# I know I shouldn't have.......but.......I did



## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Hey fellow betta lovers,

Somehow in the past two days I ended up bringing home six new bettas. Three of them were Thailand Imports and were planned purchases but the other three were impulse buys that perhaps were not the best idea.....

My Imports arrived a few days earlier than expected as they were shipped on Thursday instead of Monday which was when I was expecting them to be. I obviously couldn't wait for them to arrive so it was sort of a nice surprise but their tank wasn't ready as I wasn't expecting them so soon. All arrived happy and healthy.

The Imports are

1 Platinum white Halfmoon Plakat Elephant Ears Male
1 Platinum white Halfmoon Plakat Elephant Ears Female
1 Platinum Orange Halfmoon Plakat Dragon Male

The day before picking up the imports I had to go into a LFS to get a new heater as the one I have suddenly stopped working. I avoid going into this particular LFS whenever I can because I cannot stand the way that they treat their bettas. I have put a few posts up in the past on here when I had observed truly horrific treatment of their bettas. Trouble is they are the only local LFS that has the particular brand of heater that I prefer.

Anyway I couldn't help but glance towards the betta tanks in a hope that some how their care may have improved. I was disgusted to find that they looked even worse. The petshops bettas had an outbreak of velvet disease a couple of months ago and despite my desperate attemps to get them to treat their bettas and sterilize their tanks they continue to just dump the old water and refill without steralizing them and they refuse to medicate their bettas. As a result every batch of bettas they have had over the past maybe three months has had large fatalities from velvet with all of the fish suffering from it because the parasite has become so established. Their were two dead fancy bettas in their "display" tank and the entire batch was infected. I should have walked away but something made me go round the other side and look at the veiltails and crowntails. No Idea why I did because I generally stick to HM and HM plakats and some DT but something drew me to the crowntails. I could hardly believe it but they had really unusually coloured ones and the three nicest coloured ones were the sickest.

I had promised myself over and over again that I would not bring home any more sick bettas incase it spread to the 16 healthy ones but I ended up walking out of the shop with the three crowntails......... now in clean and heated water they are looking much better and have actually began to eat again. I cannot bring myself to regret buying them but I am terribly worried that I might spread it to the others.

The three crowntails and the three imports are each in 1.3 litre jars that are sitting in a plastic crate so that I can heat them. I know they are way too small but it was the most I could afford on temporary tanks that I may never use again. I have a betta barrack tank that holds 10 bettas and each compartment holds about 2.5 gallons. If the imports had arrived on time they would have gone straight in but the silicone still smells a bit so I wanted to let it air out for a few days more. Eventually all the bettas will go into this barrack tank. The imports should be in it within a few days but the crowntails will be treated and in qaurenteen (excuse spelling) for some time. While they are in the jars they are receiving 100% water changes daily. Not the ideal set up I know but at least they are warm and have clean water. Anyways to pictures...........let me know what you think! and if you have any name suggestions I am all ears!

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## artes (Apr 14, 2011)

Wow. Those crowntails are gorgeous. I would have had to snag them too.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I know I couldn't believe that they had such great colours!!!!!!! There were a couple of other nice ones too I really would have liked them but I have limited space and I felt that three sick fish were enough for one day I already had two sick ones at home that have been fighting some mystery disease since I bought them three months ago. They don't look too bad in the photos cause I showed them a nice female and they perked up but they were so bad when I bought them home. The copper was only slightly ill but the other two I thought might die within a day or so however treatment, clean water and a heated tank is doing wonders


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## Kyurem150 (Apr 9, 2013)

Those CT and imported ones are so gorgeous!! Congratz!


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks


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## mushumouse (Dec 29, 2012)

oh my gosh, they're all beautiful! i've never seen a crowntail anything like that grey one before.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Do you mean the second crowntail? if so he is a copper. His body has a cool green tinge while his fins look purplish. He is quite small but is young so should grow.


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## majesticstorm (Dec 8, 2012)

They are all so gorgeous! And the colors on those crowntails, wow! I wouldn't have believed it if you told me you got them from a petstore.


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## trilobite (May 18, 2011)

Omg that orange dragon! Im in love with him! Another good reason to move to oz haha


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Was that orange HMPK male and the dumbo pair from Jodi-Lea's channel? They look familiar. 

The first CT is an unusual colour. They are all too nice to be left to sit and rot on a fish store shelf.


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## swishthefish (Apr 13, 2013)

What a lovely story, we got ours on impulse for my young son made the mistake of buying him in a tiny tank, plastic plants and spent one guilty night watching a folorn droopy little fish.... I thought we'd end up 'flushing' a corpse the next day or so... a month on now have bigger tank, (Swish has officially cost more than our rescue dog!) a happy betta who is making bubble nests and we are keen to learn more about these characterful little fish! Thanks for such a great forum offering great advice and love for these lovely fish. Good luck getting your beautiful new fish better!


