Im scared my Betta fish is going to die.

Question
QUESTION: I've had my betta for about a year and Ive become very attached to him. His name is Gumpy. A few months ago i dropped him when i was changing his water, i was devistated but quickly picked him up and put him back in the water. I thought for sure he was going to die but he has been okay since. I went away for the weekend and his water got pretty dirty, i went way too long withought changing it. I changed it as soon as i got home, but since i've changed it Gumpy has been staying towards the bottom of his bowl and hasn't been coming up for food. He will come up occasionally but doesn't eat the food i give him. There are many oxygen bubbles everywhere around his fish bowl, and i don't know if that is good or bad. I changed his water with tap water instead of distilled water like i normally do because I didnt have any and desperatly needed to change the water. I have his bowl under a light at the moment hoping the water will warm up, will that help?  I don't know whats wrong and i am very scared. Please help me and tell me what is wrong with Gumpy!

ANSWER: Hi Heather;

Poor Gumpy. He may have gotten too cold and probably in shock from having a different kind of water so he needs time to recover. Just keep him as quiet as you can and keep slowly warming up his water with the light. He may have gotten too cold too.

Be sure to net out or siphon out the uneaten food. It will foul the water and cause more problems.

Tap water is perfectly fine to use for Gumpy's water changes by the way. Just be sure to use water conditioner. The new water has to be the same temperature as the old water too. Distilled water doesn't have the minerals and trace elements that fish need to stay strong and healthy. It is better not to use it. Regular bottled drinking water or bottled spring water are okay, just not "distilled". Here is a page about betta care and what kind of water is good to use;

http://www.aquariumguys.com/betta-fish-care-article.html

I hope he does okay...

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Ugh, i was told to use distilled water. Well should i change the water to room temperature water, or leave it as it is to warm up? If i put tap water in a gallon jug and let it sit for twenty four hours is that good to use next time i change the water?

Answer
Hi Heather;

I'm so sorry you were misinformed about the distilled water. It's far too common I'm afraid.

Don't change his water to warm it. It will only shock him, or it will cool off again right away if it's warmer than what the lamp can eventually do. Those up and down fluctuations are very stressful to him. Let the water in his tank warm up slowly by using the light. Keep it on 24 hours a day for now so he stays warm. If it isn't enough, put him in a warmer spot. Up higher in the room is good because heat rises. I have even put betta tanks in a bookcase or shelf up high with a light because it is more closed in and heats up better. Just be careful not to cause a fire hazard.

For water changes, just use tap water that's the same as his tank water by mixing hot/cold from the tap and add a good water conditioner. If you let some sit out to use and your betta's tank water is warmer than what's in the jug because of the light, it will shock him to change it. You would have to let the water sit out next to the light too in order to make it the same temp, if there's room to do that.

I also forgot to mention that the bubbles you are seeing in his tank are probably the result of using tap water. It's not harmful. The tap water is under pressure while in our house water pipes. When we get some from the faucet and let it set out in a fish bowl (or even a water glass) the compressed air that was in with the water is released and forms bubbles that stick to surfaces and the sides of the tank. Distilled water doesn't have that happen because it wasn't under pressure before you used it.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins