# stress stripes



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

what are stress stripes and what do they look like. i mean of course stripes but does anyone have a picture of them? because i dont want my betta to have them. to me i think that my betta has stripes because she wants to mate but im not mating them so what do they look like and 

a few Questions:

how are they caused?

maybe from shipping??

so how long do they last?

can they die from it?

how do i cure it?:-(


----------



## BettaxFishxCrazy (Sep 5, 2009)

Here's a picture of it: http://www.getahugetank.com/images/betta-female.jpg 

They are stripes that they get when they are stressed out. Stress can be caused from many things, being in a small tank, being cold, having other fish in the tank that make them stressed. Shipping can definitely cause this.

I've never heard it actually kill a betta, but like with humans, if you're constantly stressed, it's not good. I had a betta who acted like I was killing him when I did water changes, it was terrible. 

It's not an illness so you can't cure it with medication. Just make sure that they're in a big enough tank (2G or up) with a heater so the water is 76-80 degrees F. They also love heavily planted tanks with hiding places; it makes them feel safe.


----------



## Min (Jan 18, 2010)

My newest Dexter gets them anytime i move stuff around in his tank. his body color get pale & then u see stirpes that arent usually there. Im not an expert but thats what ive observed in the 5 or so months ive had bettas.


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

that picture up there that BettaxFishxCrazy had a link to the stressed betta thats how two of my females look. and i can see that the stripes are going away. but when i got them at the pet store they were in a ten gallon and they were very stressed.


----------



## dr2b (May 31, 2009)

I know anytime I do anything in Marina's tank she gets them. But within 30 minutes of finishing what I am doing they are gone. I found females get stressed a lot easier than males.


----------



## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

My Reina is the only one of my fish who ever got stress stripes. She had them bad when I first got her and she usually gets them when I do a water change.


----------



## Neelie (Feb 18, 2010)

my females have stripes BUT they always are there, and they are defo not very stressed lol. my male maehk got them after first water change when he arrived at my place but they went away after an hour. lost all his color and got stripes on his body. but my other guy salmon, just goes pale. no stripes. i guess it depends on the individual betta imo...


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

*Thank You Letter*

Thanks for everyone that has subscribed to my thread!! and i thank everyone else who help me with the stress both my two blue females are happy as can be and they do not have anymore stripes


----------



## Adelheidi (Mar 19, 2010)

Wasn't it vertical stripes that meant one thing and horizontal meant another? I forget which stripe meant what, but I know one meant the female was willing to mate and the other meant she was stressed.


----------



## BettaxFishxCrazy (Sep 5, 2009)

Yes. Horizontal stripes (left to right) are stress stripes which is what the picture is of that I linked to. Vertical stripes (up, down) are breeding stripes that females will show when they're ready to breed.


----------



## pixiedust (Mar 15, 2010)

alot of my fry have stress strips. infact that link is identical to about 40% of my fry.


----------



## doggyhog (Apr 30, 2009)

pixiedust said:


> alot of my fry have stress strips. infact that link is identical to about 40% of my fry.


Fry almost always have stress stripes when they are young. It is a camouflage mechanism they use in the wild.


----------



## Jazattackk (Jul 20, 2009)

They can also get them if they're scared. They either get pale, or stripes. Nibbler gets pale when I clean the tank, and Flame gets stress stripes. I think it's because the new water is cold until the heater heats it, and he gets scared because I have to put him in a cup.


----------



## BettaxFishxCrazy (Sep 5, 2009)

@ Jazattackk, you should always make sure that the new water is the same temperature as the old water or else your fish will go into shock. You also need to acclimate him into the new water if it's a little different temp than the water that he's in. You can do this by floating the cup in the water until it reaches the same temperature.


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

doggyhog said:


> Fry almost always have stress stripes when they are young. It is a camouflage mechanism they use in the wild.


at this moment one of the females stripes went away after about 2 days.
And the other one isn't going away as much, i mean i see the stripes but very vaguely. and she stays at the bottom of the tank:-? does anyone know whats going on?

heres some pictures.. sometimes she goes up to the top but only to get some air and them she stays up there for a little while and goes back down... sorry the pictures aren't that good quality.


----------



## bloo97 (Mar 6, 2010)

Hmm...


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

*so??...*



bloo97 said:


> Hmm...


any ideas??:-?:-?


----------



## BettaxFishxCrazy (Sep 5, 2009)

I'm sorry, I can't see anything in the pictures other than a big blob.lol It looks like her back tail is shredded a little. Going up for air and staying there for a little bit is normal, they don't have to constantly be swimming.


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

BettaxFishxCrazy said:


> I'm sorry, I can't see anything in the pictures other than a big blob.lol It looks like her back tail is shredded a little. Going up for air and staying there for a little bit is normal, they don't have to constantly be swimming.


sorry im doing the best i can with the pictures lol. but for now im just wondering is she okay?:-D


----------



## BettaxFishxCrazy (Sep 5, 2009)

Lol it's ok. It sounds like normal behavior. Is she still eating? Is her stomach big?


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

well her stomach is big and she is not really eating much. but she will eat eventually.


----------



## SemioticSleep (Mar 31, 2010)

My female gets them when I don't pay attention to her and I usually have a routine to clean her tank, so when I didn't do it for 4 days she got those lines. Also she would splash her water when I came in today so I just got done cleaning her tank.


----------



## Comet1993 (Jul 28, 2011)

My betta had a horizontal pale white stripe on both sides of his body when he first came to live with me. They're pretty much gone now. =] I think it was just the stress of the move (He was from Walmart, and I'm sure you know how pathetic and inexcusable the conditions are there..). I'm seeing more color in him now. =) Your fish is beautiful!


----------



## EverythingNice55 (Jul 26, 2011)

You can look up Betta Stress Stripes on Google Images. It's very helpful.


----------



## bettalover2033 (Feb 17, 2010)

Guys look at the (DATE) it is about a year old.

=/

-BL2033


----------

