hi, i took a betta from my two roomies who put 2 bettas in one tank. I took the less dominant fish who had been getting constantly pecked. I believe its a she, she has been very very happy and spunky in her new bowl, except her gills seem red, especially on one side. I dunno if its because of the pecking or really a disease, I've been reading about Betas online. Also, I heard that Betas go crazy in round bowls, is that true? Mine is in a round glass bowl.
2007-09-28 16:35:02 · 4 answers · asked by Tawni 1 in Pets ➔ Fish
Bettas will not go crazy in a bowl, but they fare far better in some sort of aquarium setup (even a small desktop aquarium will suffice). As for the red gills, it sounds like it could be either a bacterial infection or gill inflammation. If one side is more pronounced than the other, and if one or both gills aren't closing all the way, I would suspect inflammation.
Start any treatment with a full water change (and treat the new water with Aqua Safe or similar product). If this is a case of inflamed gills, you need to treat with an antibiotic such as Ampicillin (not the human kind, but one you can get at any pet store). If the water he is in has NOT been treated with Aqua Safe, he may be suffering from nitrate poisoning (which will cause inflamed gills), and you need to also treat with one drop of methylene blue (it will change the water color, that is fine). Change the water every third day until you complete the full course of treatment as indicated on the antibiotic's package.
If this is a bacterial infection, after you do a 100% water change (always change all the water at first when you have a sick Betta to treat), you need to treat with either tetracycline or Triple Sulfa, and also with Fungus Eliminator (turns the water a nice shade of yellow, LOL). Follow the full course of treatment as indicated on the packaging.
After that first 100% water change and medication, before you add more medication do a 70-75% water change; otherwise you may inadvertently over-medicate your Betta.
An awesome resource for Betta owners is http://www.bettatalk.com . Click on Betta Health on the left side; you will find an extensive listing of common ailments, symptoms, and treatments. I've used this site as a reference for years, and my advice in this post came from their information. Good luck!!
2007-09-28 17:05:52 · answer #1 · answered by purrfectpals5 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Betta Health
2016-10-13 10:01:03 · answer #2 · answered by berks 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Rather than keep it in a bowl, you'd do better to use a small tank (there are some nice 2.5 gallon mini-bow tanks that come with a light & filter available at WalMart in a couple of different colors). Bettas should have a heater so the water temperature stays above 76o (76-86o is ideal for them). This also allows extra water volume to dilute their wastes and gives you room for a small filter which you can't use easily on a bowl.
The reason I bring up the bowl is because unless you're doing water changes every 2-3 days, the betta may be affected by ammonia (part of the waste they produce) in the water: http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/disease/p/ammoniapoison.htm Try doing 100% changes more often and see if this helps.
2007-09-28 16:50:05 · answer #3 · answered by copperhead 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
It usually means an infection in the gills or lack or oxygen. Are you using a water conditioner? You need to use one because regular tap water is not sufficient enough for fish to live in. Go to your local pet store and they will recommend a treatment for the infection/parasite.
2007-09-28 16:41:39 · answer #4 · answered by Madison 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