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks Swishthefish  So glad that Swish is doing so well now! It is great that you bought him a nice big tank, I am sure that he would thank you for it is he could. I name the crowntail with the blue and orange bands Punch because he reminded me of tropical fruit. The White crowntail is now known as Coconut Ice. Still deciding what to name the others. I am a but worried about Punch, he isn't very active, hope I can get him to pull through.....


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## White Wolf (Apr 14, 2013)

Beautiful, I love the white and gray ones <3


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I still cannot believe the colours of the crowntails! Usually they just get mass produced ones with washed out or murky colours or your usual blue and red. Punch was hiding behind a container of gravel. I was so excited about finding Coconut Ice and the Copper that I almost didn't bother to move the container...... forever grateful that I did! Hope he survives. I know he looks quite okay in the photo but he only perked up when I showed him Pearl one of my females, he was back to lying on the bottom minute I took him away from her.


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## Snoeflayke (Mar 3, 2013)

Poor Punch...

(Don't tell the others, but he's my favorite of the bunch...)

I hope he makes it! I'm rooting for him!


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## konstargirl (Mar 9, 2010)

ZOMG! Those bettas are striking. <3


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks for your kind words Snoeflayke, I really hope he gets better too, I love them all but his colour is pretty stunning


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks for your kind words Snoeflayke, I really hope he gets better too, I love them all but his colour is pretty stunning

konstargirl thanks


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## MoonShadow (Feb 29, 2012)

Wow! Those are some seriously impressive fish!! I adore the EE's and that first crowntail!! Amazing!!


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## BeautifulBetta123 (Aug 27, 2012)

Beautiful!!


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks guys, unfortunately I have some really bad news, The female import I am pretty sure is coming out with dropsy........ she is pretty bloated and her droppings are white with a bit of yellow. Do you think it is internal parasites? I cleaned out six males after her this morning, how contagious are they. Hope I didn't spread it...... I am super stressed

Now don't get me wrong I love Australia but something that really sucks here is most of the fish meds that actually work that you can buy from your pet shops in America are prescription only here meaning you have to take your fish to the vets for a consultation and tests which costs hundreds of dollars. I could really do without the expense right now but Metronidazole is an S4 drug so I can ony get it from a vet. Contacted him this morning (email) but haven't heard back. Will phone before they close if I do not hear from him. This sucks so much poor little girl probably won't survive and now I'm panicking that I've spread it to six others. I could just cry right now


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

I'm sorry about your female. I'm glad you took those crowntails. Thery're beautiful! I bet their colors will really come out with some TLC.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Yeah I hope so especially once I get some silk plants in with them. They are still in the jars at the moment but have coloured up a bit since they are now heated and have nice clean water.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Hey Veggiegirl, it could just be that she was super eggy. Sometimes my females remain a bit bloated and do stringy poo if they have been fat with eggs and then spawned. So it may not necessarily be parasites. 

I know it isn't metro, but you can use Big L Pig and Poultry as a wormer for fish. People do it all the time here. A quick search on google can help with dosing amounts. I believe its active ingredient is levamisole.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Gee thanks littlebettafish will definitely look into the Levamisole.... I am feeling so down worrying about her. She is breathing pretty fast but still eating and active. As far as I know she has not been spawned before but I am really praying it is not dropsy. Such a sweet little girl, only had her a few days but already attached......


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Yeah they have a way of getting into your heart. I hope for your sake that she is just eggy. 

One of my females had just spawned (I know your female most likely has never spawned but this is just an example) and I don't think expelled all her eggs properly. She was very bloated and looked quite sick with stringy, white feces. A couple of days later and she was back to her normal self. 

Are the scales protruding on either side? If not, it may not be dropsy. 

You could perhaps try some epsom salt if the bloating gets worse.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

littlebettafish I really appreciate your help! Although bloated on both sides her scales are not yet protruding so fingers crossed it stays that way. Although I have owned heaps of fighting fish over the last 10 years I have very little experience owning female bettas, this girl is only the third that I have ever had..... I have never had a female that has produced eggs before. My two other females I have owned were pretty sleek in appearance and never got the rounded belly that they get when they are carrying eggs. The other two girls were not in sight of any males so perhaps this is why they never carried eggs........

My new girl is actually currently housed between two males so perhaps if she is in fact carrying eggs this is why? Like I said though I have never had a female carry eggs so I don't really know how bloated looking they get. The scales on her sides almost look like there is air under them but they are not yet sticking out. I must try to get some photos....


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Is this female from Jodi-Lea? I've found her bettas to be pretty fat and healthy when I've gotten them, so if she's been on a good diet and been in visual contact with a male it could be that she has gotten eggy. 

