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Pet Forum / Aquaria / General / July 2008My betta fish does not eat at all..
Hello Please help... This is the first time I ever had a betta fish... He is in a bowl which holds almost a gallon of water.. And I have treated the water with aquasafe to remove chlorine and a drop of methylene blue and ick preventing solution to the water.. I had added all these in the water and I let the water settle down for 24 hrs before I let the fish in the bowl. He is very active and is swimming perfectly fine.. But my only problem with him is he does not eat at all... I am worried.. It is almost a week since I got him and he hasnt eaten anything.. I am not sure what I am supposed to do.. I feed him wardley betta food which are in the form of pellets.. I am not sure if I should change the food or what is wrong that he is not eating at all.. I am worried as he is not eating at all....Please advice asap.. Thanks > Hello > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > Thanks Wardley? Immediately get some real food...try frozen bloodworms or at least Tetramin or Hakiri 1) buy bloodworms freeze or dried 2) buy a 10 gallon tank, atleast, a betta wont be happy in 1 gallon of water.... might be better off starving there imho. >> Hello >> [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] >> >> Thanks > 2) buy a 10 gallon tank, atleast, a betta wont be happy in 1 gallon of > water.... might be better off starving there imho. Poppycock. You're confusing bettas with goldfish. They can breath air using a special 'labyrinth' organ (which is kind of a primitive lung), generate far less waste due to having an efficient digestive tract, and tend to be less active than goldfish, all of which allows them to live for years in even a tiny bowl with no filtration or aeration. So to a betta, having a 1 gallon bowl is like living in a football stadium. - Logic316 Logic: n. The art of thinking and reasoning in strict accordance with the limitations and incapacities of the human misunderstanding. -- Ambrose Bierce the betta i got from a 1 gallon didnt have enough space to swim, so when put into a bigger tank he would just lie on the floor until he recovered. just because a fish can breath air and generates less waste does not have to mean that they dont enjoy swimming and exploring as other fish do. i was never saying that it wouldnt survive these conditions simply that its wrong considiering how much small 10 gallon tank cost. >Poppycock. You're confusing bettas with goldfish. They can breath air >using a special 'labyrinth' organ (which is kind of a primitive lung), >generate far less waste due to having an efficient digestive tract, and >tend to be less active than goldfish, all of which allows them to live >for years in even a tiny bowl with no filtration or aeration. So to a >betta, having a 1 gallon bowl is like living in a football stadium. Thanks for the advice.. I got him a bigger tank and also frozen bloodworms.. He is just doing great...Knock on wood :-) Thanks guys > i was never saying that it wouldnt survive these > conditions simply that its wrong considiering how much small 10 gallon > tank cost. No, you were exaggerating. Saying that a betta "might be better off starving there imho" makes it sound like it would suffer terribly in a one gallon container, which is simply not true. It's fine to discourage people from keeping bettas in those tiny bowls they usually get sold in, but telling people that each betta needs 10 gallons unnecessarily complicates the hobby. - Logic316 "If people were required to *know* all the laws, and not just to obey them, the government would be overthrown tomorrow." sorry but i truly dont see how this fish can live happily in such a small area.. the reason i said in my honest opinion is because its just that, my opinion. my fish was not happy in a vase and was dying, now he's a king of a castle and spends his days digging and exploring through plants. and this is what comes natural to him i believe, not sitting on display in a vase. i think all fish should have some real swimming space because there fish, even if they are capable of the opposite. even 10 gallons is small and bettas will have problems getting to full swimming speed because of their slow pick-up. lets just agree to disagree on this, because to me these small tanks will always seem selfish, flowers go in vases. >No, you were exaggerating. Saying that a betta "might be better off >starving there imho" makes it sound like it would suffer terribly in a >one gallon container, which is simply not true. It's fine to discourage >people from keeping bettas in those tiny bowls they usually get sold in, >but telling people that each betta needs 10 gallons unnecessarily >complicates the hobby. >> i was never saying that it wouldnt survive these >> conditions simply that its wrong considiering how much small 10 gallon [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > "If people were required to *know* all the laws, and not just to > obey them, the government would be overthrown tomorrow." I keep mine in 5 gall tanks but I'm not convinced that they really need all this space but I like them to have it and they use it all....in fact the stores I use refuse to sell anything smaller so it suits me...maybe it's a bit like people - we can live very happily in a flat/bedsit but give us a mansion we are over the moon.... Gill Sorry, but my bettas have always been *the* most active fish in my community tanks. The guy I have now rarely stops playing, exploring, and interacting with the other fish. --Gayze > and > tend to be less active than goldfish, > Sorry, but my bettas have always been *the* most active fish in my > community tanks. The guy I have now rarely stops playing, exploring, > and interacting with the other fish. If constantly stimulated by it's companions, of course a betta can be quite active. But if they're by themselves in even a large tank they tend to rest more often and for longer periods than goldfish, from what I've seen. My point was that they do not suffer such stress and growth-stunting from being confined in small spaces as goldfish do, and do not need to move around as much. And certainly, for somebody to say that a betta in a 1 gallon bowl "might be better off starving there imho" is just plain wrong. It can not only survive, but live quite well in such a container, and I do not see how it would have any actual benefits from living in anything larger. - Logic316 "Bureaucracy is a giant mechanism operated by pygmies." -- Honore de Balzac I have a betta that will ONLY eat little chunks of frozen brine shrimp that I have to feed to him by hand ... holding it under the surface of the water with my fingers. He will not touch any other kind of food, it must be fresh-frozen, and even that he will only eat if I feed it to him personally. He thinks he's the Prince of the Universe. Please, also, consider moving your betta out of the bowl and into a "real" tank of some kind. Even a little two gallon tabletop aquarium is better than a little bowl. --Gayze > > He is very active and is swimming perfectly fine.. But my only problem [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > of pellets.. I am not sure if I should change the food or what is wrong > that he is not eating at all.. i keep bettas male and female in my 120 gal, its amazing how much more these fish explore than your average fish. im convinced bettas need plants grown at the top, and also a castle to be happy. its a shame that because they breath air there doomed to cups. i adopted my betta from a vase, he didnt even know how to swim and took months to recover from this stage. atleast 10 gallons, and even that may be too small. 