My Betta Fish is not very active at all

Question
Hello my Betas fish is in my desk tank at work and he is not very active....he hangs out either at the top of the tank or at the bottom on the rocks the tank water temp is about 70-72...He will sometimes bend his body in a crescent shape with his head out of the water and then kind of spaz out and swim very fast around the tank

Answer
Hi Angie,

At the minute his tank is too cold. Bettas need to be kept in temperatures within 75-84F (24-29C). Raise the temperature of his tank gently to avoid stressing him out. Rapid temperature changes can have hugely adverse effects on fish. Although most anabantids are generally pretty hardy.

Eventually being kept at such a low temperature will begin to kill him, so it might be worth bringing the temperature up as soon as possible!

Being at the surface and then rushing about is nothing to be worried about. Fighters tend to take in atmospheric air rather than relying on oxygen from the water. Most anabantids have a labyrinth system which allows them to take on atmospheric oxygen and then expel it through the anus.

Siamese Fighting Fish are pretty mental anyway. They're popular with most British and American aquarists because they're beautiful and their behaviour is so odd.

Contrary to popular belief Fighters need well-filtered water. In Thailand they live in paddy fields, which although is very still water, it still has more of a flow than a 10G tank.

They are also used a mosquito control in their native country so live bloodworm will be taken with relish.

Good Luck!