# lethargic betta wont eat, just lays on bottom of tank



## kemmitt (Dec 27, 2010)

Hi everyone, 
So after moving my betta back home from having him at school with me, he's been acting not himself, he ignores me and hasn't been eating normally. He just lays at the bottom of the tank, for the most part... I'm not sure if he is just sulking about and ignoring me or if something could be wrong with him.. He is still blowing bubblenests but he is refusing food and ignoring it, and me completely!

Housing 
What size is your tank? 2.5 gal
What temperature is your tank? 76
Does your tank have a filter? yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no
Is your tank heated? yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none 

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Pellets, weekly pea, brine shrimp
How often do you feed your betta fish? Once a day, usually 3-4 pellets, twice a week brine shrimp, one day a week no food, and one day a week a bit of a pea

Maintenance 
How often do you perform a water change? once every week or two weeks, 100% every 6 weeks

What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50%

What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? When I do a 50% change, aqueon water conditioner and nutrafin plant gro, 100% I do half a fizz tablet of tetra water clarifier

Water Parameters: I don't know the water parameters

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? 
Hasn't really changed

How has your betta fish's behavior changed? 
Usually he swims up to see me/other people at the tank, eats greedily and is very energetic. Ever since I moved him back home about two weeks ago (he was away at school with me) he's been lethargic and not very responsive. He basically stays at the bottom of the tank, swims up for a breath, and then swims back down. I put a mirror up to the tank, and tried playing with him a lot of different ways but he just ignores me all the same... at first I thought it was just over feeding/constipation, so I fed him a piece of pea and didn't feed him for two days, but ever since then he hasn't been eating at all. I gave him brine shrimp, thinking maybe he was just rejecting the pellets, but he wont eat that either, and usually he loves that stuff, he just is completely ignoring it. Every time that I come to the tank he ignores me and just lays on the bottom underneath the handle of this little mug in his tank, or he kind of burrows himself underneath the rock cave I have for him. The only thing that has changed in the last two weeks about his tank (besides cleaning it) is that one of the live plants I had in the tank died just before the move back home... I've been meaning to get up to get some more plants for him but I haven't had the money to get him more plants for his tank. 
Its a possibilty he could just be mad at me and ignoring me/sulking because his second mommy who fed him half the time (my roommate) isn't around anymore and he is in a room by himself now with much less attention.. but I want to make sure something more serious isn't wrong. He's still blowing huge bubblenests, I guess just when I'm not there. 


Does your fish have any history of being ill?
He had a really bad case of fin rot after I brought him back to school after winter break, which took a few months to really go away and have his tail grow back fully, his tail isn't 100% normal yet, but its close. 

How old is your fish (approximately)?
Got him at petsmart in, I think, October 2010


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

Welcome to the forum and sorry you Betta isn't well....

How did you acclimate him to the water when you moved back home...

The biggest thing that stick out to me is water quality....in a 2.5gal filtered tank...it needs at least twice weekly 50% water changes....1-50% water only and 1-50% to include substrate cleaning...

Right now-I would start by making 50% water changes for the next 2 days and see if that perks him up any....

Keep us posted....


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