10 gallon tanks cost $10 at walmart, i cant think of any reason why all these people all over the internet go smaller... >Please, also, consider moving your betta out of the bowl and into a >"real" tank of some kind. Even a little two gallon tabletop >aquarium is better than a little bowl. bettas also like dried blood worms, but frozen is also good > bettas also like dried blood worms, but frozen is also good Mine won't touch dried anything, including bloodworms. Only frozen, and only if I hand-feed him. ::shrug:: At least he's eating. --Gayle thats funny, sounds spoiled. i keep the bloodworms for treats so a few days out of a week he gets those and the rest he gets a combination of fake and dried bloodworms. do you use a dropper to feed him the frozen? i like this method the best so far, you can slowly release one worm at a time. >Mine won't touch dried anything, including bloodworms. Only frozen, >and only if I hand-feed him. ::shrug:: At least he's eating. > > > do you use a dropper to feed him the frozen? No, just my fingers. :-) And yes, he's spoiled ... but the silly thing refused everything I gave him till we stumbled upon this method. --Gayze >> >> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > --Gayze <big grin> - mine feed just the same way - fortunately they also will take flake in the morning but boy do they love their "mummy" hand feeding them the frozen stuff at night - part of the joy of owning these fish :-) Gill > Hello > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > water and I let the water settle down for 24 hrs before I let the fish > in the bowl. =================== First check for AMMONIA. Then check to make sure the water is WARM. Bettas feed best in my experience when the water is over 76F. This time of year the water in a bowl can drop below that depending on how cool your house is.  SignatureMy Pond & Aquarium Pages: http://bellsouthpwp.net/s/h/shastadaisy ~~~ }<((((o> ~~~ }<{{{{o> ~~~ }<(((((o> sorry....cant believe there are people who still try and keep tropical fish in a goldfish bowl... its cruel keeping coldwater fish in them let alone tropicals..... buy a tank! > Hello > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > Thanks > sorry....cant believe there are people who still try and keep tropical fish > in a goldfish bowl... [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] >> >>Thanks There an awful lot of people out there that keep their bettas in bowls - far better than a jar but not totally out of order if the temp is Ok and the water is kept OK - personally my 2 betta have a 5 gall heated tank each -where I shop you can no longer buy anything below 3 gall... I don't actually believe that the environment is the issue here...it is a matter of feeding appropiate food - ie. bloodworm, brine shrimp,daphinia etc but I would urge the OP to look at getting a bigger, heated tank for what will be a wonderful pet - mine come up to the front of the tank and flirt and flare at me at any opportunity but also swim around and lord it in their 5 galls (UK) - they also would never consider taking their frozen food any other way than from my hand... Gill They really are fun personalities, aren't they? Mine is in a 20 community tank and his interactions with the humans in the house and the other fish keep us all entertained. --Gayze > heated tank for what will be a wonderful pet - mine come up to the front > of the tank and flirt and flare at me at any opportunity but also swim > around and lord it in their 5 galls (UK) - they also would never > consider taking their frozen food any other way than from my hand... > > Gill > sorry....cant believe there are people who still try and keep tropical fish > in a goldfish bowl... > > its cruel keeping coldwater fish in them let alone tropicals..... You've got it backwards. I don't know much about other tropical fish, but a betta's anatomy and metabolism actually enable it to survive much more easily in a goldfish bowl than a goldfish. True, it won't be as comfortable without a heater but it can live OK at room temperature, whereas with a goldfish in a bowl you get much greater waste buildup and risk oxygen deprivation that can easily kill it. - Logic316 "If a man speaks in the woods and no woman is there to hear it, is he still wrong?" > I am worried as he is not eating at all....Please advice asap.. I would recommend Hikari Betta Bio-Gold pellets, and to first soak them in water for a few minutes and let them expand before giving them to the betta in order to help prevent constipation (a common problem in bettas, unfortunately). Use an eyedropper to pick up the pellets and drop them in the water. Then try to stimulate his hunting instincts by wiggling your finger at the surface of the water (pretend that you're a fly :-). If he doesn't notice that, wiggle your finger outside the tank in front of his nose, and try to lead him to where the food is. - Logic316 User: n. The word computer professionals use when they mean "idiot." Speaking of goldfish in bowels, I once saw a a friend of the family who had a regular goldfish in a small bowel - it was more like a wide necked bottle, but when I saw the fish it had clearly grown inside the bowel - you couldn't have got it out of the bowl without breaking it... > Speaking of goldfish in bowels, I once saw a a friend of the family who > had a regular goldfish in a small bowel - it was more like a wide > necked bottle, but when I saw the fish it had clearly grown inside the > bowel - you couldn't have got it out of the bowl without breaking it... He had to have been doing a lot of water changes to get the goldfish to survive that long in there. - Logic316 "1024x768x256... Sounds like one mean woman." Yeah well that's what I thought!!! Made me wonder how she did the water changes... tip some down the sink with the fish still in the bottle perhaps? mine wont eat ether and im afraid shes going to die :( |
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