# Rescue!



## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Hey, everyone! 

So for the last few months that I have been to a petco down here, I have consistently seen ne betta. He stood out to me the first time. He is a king betta, stuck in a tiny cup, of course! :-( ...the first time I saw him, I would have guessed that he had been in there for a few weeks already...then I went back in a few weeks later, still there, but a bit more pale and clamped....a few weeks later, still there, looking a little more pale and clamped than before. Nobody wanted this poor guy, because they were buying all the gorgeous new half-moons and dragon scales...I kept thinking about him, also because evey time I cam up he would try to turn around and look at me. And he didn't ever flare.

Anyway, a few days ago, I asked my science teacher (she is one of the best teachers at my school and we get along really well and talk all the time) if I could bring a betta in to her class in a small tank like under ten gallons....she said of course i could. So I told my mom this, I said I would go craigslist shopping for a second hand tank, but I wanted to get the betta first because I didn't want anyone to take him (an inexperienced keeper that would put him in a cold, dirty bowl), and I didn't want him to die in the store...I was kind of nervous as I hadn't been there in a few weeks, so I didn't know if he would still be there.

Well, I walk in, and I see the poor guy still sitting in his cup...but this time, he could barely move. He was so skinny, his stomach was skinnier than his gills (if that makes sense...)....like instead of having a belly that drops below his gills a little like it should, it was like it was sucked up a little. He was very clamped, he was incredibly pale. I wasn't sure he was going to make it. But he kept trying to look at me, anyway. The water felt cold. I almost didn't even want to pick up the cup as I was scared to jostle him around in the slightest. I immediately bought him. 

I was just going to keep him in one of those betta keepers or fill up my ten gallon tank halfway without a filter or anything until I could get a nice planted tank set up at school...(keep in mind that my mom isn't a huge fan of a bunch of little tanks everywhere, but she still let's me have them because she knows I love them. I wasnt even sure that she would let me set up a temporary one for him, but she did). She totally surprised me when she walked down the aisle and came back with a 5.5 gallon, a replacement filter for the one that came with the tank, and told me to pick out a heater, sand, wood, and a few plants to get it started, along with the overgrown plants from my current tanks. I asked her why, because I was going to bring him to school anyway, she said "but I don't want you to take him to school. I want to see him get better here, and plus, I don't want anyone to hurt him at school." 

The tank looks a bit bare right now, with only a small and medium piece of wood, a clump of java fern, a small sword, and a few floating plants, but I will fill it up soon. I need to replace the light, as it's a really ugly yellow color, but I will fix that. His water is pretty warm right now, just to give him a little boost (80 degrees), I fed him bloodworms last night (at first he didn't know what they were, and just kind of stared at them but then he started eating them like crazy in his cup), his tummy looks a little bit better now, but still has some work to do. He is still a bit clamped this morning, but he is better thank last night when I got him. He has picked up a little bit of coloring over night as well. He is white, with a little bit of bright blue outlining on some of his gills, he has a little pale pick and blue colors on his fins. I can't wait to see what he turns out to be.

This morning he found one little loop in the floating hornwort and wedged himself in it...so he was just hanging there. I will try to post pictures of him today.

Sorry for the long post! Thanks for reading!
Meg


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## Kelly0727 (Jan 8, 2012)

Wow, I'm glad you were able to get him. He is in loving care now  Post pictures soon I'd love to see what he looks like! Glad to see your mom is getting a little attached to him as well


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## KcSaf (Jul 25, 2012)

im so happy for you and your new friend! he has a happy loving family now, and that is probably the greatest pleasure for him! Pictures soon please! i want to see him.


