# Please help! Baby betta dying!



## zoeybearr (May 14, 2013)

Okay so right now I'm bawling my eyes out because something happened to my Baby Betta fish. I noticed that when bettas swim, their fins bunch up together, but when they rest, they spread out. Well, I recently noticed that my betta fish's fins are stuck together ALL the time. When he swims, when he rests, and stuff. This has been going on for a week, but only now have I looked it up and realized its a very serious matter, and I'm seriously crying my eyes out now that I've found out. He's acting lethargic and lying at the bottom of the rocks EVERY day now, when he used to swim around and around and around. He's spitting out his food too, so I don't know if I should feed him again. (I feed him micro pellets) (Please answer that Q as well.) Anyway, it hurts to know that an animal can be dying under my care. Plus, I have a friend who has a Betta in the SAME type of aquarium and does the same things as I do, and her fish's fins are FINE. I moved him out of his little tiny 1 gallon tank into a 2.5 gallon tank with rainbow rocks, a bridge, everything nice, and did a 100% water change. He has a heater that is NOT BEING USED yet in his tank, because it is 80 degrees already. (I have a thermometer) yesterday night I put in BettaFix and hoped for the best.

I came home today to find him HARDLY moving. I put food in front of him, he saw it, but just ignored it. He doesnt swim anymore. He just darts, and then sinks back to the bottom without moving his fins. I saw him floating in the water just now, and I thought he was dead, because his gills weren't moving. But then he darted away ;( I don't know whats wrong, but my brother thinks its Ammonia poisoning. He's just laying there.

And its terrible because he's a BABY. And I never wanted him to go through sickness at all, let alone when he's a baby.. Please help..


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## zoeybearr (May 14, 2013)

One quick thing, he is also twitching a lot.. I just watched him sink to the bottom again TT^TTT


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## zoeybearr (May 14, 2013)

Housing 
What size is your tank? 2.5 gallon
What temperature is your tank? 80 degrees
Does your tank have a filter? No, its too wave-y for the baby. 
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no 
Is your tank heated? Not at the moment, but I have a heater.
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish?
How often do you feed your betta fish?

Maintenance 
How often do you perform a water change? Every week, I changed it yesterday.
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50%-100% 
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Bettafix and BettaSafe

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?
No

Ammonia:-
Nitrite:-
Nitrate:-
pH:-
Hardness:-
Alkalinity: -

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Yes,he's a lot less colorful, more dull. His eyes are dark, and I can hardly see them. His fins are all closed up.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Yes. No longer gets food, just sits on the bottom, doesnt swim, just sinks.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? Two days ago.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I've been using Bettafix, and i plan on using the heater.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No.
How old is your fish (approximately)? VERY young. Not like a fry, but he's a young baby.



*ANOTHER QUESTION: HOW DO I HEAT UP THE TANK? THE FISHIE IS IN THE TANK, THE HEATER IS TOO, BUT IM NOT SURE HOW TO GET IT GOING. DO I JUST TURN IT ON, AND IT WILL JUST GRADUALLY WARM UP? OR WILL IT SHOCK HIM?*


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## Tikibirds (May 26, 2011)

*hugs*

First up - bettafix is not good for bettas. it's main ingredient is a tree oil that has been reported to sufficate bettas by destroing the organ they use to breathe air from the surface. I would do a 100% water change ASAP to get the bettafix out of the tank. 

The twitching, was he doing that before you added the bettafix?

Clamped fins is not a death sentence. However it is usually the first indication that something is wrong someplace. However that something does not always mean the fish is sick, it could also mean the water conditions are not ideal, ect. 



> No longer gets food, just sits on the bottom, doesnt swim, just sinks.


 This, however is a bit worrisome, The usually only stop eating if they are sick or something is very wrong. 
However, at this stage, it is hard to tell what is wrong. it could be any number of things. Take a good long look at the betta. Do you see any white dots or anything fuzzy or that looks off about him?

As for the heaeter - what kind is it? Baby's should have temps a little warmer then adults and all betas should have the water at a constant tempature between 78-82. The heater should help regulate that. If it goes from 80 during the day and then it drops to 70 at night - they will compromise their immune system making them more suspetible to diseases. I just put the heater in the tank and plug it in. The water should slowly heat up to the desired tempature. Although some people test them out first to see how they work. I dont bother with that step. 

Can you get a picture? For right now, I would say do a 100% water change to remove the bettafix and then slowly acclimate them into the new water, just like when you first got him. Also, clean out the gravel to remove any poop or debris that may be hiding down there.


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## Basement Bettas (May 12, 2012)

sounds like velvet. If the fish is still alive some copper should cure it.


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