroundings. The reason he jumps is he is startled by the vibration of whatever you are doing once he is used to things he won't do it as much. Bettas are not that active of a fish mine spends a lot of the time resting near the bottom. If your house is 68 degrees or warmer I wouldn't worry too much about the temperature of his tank. They do like it warmer but mine is fine without a heater in his bowl and my house is at 68 all the time. I would make sure you use room temperature water when you change his tank and the scales missing is from him banging himself on the rocks when he is startled or he could be itching from a parasite. I would use filtered water change his tank and put a product called slim coat or water conditioner for fish this helps keep the stress down from being changed and the difference that is in water types. If you use tap water have it tested to see if the ph is right. If you think it might be from a parasite (Does he rub himself up against the rocks or is it only when he is startled?) If you don't see him rubbing up against the rocks then I wouldn't worry about a parasite and just ad the slim coat to his water that will help him heal the areas that are gone now. You can also use a product called Doc's Aquarium Salt. This will help him too. Good luck and hope this helps sounds like you are an good fish owner you were concerned enough to ask!

Answer 2

If he's still in the tiny bowl you got him in, then he'll stay that lethargic.

To begin with, DO NOT GET ANOTHER BETA!!! Betas are extremely aggressive fish and they will kill each other. Also, if you plan on getting another fish, make sure it's a fish that isn't a tail nipper or one that looks like beta because the beta will kill it.


If this is the only fish you have, I agree that you should get a 5 or so gallon tank and he will be more active in a few days. If you want to eventually get more fish, then you should go ahead and go for a 10-15 gallon tank, but he will be able to stay entertained in a bigger one despite what people above have said.


The reason Betas come in the tiny bowls they do is because in the wild, if they are in an environment with droughts, they can survive in a small puddle of water with little oxygen in the water, but this does not mean they should always stay in such awful conditions!!!!


If you don't have a filter in your tank, this could be another problem. Fish need oxygen in the water.


Good luck!! If he does have ick, I would take him back to the petstore.

Answer 3

first off, move him to a less disturbed spot. it stresses him out every time you put something on the table, this is why he freaks out. he seems to be a very stressed betta.

how warm are you keeping the water?
it should be kept at 75-85F, a steady 78F is good. room temp water in most houses is about 65F, waaaay too cold for a betta.

tank or bowl?
it is a myth that bettas like small containers, are afraid of big containers, live in puddles in the wild, ect... they do NOT live in puddles, they live in rice paddies, which may not be deep but are very wide. calling them puddles is quite a stretch. each male has their own territory to themselves which is quite large. for pet bettas between 2.5 - 5 gallons is good. I prefer 5 which allows for more vegetation.

filtered?
bettas need filters too. just like any other fish they produce waste. there is beneficial bacteria in the rocks of a tank, and the filter if you have one. these are important in keeping your fish healthy. every time you do a water change you get rid of them. if you don't change the water though levels of things like ammonia will get to high and kill your fish. this is why a filter is important. filters make it so full water changes aren't needed. a partial water change (1/4 of the water) once a week would be good though.

I recommend a 5 gallon tank with a 1-3 gallon filter (I like whisper filters which are virtually silent and I know they make a 1-3gallon size), a 25 watt heater, and a few silk plants, and a thermometer. you also might want to get beneficial bacteria and stress coat, and a water conditioner if you don't have it. set the tank up and add the recommended amount for your sized tank. run the filter and heater for a day to monitor the temp, make sure it stays at 78 degrees. then put your betta, and the water he is currently in, in a baggy. float it in the new tank for an hour to slowly equalize the temps. after an hour dump,p him in. soon he'll be much less stressed and will stop lying around and freaking out.

Answer 4

If you still have your receipt you should have 14 days to return him. I had that happen more than a few times. Bettas get bacteria that makes their scales come off. They will act as you described for a while before they die. You should take him back they can give you a chemical to put in your tank that may save him. More than likely they will give you a new fish. Make sure you clean the tank and add the chemicals that a fish needs to prevent stress and bacteria. I hope this helps. Good luck and I'm sorry about your fish. Your not a bad owner this happens.