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## katrina89 (Jul 16, 2012)

Ooo cant wait to see pics


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thanks, everyone, for the quick replies! I uploaded a few pictures...some from last night, some from this morning. I'll tell you which ones are which  His stomach was skinnier than it is in these pictures because I took these right after he was fed lots of bloodworms 

Forgot to mention, my trip to petco was actually a decent one this time. The aquarium specialist ACTUALLY knew what she was talking about and she personally keeps all her bettas in 3-5 gallons. She dives in the Great Barrier Reef to study fish. She was the first one to know what the different plants were, and she knew about all of them in great detail. When I first walked in, the bettas were in HORRIBLE condition. Apparantly a new trainee had fed each of them about 20 pellets...I looked over and saw her on a rampage trying to clean all 50+ of them as fast as she could. She was not happy about it...haha. It was horrible, though. There was so much food in there that the water was cloudy, there was actually food stuck in the bettas' gills. But she was taking care of it as fast as she possibly could. Which also meant that little Rory had to sit in that until she cleaned his cup. :BIGangry:

Anyway, this is him. (I named him Rory after Rory from Doctor Who, if any of you love that show as much as I do :blueyay

First night in his cup:


















In his tank today: He cracks me up. Every time I walk up I find him wedged in with some floating plant or another...just hangin' out. So I just moved Walter's hammock into Rory's..because Walter doesn't really use it and I figured Rory needs a little beauty sleep after being stuck in petco for months. 

Hangin' out:

































Exploring a bit: this is the most I've seen him move around yet!









His empty home: needs an aquascaping job!


















Poor little skinny thing. Well, he will fatten up soon enough with me!

















I can't wait to see the big guy spread his fins a bit. He hasn't really unclamped them once yet. But I guess we will just have to wait and see!

Thanks for looking! Sorry for the picture overload... 
Meg :-D


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## Kelly0727 (Jan 8, 2012)

Don't be sorry about so many photos, I love seeing them! My rescue didn't unclamp his fins until around 3 days of having him so it just might take more time. Rory sure is a cutie  Make sure to take lot more pics once he starts showing off!


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## Bettanewbie60 (Jun 26, 2012)

I am so happy for him and YOU! Yaaaaay! He's awesome!


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Hey everyone...quick update: don't know if little Rory is going to make it..I'll keep you guys updated. I'll post in the morning and let you know if he made it through the night. 

Thank you for all your replies
Meg


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## Kelly0727 (Jan 8, 2012)

Oh no  keep us updated! Sending love his way so he will feel better!


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## a123andpoof (Apr 10, 2010)

Very pretty! Cant wait to see how he colors up! Makes me want another King. *looks at empty tanks*


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thanks, guys! (a123andpoof, you totally need to get another king betta...)

Well, he made it through the night, but he is not swimming much...when he does swim, he has to pump his pectoral fins very hard and quickly. But most of the time he is just laying completely motionless in the floating plants (I thought he was dead a few times). This morning my sister went to feed him but couldn't get him to come up to eat...he was resting on the bottom. His right eye looks a little weird.

I'm not sure if I want to drain the tank halfway so that it's easier for him to get to the top? But he CAN swim....just not as easily as I'd like him to.

On top of all that, I can't get him to eat. Not since I fed him bloodworms in his cup. Last night I tried feeding him pellets, and I made it sink because he isn't used to his pellets floating (because of how they fed him at petco), and he tried chasing it down. He kept trying to eat it but was off a quarter inch every time he lunged for it...like he was chasing it all the way down, and when it fell to the bottom he gave up because he could find it.

What do you all think I should do for him?


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## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

_Aww..I just read the whole thread, and congrats on saving him, I hope it's not too late, it;s odd, they do so well the first day or two, then for some odd reason they kind of go into some kind of shock, for the most part keep him in the clean warm water, keep on trying to feed some pellets, and keep talking to him and gettin his attention, and only time will tell, I feel so bad for the kings, they have it the worst, and I always wanted to help a king, but at this time I cannot, _

_I am just soo happy someone can, and give a king a good loving home..I will send prayers your way..and I hope your king Rory recovers and does well_


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## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

What size is the tank..sometimes if the fins arent strong enough because of the lack of space to swim, he may need to be in H/T for about 3-4 days maybe the amount of space scared him, and he isnt ready for a big space..try to put him in a Kk for a little while if he doesn't show much interest in the big tank right now..just so he can swim but not be intimidated by too much space..


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thank you!

The tank is 5.5 gallons...the only other empty tanks I have are an empty ten gallon and a 1/3 gallon betta keeper...do you think I should put sand and some plants in the betta keeper for a few days or just drain the 5.5 gallon halfway so he has a little less water for a few days?