Some of my females are plumper than others. One of mine is always looks really sleek and then she has a whole heap of eggs when she spawns. Another one gets a real stomach on her.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Yes the female is from Jodi-Lea, I have always been really happy with the fish I have bought from her so I was surprised to find this girl could have dropsy...... it can happen to the best of us though, nothing anyone did wrong just something that can happen.

I picked them up on Wednesday and she has been next to the males since then so almost five days, could she develop eggs that quickly? Also it is not just her tummy that is swollen but sort of her sides I'll find some photos for you but it is really hard to see the bloating in them....


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Here are some photos...... the first is of her poop just to see what you think. If you compare the photos of her now compared to the one I first posted she looks much rounder.......

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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Hey everyone,

Just thought I would give you an update. I ended up getting onto the vet and yes we are actually lucky to have a fish specialist vet in our area. I rang up for a quote and thinking that it would cost $100-$200 and was presently surprised that it would only cost me a total of $40 to get tests done on her droppings and have the medicated food included.

I had never been to this particular vet before as he is relatively new here but I am so glad that I did because he really knows his stuff when it comes to fish! Anyhow I have been feeding the medicated food to my bettas and the little female is already looking a bit better. She does not look as bloated and her droppings are becoming more normally coloured. 

anyways that's what has been happening here, I am more hopeful that the little girl will survive now which I am so relieved about Also the crowntail boys are looking much happer YAY!!!! Plus I finally got my new barrack tank set up this morning......took me three hours so glad it is all done now


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## Catw0man (Jan 24, 2013)

artes said:


> Wow. Those crowntails are gorgeous. I would have had to snag them too.


I second that!!!! I would have been all over those crowntails! Especially the first and the third....amazing colors!


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I know! I couldn't believe they were in a pet shop, shame they have velvet but they are recovering


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

What did she end up having? $40 is pretty good. Cheaper I think than a vet visit for one of our cats.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Well he looked at her droppings under a microscope and although he said that he could see no actual worms he could see some other little bugs which he said the Metronidazole would tank care of. I was super happy with the price, it was money well worth spending. I asked him about another of my bettas that has had persistent fin rot for the three months that I have owned him and he is doing me up an antibiotic treatment kit for him and also there will be enough for me to treat other bettas if I need to in the future....... He really seems to know his stuff it is great to have a fish vet in town.

I also work at a local LFS and we were having trouble with the guppies, turns out it was something bacterial, the same vet gave us some medicated food and BAM! the guppies were beautiful and healthy again. The vet actually has several fish tanks, one of them is 10ft long and he has three male fighters living together in it. They are siblings and don't fight because they were raised to adulthood with the father still in the tan which made them less aggressive plus the tank is large enough that they all have their own individual territories and don't annoy eachother...... I found that quite interesting, not something I would try but it works for those three particular fighters....


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## Auburn Sakura (Apr 7, 2013)

Aww, they look gorgeous! All six of them that is. Even if you feel a bit bad about getting them, I'd feel good about rescuing them.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks! Oh I feel really good about rescuing them and I adore their colours I was just concerned that it may spread to all of my other bettas, so far so good though!


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## Auburn Sakura (Apr 7, 2013)

Yeah, I hope it doesn't spread either! But it sounds like it's going well so far!


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

Lovely fish. They will get better. I try to be careful to handle my newer fish last to avoid possible drips from thier tanks into another and of course lots of handwashing. Maybe if you give them all some IAL it will keep things going. I am seeing new fin growth speeding up on the tanks I am using it in.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

I have never used IAL before but have some on order, should be getting it tomorrow. I always handle the healthy bettas first before I do the sick ones plus when I can I use disposable hygiene rubber gloves (one set for each tank). If something happens that I have to handle the healthy tank after touching the sick ones I try to use the gloves and give my hands and arms a good scrub too. I have heard that IAL can be good for encouraging new fin regrowth which is why I ordered it. Great to hear that you are having success with it jadaBlu


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## Mozart282 (Apr 17, 2013)

How gorgeous, love the first crowntail pic. I know how you feel btw, I went from one betta to four in a matter or 24 hours lol


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

LoL and thanks, his name is Coconut Ice... In two months I have gone from 2 bettas to 21!!!!! Really Really want more but no room:-(


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## artes (Apr 14, 2011)

That's so cool that y'all have fish vets! Here we just have to turn to the internets, which as we all know sometimes works out great, and other times... not so great. -_-

I hope everybody is continuing to improve.


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Thanks artes they all do seem much better now. I know we are so lucky to have a fish vet here now he is only new here so I know what it is like to have vets that don't know anything about fish!


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## veggiegirl (Nov 20, 2012)

Planning on treating the crowntails for velvet for two weeks, do you think it would be safe to put them in my barrack tank after that? They seem pretty healthy already.


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