While buying 'pet' food today, my betta obsession took over...and 6 hours and 4 stores later...I rescued a beautiful crowntail. (I'm writing letters about the dead/sick ones I didn't rescue.)
His color is great, fins nearly perfect, flares on cue, but....he is breathing a lil heavily. He is still swimming actively, but I occasionally find him hanging around the bottom huffing n puffing. I noticed this at the store, but chose him anyways...
Anyways, long story short....Is he sick? Or have ammonia poisoning? My water tests great. and I was hoping this would 'fix' him. Is there anything else I can do?? He is eating normally, but a lil shy and hides from me...and the "heavy breathing". He is not having problems swimming, but seems to prefer the bottom of the tank...where my first betta likes the top. (separate 2.5 gal tanks.)
2007-07-31 17:44:54 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
update:
alright. I was a worried parent. Seems this one prefers to be SPOILED! Moved him from the side room to my desk, and he is swimming around like crazy!!
It's been a few hours in the new tank, and I think the breathing has slowed down. Hopefully no permanent damage from that nasty pet** water.
PS. I can't believe his fins!! It's hard to see in those lil cups...but this guy is a champ!
2007-07-31 18:26:52 · update #1
He may have had ammonia poisoning if he wasn't getting frequent water changes at the store. Ammonia causes physical damage, so if the gills were damaged from ammonia exposure, it won't heal after a short time in fresh water.
Sitting at the bottom isn't unusual for a fish that's just been moved to a new environment, either. It will take him a day or two to just get accustomed to new surroundings.
As long as you're providing good water quality now (and he probably LOVES having a 2.5 gallon tank to swim in!), proper temperature (76-86o), and he's eating, you're giving him good care. If he seems to have trouble breathing, you might want to lower the water level so he doesn't have as far to go to get to the surface if you don't have a filter in the tank. Another thing you can try is adding about 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt to the water (preferably without iodine). If he does have some physical damage, this can prevent a fungal infection.
2007-07-31 17:55:58 · answer #1 · answered by copperhead 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Bettas definitely prefer the top of the tank. Granted, they will swim around at all levels, but usually you'll find them at the top.
Did you slowly adjust him to the new tank water? Floating the bag or slowly adding water to his cup before adding him to the tank? He could be experiencing ph shock.
As long as the ammonia and nitrites are reading 0 ppm, that's the only safe level. He could be suffering from gill flukes, or like you said ammonia poisoning from his life at the pet store. Was he breathing heavy at the store? Or just since he went in your tank? If it started in your tank, I would say it's something to do with the water quality-like I mentioned the ph or temperature. Give him some time to adjust, check him in the morning and see if he's doing any better.
And give 'em hell on the letter writing. Done that a few times, doesn't really help any, big businesses just don't care, but at least it made me feel better. And I didn't take them up on their "gift certificate" offers...dumb a$$es think they can shut you up with a gift certificate...good luck!
2007-07-31 17:58:03 · answer #2 · answered by tikitiki 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it could be a sickness to his lungs or the accident it was in
2007-07-31 17:51:20 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