Oh, and I also forgot to mention, it gave me a scare last night...when he was resting on the floating plats, his spine had a scary curve to it...

And what I said about his eye,im not sure if it's a slight case of poppy or if I'm just being a worry wort...what about that?

Edit: forgot to mention, the filter on his tank his EXTREMELY light...almost no flow, so I don't think that's a problem

Thank you for your help!
Meg


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## inuudo (Aug 21, 2012)

You really inspire me. You're doing such a good thing for Rory (love the name!). I'm completely new to being owned by a Betta, so I have no help to offer besides being a cheering section.


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## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

Or if you could put more plants in the 5.5 and a hidey cave..so he feels more secure..possibly a log, something dark, and comfy..also get a divider, or make one, so he only has half the tank to use..and drain a lil, maybe almost half, and see how he does..keep an eye on his "eye" and see if it tends to enlarge, if it does it maybe popeye..or could be because he is s king his eyes are already lookin very big..

but if it's only one..I would keep watch..If you have a betta keeper, it's only 1/3 gal..that is small..I would not use that..but if you had a 2 gal Krittr keeper that would be good..if not keep him in the tank, as he may be adjusting..

and will continue to do so..but if you see any other types of changes, then transfer him, but as for eating, and swimming he has to eat to remain strong for swimming, Is he eating good? or better..


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## registereduser (Jul 30, 2010)

I have no rescue experience but I just want to send your Mom a message and tell her she rocks. So many kids here can't get their parents to help them with their betta hobby and my heart goes out to them. Your Mom is a gem


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thank you! 

Registereduser: thank you! yea she is amazing, besides all the fish tanks...I love how she was the one who grabbed the tank and asked me...no told me...that I couldn't take him out of the house 

Inuudo: thank you so much, that means a lot! I didn't know that this inspired anybody! I was just sharing for the fun of it!

And lelei: thank you for your help! Yea the 1/3 gallon is super small, and the only reason I got it was because when I rescued Walter from a sad place in California, I bought it because I didn't want him to make the 16 hour drive in his minuscule cup..I don't have a divider but I will drain the tank halfway today maybe, just to relieve him a bit of big tank shock.

Since he is not eating pellets, I might try bloodworms...I know he just ate them a few days ago, but I'd rather him eat a few extra bloodworms than eat nothing. I really don't have any plants I can put in there...all of my tanks are very well established and I don't want to pull any of the established rooted plants out...he does have lots of floating plants that he likes to rest in, though....maybe I can drain the tank halfway and put a glass mug in there?

And the thing with his eye: you know the clear part that covers the actual eye? (I forgot what it is called)...but you can see it when they look at you head on...well the one on his right side looks like it comes out further than I'd like. And when it also kind of looks like a cataract, but not exactly...like kind of cloudy? But not overly cloudy...ahhh it's so hard to explain!

Thank you for your help! And thank you for all of your comments and encouragement! I'm happy to see that people might be following this! Any other suggestions and comments are extremely welcomed!
Meg


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## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

The BW's are ok, but not to depend on them, he needs to get used to pellets, then you can feed Bw's every so often..keep trying the pellets even if he spits them out, which most likely he will, but eventually with persistance, he will eat them, he needs to keep up his strength..btw..what kind of pellets are you feeding?


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

I am feeding aqueon betta food pellets..I have been for a while, never had a problem. I switched over from a larger pellet a while ago and my bettas seem to love them.

What do you think I should do with draining the tank and putting the glass mug in? Does that sound good?

And does the eye thing sound bad? Sould I just keep his water pristinely clean right now and see what happens?

Thank you for your help!


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Okay, I just checked on him; although his body is still a bit curved, he seems to be able to swim okay. So I don't think I will have to drain it, but I think I will still put that glass mug in there for a bit of security for Rory.

There is definitely something wrong with his eye. My mom said she noticed it too, said it looked swollen, so it's not just me. What is the best treatment for popeye?


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Alright everyone, quick update: with clean, warm water, rory has had some improvement. His spine looks like it has straightened out quite a bit, his eye is looking much better, he is having a bit easier of a time swimming around, he is becoming less clamped...