Answer 5

Since, he is always staying down at the bottom of the tank he might
1) have a swim bladder problem
2) be constipated

Since, it looks like his scales or something is coming off his head, he might
1) have an infection

My sister had a Beta fish, and when her fish was constipated she used to boil a pea, or defrost a frozen pea, and put a very tiny piece of it in his tank. She put a piece about the size of the food he usually eats. It was amazing, her fish looked like it was on the verge of dying, and it was starting to lay sideways, you know the way fish tilt sideways when they are about to die. And the next day, it looked like a brand new fish. Its color returned, and it looked extremely healthy. One way you can tell if your fish is constipated is if the fish's stomach looks like its bulging.You might want to give your fish a piece of pea, because if it works it works, and if it doesn't work, no harm done. Do not put more than 1 or 2 ( pieces ) per day...

If your Beta has an infection, you might want to put some aquarium salt in your fish's tank. There are some measurements for how much salt to put. I don't know how much and you might want to look this up on the internet. For a start I would, say a few granules say 3 or 4 granules of aquarium salt because for goldfish it is 1 teaspoon for 1 gallon or 1 tablespoon for 10 gallons. I would assume that Beta fish would need a lot less salt than that, plus the tanks are extremely small, so you would need even less than that. And also the water evaporates so the concentration of salt increases. Don't add salt everytime you change the water because again the salt accumulates. This will probably help if he has an infection.

It is said that Beta fish are very easy to take care of. Just remember not to overfeed them, to change the water regularly ( NO TAP WATER ( because it has Chlorine ) ), and to keep the tank covered because they tend to jump.

There are some really good sites on the internet for finding information about taking care of Betas and Goldfish. Thats how my sister found out about the pea trick. There are also sites that have forms where you can ask questions about your fish and get really good answers.

Answer 6

I agree with trying warmer water, it should be around 76 degrees in there. Also, get the water tested for ph, alkalinity, nitrate, nitrite, and hardness. They have 5 in 1 test strips by Jungle at walmart for only around less then 10 bucks. Whatever you do, DONT PUT ANOTHER BETTA IN THERE W/ HIM. THEY WILL FIGHT. I am no expert, but he might have a disease called pinecone. I think. I only know about this beacaues I spent over 2 hours on the internet trying to find out what my female platy had at 1 in the morning. If anyone cares it was hole in the head. but sadly she died before it was easily noticeabe. I would call tetra-fish at 1-800-423-6458 or I would try Pet Emporium in Greeley or Denizens of the Deep in Ft. Collins to ask them about whats wrong w/ your fish.
Hope This Helps and He Gets Better!!!!!!
:) :) :) :) :)
Also, I dont think your a bad fish owner, people buy sick fish all the time and dont relize it for awhile!!!!! :)

Answer 7

older bettas look like that on his head so don't worry about it -- its not a disease you just got an older betta.

i suggest you find ways of making him happier -- get him some plants or a decoration he can hide out in. bettas like stuff around them.

you can also try feeding him frozen bloodworms or daphnea. they are great betta treats. bloodworms (they are really mosquito larvae) are their natural food in the wild but a bit rich. they can get constipated if you feed them too much. daphnea has the opposite effect on them.

there is stuff called melafix that perks my bettas up. it comes in a bottle and you use it 1/2 strength. it is the same thing as stuff called bettafix but stronger and you get a lot less for your money. it is good for them anytime they get a shredded fin too.

last thing you can do is exercise him. get him a mirror and he will flare at himself in the mirror and show off. or get another betta in a separate tank and put the tanks side by side and they will show off for each other. .

Answer 8

Bettas are attack fish. I have one as well and if I pick my cat up to look at him he puffs his head up just like yours. its most likely that your fish is unclear what it is so is "putting on a front" for it incase the object is a threat to him. I would leave the same object by them all the time like if he is on a deck keep your penical holder by him and not switch things out to much. With staying low in the bowl Im not really sure about that one. But mine normally isnt moving around to much and seems to just drift around so Im thinking its normal.

Answer 9

get him a 5 gallon tank, a heater, and a little filter. set the temperature to 80°F. Feed him quality food, flakes, dried bloodworms. Within 2 weeks, he'll be happy and swimming around.

Answer 10

well ok i have a betta 2 & mine just stays at the bottom but if u don't have a snail u should probably get 1 so that his tank will be clean!!!