Betta acting strangely

Question
QUESTION: Hi! I just got a betta 2 day ago and he refuses to eat, I also noticed that when he's floating at the top he tends to lie on his side. However he doesn't seem to have a problem swimming around the tank and seems to be a bit spastic occasionally darting from one side to the other. Is there anything i should be worried about with his lying on his side? and is there anyway i can get him to eat?

ANSWER: Hi Cindy,
This is not normal behaviour for a betta.  It could be parasites, or Swim Bladder disease, or something else.  Can you see if his tummy is swollen?  (His tummy is just under his chin) Is his tail ragged, and does he have clamped fins?  Is your PH around 7.0?  A sick Betta will refuse to eat, we must find out why.  Write back to me with more information so I can help you more.  Give me the size of his tank, the water temperature, and what you have tried feeding him.  I must know these things, as I do not want to guess, and give you wrong information.
Lynda

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QUESTION: Hi Lynda!

His tummy appears to be normal, although his fins appear to be blotchy and fading. Hes in his own little separate tank thats about 1.5 litres with a small heater, Im not sure what the pH is but I use the water from a 30gallon filtered and heated tank (the fish in that tank have been fine for years with no problems). The temperature of his tank is about 24 degrees and i just tried again...he looks at the food and then kinda "runs away". Hope this information is useful.

ANSWER: Hi Cindy,
If you are sure that the water in the other tank is free of ammonia, nitrites, and that the nitrates are low, then it would be okay to use that water, but I would use tap water with a good conditioner such as stress coat.   It would be safer for your betta to use the tap water, unless he was in a cycled tank with other fish.  In a 1.5 gallon tank, his water should be changed completely twice a week.  It is a myth to keep betta in these small tanks.  Vendors know it, and they don't care.  They make lots of money selling gadgets for bettas, and the poor fish must try to live through this.  Bettas kept in small tanks, are not happy bettas.  They get sick, and their lives are sometimes cut short.   In their habitat, the water may be shallow, but they have lots of room to swim.  The Betta needs a heated 5 gallon tank, but little information is given on how to keep bettas.  His water temperature should be 82 degrees.  When bringing us the temperature, bring it up very very slowly.  Bring it up one degree every two days, as bringing us the temperature too fast could be deadly.  He needs a silk plant so he can rest on the leaves, and some little toy he can go through.  One teaspoon of diluted aquarium salt to 5 gallons of water is recommended.  In his 1.5 container, you may put 1/4 teaspoon of aquarium salt in his water, every time you change it.
For now, change all of his water using tap water, making sure it is the same temperature as he was in.  Condition the water with a good conditioner.  Add 1/4 teaspoon aquarium salt.  Wait three days, and change all of his water again.  See if this helps his condition.  If you see no improvement, or he is getting worse, write back to me, and I will try to answer you as quickly as possible.
Concerning his food, Bettas like Betta Pellets, Betta flakes, Plankton flakes, Daphnia, brine shrimp, bloodworms, glassworms, and mealworms.  Try to vary his diet.  Feed him one cooked frozen pea a week with the outer layer removed.  Cut the pea into tiny pieces, and feed the pieces one at a time to your betta.  This is so he can clean out his system, and avoid Swim Bladder Disease.  Adding Daphnia to his diet, also helps with his digestive system.  On the day you feed him the pea, feed him nothing else.
Bettas must be fed in small amounts 2-3 times a day.  Example:  2 pellets for one meal, or 2 flakes for one meal.  His tummy is the size of his eye, and we must always remember this when feeding them.
I hope this will help.  Please keep me posted on how he is doing.
Lynda

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QUESTION: Hey Lynda,

I did everything you suggested but unfortunately he died today, he kept refusing to eat right up till the end even though I tried the bloodworms, flakes, pellets and peas he wouldn't take any of it. I'm gonna try to get my tap water tested as I think that may be the cause of the problem even though I was using conditioner the whole time. Hopefully once I find out about that I can get another one.

Cindy

Answer
Hi Cindy,
I'm sorry for your loss.  I know how we get attached to our bettas, it is always love at first site, so I understand.  When bettas get sick, they sometimes go down very quickly, so at the first sign, we must try to find out what is wrong.  The first thing to do is always a complete water change.
I hope your tap water will turn out to be okay, I am quite confident it will be.  If so, always use tap water.  
Good Luck!
Lynda