I put that glass mug in there...he loves it! He is always laying in it and pokes his head out when he sees me. When he is not in the cup he is usually hanging out in the floating plants  I have noticed him swimming around every once in a while and he doesn't seem to have to pump his pectoral fins so hard...

I'm still having a hard time getting him to eat pellets. He doesnt seem to know that he is supposed to come to the top, and when I make them sink, he doesn't see them...I did, however, get him to eat 2 bloodworms the other day (frozen, not freeze dried)...so I'm at a loss for what to do about that

That's it for now, except that he seems to be picking up a little bit of color. I will post pictures sometime soon. I have them, I just haven't uploaded them yet. 

Thanks for reading! Please feel free to comment! 
Meg


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## MistersMom (Aug 9, 2011)

HES SO CUTE!!!! all wedged up in that floating plant and with his biggo eye balls, and he is GORGEOUS i can't believe someone passed him up :/


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thank you, MistersMom! Unfortunately, all the people are always wanting the healthy dragonscales or beautiful halfmoons and always pass up the sick, docile, gentle giants with personality  That's okay, because now I get do have him! :twisted: 

Anyway, I uploaded the pictures. The first two pictures are what his spine looked like whenever he wasn't swimming...it's straightening up quite nicely now! Just in a few days! 


















And after putting the mug in last night, this is what I came down to this morning! "Well goodmorning, sunshine." 









Thanks for all of your replies and encouragement! I will keep updating on his progress, with pictures of course!
Meg


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## DoctorWhoLuver (Feb 23, 2012)

Haha; very pretty 
I also named my new betta Rory


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## inuudo (Aug 21, 2012)

He's wonderful! Thank you for keeping us updated. I love that photo of him in his cup.


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## Sceven (May 22, 2012)

Ooooo is that baby blue I see on the tops of his fins, pretty, pretty boy


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thank you everyone for following this! It's really nice to see that people are actually reading this 

Big news! Rory ate his first pellets today. First substantial thing he has eaten in about 5 days...im really relieved about that. I could never get him to come up to the top...he was just so lethargic and it looked like he was having a really hard time swimming for the last few days, but as of today, his spine has straightened out quite a bit and he has had a much easier time swimming...he has been using this opportunity to explore his tank and swim around to look at me whenever I come up  I put my hand over the tank and he swam right up to it....so I immediately grabbed the food and put it in piece by piece as he ate them, and he ate again tonight. Maybe I can start putting a bit of a belly on the poor guy 

His eye also looks MUCH better...I don't think I will have to worry about whatever was going on...looks like the warm clean water did the trick. His water is still set to about 80-81 degrees.

He is also starting to pick up some maroon...not red, maroon  didn't see that one coming.......he was so pale I didn't know what colors he was going to show if I managed to save him! I'm sure a few other surprising colors will pop up and brighten up sooner or later, too! And you are right, sceven (thank you so much for your kind comment!), he is showing some baby blue, too! Like a mixture between baby blue and teal 

That was just a quick update, I will try to post pictures as soon as I can, so you can see for yourself how he is doing!

Thank you all so much! I really appreciate all of your comments and kind words! 
Meg


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## homegrown terror (Aug 6, 2012)

he'll probably be a wild color-type, most king bettas are. it's a relatively new breed, so most of them you see will be the teal-body-red-fin, solid teal, or purple.


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

**Picture Update: 1 Week**

Hey everyone! It's been a few days since I have posted an update. It has now been one week, and it is incredible how much of an improvement little Rory has made. He doesn't even look like the same fish. Almost a week ago, I wasn't sure he was going to make it. Now I think I will have him for quite a long time  .

My mom has discovered that whenever she walks by the tank (because his tank is on one of the islands in the kitchen) he follows her in his tank. He will swim towards whatever direction she is walking.

His eye still needs improvement but he is on his way to recovery, his fins look great (I think), his spine is almost completely straightened out, he is eating without a problem now, and he is so social with us. I am consantly seeing my mom standing in front of his tank watching him :-D No bubble nest yet, but I am hoping for one in the future. 

