My betta died!

Question
I have had my betta for a little over a month and a half and we keep him in a special betta bowl that we bought at the fish store when we bought him. We change his water about every week or so and feed him two or three of the betta pellets that came with the tank twice a day like the instructions said. He did great for the first month but then he started acting funny. He would stay at the bottom of the tank almost all of the time and come up only for air a few times a day. He started swimming kind of sideways and stopped eating from what I could tell. We checked the water with a test strip and everything seemed fine. He would just stay at the bottom and it was hard to tell if he was alive because he would hardly move when used to he would swim to the top when you walked by. Then one day when I came home from work I found him laying on the table outside his bowl. No one else had been home all day so I had to assume that he jumped out. What do you think was wrong with him and why did he jump out of his bowl?

Answer
Hi Kailyn;

I'm so sorry your fish died. What a shame. Bettas will jump sometimes so it's best to have a cover over their tank or bowl. Be sure it has little tiny holes in the lid though. Your fish needs oxygen. Since he was having trouble getting to the top he probably had a swim bladder problem. He may have overlaunched when he went to the top for air and then.....well, you know. Poor guy.

Bettas need their water changed at least once a week if the bowl holds a gallon or more. If the bowl holds less than a gallon it needs to be changed twice a week. If he lives in a pretty small bowl his body was stressed and he developed the trouble with his swim bladder. Here is a list of web sites about bettas and their care so you are well-equipped if you decide to try another one;

http://www.bettatalk.com/
http://www.healthybetta.com/
http://www.siamsbestbettas.com/

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins