fighter fish

Question
QUESTION: Hi,
I have had quite a few male and female fighters that we have bought for our office. I had one recently for about 4 months and one before that for about 6 months or so.
Since then i have got another 2 and changed over the rocks etc and they only lasted about 2 or 3 days each one bought after the other.
I then got another one about 3 days ago to see if i could change anything to make a different but today he is only near the top of the water... I'm assuming so that he can breath. He is still alive but i don't think he will last over night. I moved him into a different container with no rocks and just added conditioner as per usual. We have other fish in the office in another 4 containers and they are all fine still. The only think that i have done different recently is change the rocks over in his bowl.
What can I do to help him?


ANSWER: When you add the new fish, are you using their old water, or putting them into completely new water, or half and half? How often do you feed them, and what temperature are they kept at? How often are you doing water changes? Please respond and I will get back to you directly with a better solution for you.

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

QUESTION: When I have any new fish I always clean the whole bowl out again rocks and everything and put new tap water in with conditioner. I don't know exactly what temperature the water would be. Just room temperature or maybe a little bit colder. I change the water once every week. They are fed once every day or every second day only a few granules at a time.

Answer
Okay, when you clean out the bowls, be sure you are not using soap. Any soap residue in the bowl can be fatal to the fish. Use hot water only to clean out your tanks. The temperature of your fish's "bowl" needs to be tropical - between 78-82 degrees F. The Betta Splenden is a tropical fish and colder temperatures - especially if they are used to warmer temperatures in the store or wherever you bought them - can be fatal for any tropical fish. Sudden changes in temperature is just as deadly. If the bowls are at least one gallon, than once a week should be okay. If they are any smaller, you need to be changing out the water at least twice a week. It truly is better if you have at least a 5 gallon tank for any fish. Think of it this way, the bigger the tank, the easier it is to keep fish alive - ALWAYS. Also, you will not have to be quite as diligent in your water changes - unless of course you have many fish.
Please be sure you are following the directions on the bottle for the tap water conditioner, and that the bottle states it removes "Chlorine, Chloramines, and heavy metals".
Are you feeding them specifically betta pellets? It is fine to feed them once or twice a day, but as I said, you will need to be more diligent about changing out their water. The reason you want to feed them betta pellets only is because Betta's have very different nutritional needs from any other fish. They would not do well on, say, goldfish food.
Now, the reason your new fish may be dying so quickly could be due to any or all of those factors, or to be completely honest it may have nothing to do with you at all and they are quite possibly coming in already sick or dying. But you need to make sure you are doing your part to keep them healthy and stress free one hundred percent.
Where are you getting your fish from? It is fine to get them from pet stores, such as Petsmart or Petco, but not all pet stores are equal. Just look at the state all of the animals are in, including the other fish. If all the animals seem well cared for, all the tanks are relatively clean and are not "full" of dead fish, AND the staff appears to know what they're talking about, then you have probably found yourself a decent store in which it is safe to buy the animals and know they are healthy. I do tend to recommend Petsmart over Petco, as they have much different rules and actually require training on the care of all the animals in order to work there, whereas Petco does not.
I hope this information has been beneficial to you, and please remember that it is a good idea to do as much research as possible on ANY animal prior to purchasing. Fish are much harder to take care of than most novice fish keepers first believe. And Betta's are by far the hardiest fish and the most easy to care for. So don't feel ashamed or reluctant to pick up a book on Betta's or tropical fish care.
Best of luck to you!