Now that I know that he is going to live, I decided to renovate his tank a little bit for him. The mug is still in there, just until my dad and I can make him a coconut cave and cover it in moss. I wanted to leave the cup in there because he loves it. 


Anyway, enough rambling, here is Rory at one week!


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## Destinystar (May 26, 2012)

Rory is beautiful I love him and his pictures are so adorable ! His home is very lovely too I bet he loves it !!!!

Perseus also likes to sleep in his Hornwort.


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## twissfish (Jun 24, 2012)

He has one of the most adorable betta faces I've ever seen.  He must be so happy now that he found someone that loves and cares for him!


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## inuudo (Aug 21, 2012)

What a cutie-pie!!  And what a lovely home you've created for him, too. I'm really glad you posted an update.


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thank you all so much! I really appreciate your comments!

Perseusmom: don't you just love it when they do that? It's pretty darn cute...

Twissfish: thank you so much! I knew I couldn't leave him after seeing that no one wanted him and that he was in the exact same place for several months. The lady that works there said "oh I know, he has been with us for a while...no one seems to want him" :-( but now im glad that no one did because now he has a warm, heated, planted, clean, decent size home where he is love instead of being an object of decoration in a vase! I have a soft spot for kings...even my little sister said that they used to scare her(not literally, just because they are so big compared t her bettas), but after seeing the process of me rescuing three of them over time she told me "okay,anent betta I get I think I want to rescue a king, too! They are just so social! My bob is conceited and just flares at himself all day. He is the blonde of the fish world...but I still love him!" 

Inuudo: thank you! I am glad you like it! Although I'm not such a huge fa of that glass mug sitting in there....... :lol:


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## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

Wow..Meg, so glad to see how well he is doing, I am so happy for him, aand to see those beautiful colors coming out..What a beautiful boy..So glad he is improving, keep up the good work You got some really nice pix of him


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## twissfish (Jun 24, 2012)

Haha, the blonde of the fish world.  Keep us updated with more pictures! I just can't believe he was there for months on end and survived. He's so pretty, too. Either way I'm glad you got him and not someone who would have shoved him in a vase.


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Hey everyone! Sorry, haven't updated in a LONG time! Rory is doing GREAT. I don't think my mom will let me take him to school, even though he is taking up kitchen space. I think she likes him too much :-D He built his first bubblenest a few days ago, although I destroyed it yesterday when I was stealing plants from his tank for the new rescue. It was tiny, and not very well built, but it was there! *You'll figure it out, Rory!*

Thought it was about time for some pictures! In order to make up for the weeks I have missed, I am going to picture spam now :-D Here is Rory at a little more than 4 weeks: Man, has he made a quick recovery!
(Just for a comparison, the first two pictures are him in the first few days).

















Him today (and his home) today:









































































This is without the flash, so you can see his true colors:









































Oh and please ignore the glass mug in there, I haven't been able to make a coconut cave quite yet. 

He LOVES attention. He will follow you around wherever you walk and when my mom is in the kitchen, he is watching her. When anyone walks up to the tank, he will dart right out to them. He likes being fed by my finger (when I stick a piece of food on my finger and he has to eat it off) more than he likes me just dropping the food in.

The other day, my dad looked at him and said, "Wait, is that RORY? That CAN'T be the same fish!" Why yes, father...it is :-D

Anyway, sorry for such a long update and the picture spam!
Meg


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## a123andpoof (Apr 10, 2010)

Wow! He looks great!


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## laynisample (Sep 10, 2012)

Awww! he's doing wonderfully! What a pretty guy. I've never seen King Bettas in any of my fish stores around me, but he really is quite cute.


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## BeautifulBetta123 (Aug 27, 2012)

He is so adorable congrats on the betta!


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## Meggie6347 (Jun 18, 2012)

Thank you! Today I was trying to feed the new baby rescue some bloodworms (she is right next to him)...I felt like he was staring me down like 'I WANT SOME OF THOSE!'


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## Lady Courage (Oct 2, 2012)

Wow, just read through this entire thread. What a change! Rory looks _amazing_! He sounds like such a fun fellow. I love that your Mom is in love with him. lol 

You've done an incredible job taking care of Rory! Well done.


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