Frantic Betta

Question
Dear Nicole,

I've spent at least two hours browsing the questions that have already been asked on these forums, and have noted your thorough replies which have taught me quite a few things. I read the forum because my Betta fish has been acting out of the ordinary recently.

About three weeks ago, he started to eat less, and float at the top of his tank. I have been changing his water regularly at least once a week, 100% changes and conditioning the water with conditioner. Several times, I have added a dash of salt solution to his one gallon tank (once after each water change). I feed him pellets once a day. I have had him since October 2005, and when I first got him he could not open his mouth wide enough for a whole pellet. I had to crush his food - only then would he eat a year ago. This led me to believe that he was quite young when I first got him. I do not think that he is acting oddly out of old age now.

Apart from floating at the top three weeks ago for two weeks, this week he has started to bury himself in the marbles at the bottom of the tank. Even more worrying, at some points he rises to the surface to breathe, and then begins to go into a type of epileptic shock, twisting and turning frantically, jerking back and forth as if something was electrocuting him. It's not a pretty sight and I have never seen him do this before. He is usually a very smooth, calm and (what I like to think) calculated fish. This past week, I have heard him knocking around the sides of the tank and hitting the marbles so hard, it's painful to hear and see.

I suspect that it is parasites. He eats one pellet a day only, and his stomach is slightly bulging. His fins are rust-coloured (sign of ammonia or nitrite poisoning, I know) but I'm not sure if it's ammonia or a parasite.

His tank stays at about 20-22 deg Celcius. Please help me figure this out?

Thank you,
Jean

Answer
Dear Jean,

Thank you for your extremely well thought out question, and for taking the time to describe your tank conditions and maintenance protocol. You even researched before you wrote in! You are perhaps the first person to write me in such a manner. While I am happy to answer all questions *grin* I do appreciate your extraordinary courtesy. It makes it much easier for me to do my "job" here!

I see a couple of red flags here. First of all, your betta's bowl is much too cold for his liking. 68-72 degrees Fahrenheit - sorry, I'm writing from sunny Florida, where it is just 23 degrees Celsius (74 F) outside presently - is really only an appropriate temperature for a coldwater fish such as a goldfish or a white cloud mountain minnow. Your betta needs the water to be about 26 degrees Celsius (78 F) because he's a tropical fish. Hydor makes a submersible 7.5 watt heater just for betta bowls. Here's a link: http://www.aquariumproducts.com.au/prod1208.htm

While this may not be the direct cause of the frenetic behavior, being cold is certainly stressful for a tropical fish. In fact, as winter approached, this could very well have been the reason for the listlessness you began to observe. A fish that is cold is simply...not hungry!

Once you have that issue corrected, let me also advise you on your water change schedule. The salt addition is fine, as is the conditioner you are using most likely (Prime is my preferred product, 3 drops per gallon is all you need), however changing out 100% of the water is awfully drastic. 50% is the maximum amount to change unless there is an emergency, such as accidental poisoning. I know, if your bowl is only about a gallon, changing less seems wrong. But your betta is stressed by having all of his cycled aquarium water removed at once. Especially since you probably don't have a filter in your tank. Nearly all of the beneficial bacteria is in the water! Marbles are certainly pretty, but they are not a useful substrate. Some smooth, round natural gravel would be able to culture beneficial bacteria on it, in ways that a polished glass substrate simply cannot.

While overfeeding is generally a problem with bettas, as opposed to underfeeding (their stomach is only the size of their eye!) one pellet a day, or less, if he is refusing to eat, is not enough nutrition to remain healthy. Your betta is probably starving and having buoyancy issues as a result.

He is going to need to be acclimated slowly to the new temperature and to eating more, but it can be done. Follow my recommendations, and I believe your betta will see a recovery. First, transfer your betta to a new container and save all of the water. Then follow these steps:

1. Ditch the marbles and get some non-epoxy coated gravel. Here's a short article all about gravel:
http://www.drhelm.com/aquarium/gravel.html

2. Add a heater. A 25 watt heater should be a stock item at any local fish store. The Hydor heater is more attractive, but a 25 watt submersible heater will do the trick, too. Every 2 hours, raise the remperatue one degree. When the water temperature reaches 26 C (78 F), stop. Monitor the temperature by using a submersible thermometer at all times.

3. Replace the water and betta, but do not feed for a few hours. Then, offer some tempting live or frozen bloodworms. Bloodworms are generally a betta's favorite food. Try to feed him one worm at a time with blunt tweezers, or cut the defrosted worms into small pieces and feed a tiny piece at a time. Stop when your betta loses interest in eating.

4. Add 1/8th of a tablespoon of Epsom salt to his water. You know the tummy ache you get when you haven't eaten all day and then you suddenly eat a big meal? Fish get that too, and Epsom salt will help him to move his bowels. It's soothing too, the same way Epsom salt baths are soothing to humans.

Try that and see if that doesn't cure him! Also, I am not sure if you gathered this much from my other posts, but I am a big fan of http://www.bettatalk.com - please check out that site for a wealth of reliable information. There is a whole section on feeding, adding live plants...lots you will want to know and read about if you haven't already!

Lastly, while I recommend betta keepers to opt for at least a 3 gallon Eclipse system to house their pets in, if you do plan on keeping your betta in a bowl for the rest of his years, check out this example of a well-balanced system:

http://www.aquahobby.com/tanks/e_tank0308d.php

I know it may not be as aesthetically appealing as a betta in a bowl full of marbles, but...the way I see it, while fish are decorative, they are not decorations. I know you care about your fish, otherwise you wouldn't have bothered writing in! Check out the natural planted tanks of Takashi Amano - although I myself personally have never been able to achieve such splendor in my own tanks, what I mean to say is, it is possible to achieve that "clean" look you're striving for and still provide the living creature inside of the desktop tank with the natural surrounds it craves.

Good luck! Feel free to write back anytime. Happy holidays to you and yours.

Nicole