Betta - Not eating for 2 weeks!

Question
Hello,

This is my first betta. My ex-husband used to keep fish so I sort of know about them. My daughter thinks it's healthy but I don't know...

I got my betta 2 weeks ago and it has not eaten at all. I started with pellets (2/day) and it let the pellets fall to the gravel. I switched to flakes and it doesn't swim near it. Again it lets the flakes fall to the ground. Bettas aren't bottom feeders so I really don't think it can eat the food from the gravel like my daugther says. And I never see it picking food from the gravel.

Is my betta really eating or not? What can I do to make it eat?

And last night my betta started making foamy bubbles at the top of his tank. It's all around the edge of the tank, not the center. He doesn't like to swim in the center he only sticks to the edge. Is that okay? The pet store recommended a .5+ gallon tank, so I got a nice 1.7 gallon tank.

Lastly, my daughter noticed that at the store he sometimes would swim slantedly. But I loved him and wanted to take him home. He usually swims alright but his fins are so long that I think that's why he tilts sideways when he swims. Do you think that's possible or could he be dying?

Please let me know asap! Thank you very much!

Answer
Hi Lisa,
It's quite unusual to have a betta fish refuse to eat for such a long time. Bettas will sometimes eat food from the bottom, but most food that has dropped down to the bottom is ignored. Some bettas are picky eaters. Refusing flakes or pellets for a long time until they can gradually learn to accept these important foods. Meanwhile, i would definitely try feeding frozen bloodworms or brine shrimp. Few bettas can resist these foods which so closely resemble their natural diet. Of course you can find frozen worms and brine shrimp at your local petstore. Thaw out a small portion and feed with a toothpick. If he doesn't accept this food after at least three tries in one day and he doesnt show interest something may be internally wrong. I'm not saying this is the case at the moment. We can't be sure yet.

The foamy bubbles is actually a good sign. Male bettas build bubblenests to hold the females eggs.  But even if there isn't a female betta around males will build nests 'just in case'. Its generally a good sign of a healthy betta. So you may indeed have a picky eater on your hands!

Bettas can swim a bit awkward if they have long fins. If he was laying on his side at the top or was unable to control his equilibrium in general all the time that would indicate a swim bladder issue. I don't feel that he is dying.

Try changing half his tank water making sure all new water is treated with a water conditioner and the temp is equal or just a tiny bit warmer than his tanks temp. And try feeding him frozen food.

One great betta care website you should check out is - www.nippyfish.net

Hopefully something will encourage him to eat. Let me know how he is doing!
Best of luck!
Susan~