Betta Care: The Complete Guide to Caring for and Keeping Betta as Pet Fish ( Best Fish Care Practices) - Kindle edition by Fish Care Manuals. Download it once.
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- The Complete Guide To Betta Fish Care
Intestinal parasites are contagious from one Betta to another. Change out tank water and clean any object that are going back into the tank. Add one teaspoon of aquarium salt to the new water. If your fish does not improve after this, you will need to purchase antibiotics from specialized aquarium shops. Popeye can usually be dealt with by changing the water for a few days in a row, and adding one teaspoon of aquarium salt per ten liters of water.
If the swelling does not reduce you may need to purchase antibiotics. Poisoning of your Betta is the direct result of an unsatisfactory tank leading to high levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Test the levels of ammonia , nitrite and nitrate in the fish tank using an aquarium water test kit. Dispose of water and fill tank with clean water that has been treated with chlorine remover. Some suggest using bottled water for the tank because the levels of these things have already been previously tested. Slime disease is common and is caused by three different parasites.
Slime disease also weakens the Bettas immune system which makes them more prone to getting a secondary illness or disease. Perform frequent daily water changes for up to a week and use malachite green. Also the use of aqua salt for up to ten days is recommended to cure slime disease. Not as common as other diseases in Betta fish, swim bladder disease is more common in younger Bettas. This illness is not infectious. Caused by a bacterial infection that is usually the result of previous injury from transportation or fighting among Betta fish.
Swim bladder disease can also be the result of overfeeding or poor water quality. Swim bladder in female Betta fish can be the result of damage during mating. Difficulty and abnormalities when swimming, swimming on side, difficulty swimming upward, loss of balance when swimming and Bettas abdomen is swollen.
Generally, a Betta fish will cure itself within a few days although to cure a Betta with swim bladder disease that does not cure itself one must administer an antibiotic. Also making the water shallower helps the Betta fish to breath and feed easier. Tuberculosis in Betta fish is rare and your fish will become sick for no apparent reason. It progresses fast and you may not even realize that your fish has it until it passes away from the deadly disease.
Weight loss, open wounds, bent spine, fin and tail rot, other abnormalities. Be careful if you believe that your fish has TB as in some cases humans have contracted this deadly disease from a fish. There is no known cure for Tuberculosis in Betta fish and generally they will not survive long once they have contracted it. It is recommended that you throw out anything that has come into contact with a Betta that has this disease due to the nature of how deadly and contagious it is.
Velvet is common among Betta fish and comes in the form of a parasite that looks like velvet. Caused by parasites adult Oodinium that attach themselves to the Betta fish. The parasites create a hard shell around themselves for up to a week while they feed off the Bettas skin cells.
Once they release themselves from the Betta they multiple at the bottom of the fish tank and then reattach themselves in greater quantities to the Bettas in the tank. To treat a Betta who has velvet, turn off tank lights, and if possible increase the water temperature up to 30 degrees Celsius because the parasites cannot thrive in these conditions.
Once this is done use commercial malachite green remedy. It is important to treat all fish in that tank due to velvet being so contagious. Make sure you also clean the tank and fill with new clean water. Once you have diagnosed your Betta fish with a particular illness and medicated as needed there are a few things you can do regularly to ensure your fish stays happy and healthy. It is important to remember when housing a Betta fish prevention is always better than cure so we recommend you:. Another helpful article to read on this topic is the betta fish symptom checker.
My little guy and I need help. He developed very mild fin rot over a month ago. There is too much conflicting advice. My water is hard. RO killed my fiddlers. I was using distilled and tap for about a month, I was told stop right away, use spring. I used salt for the first week, melafix for the second, back to salt.
At first he was just staying the same all the time, then all of a sudden he had a spot on his dorsal, next day it was split. All the other spots only curled, never changed color, split or affected his behavior. I decided to go back to melafix. Then I read the ingredients! I read weeks ago that tea tree oil was only a preventive, not a cure. YouTube videos tout it as being great for fin rot, one betta site says it will not cure fin rot. The bottle claims it will. All this conflicting advice is making me nuts and him sicker. Up until today he has been very active.
Every water change I mess up his bubble nest, right away he starts fixing it. Just salt and frequent water changes kept it from getting worse, but not better, until yesterday. That dorsal fin really concerns me. I actually saw a site that told people to wash their silk plants in SOAP and water. There was no place for me to leave a comment.
Marlene, I am sorry to hear that. Have you already read the following pages? Moving it from its home to a different tank over and over will have an adverse effect on your fish. You may also want to think about a quarantine tank if you have other fish in the same environment. My yellow Betta, Citrine, had a swollen stomach yesterday morning, my assumption was he was constipated. I planned to treat him when I came home that afternoon. When I got home the bloating was greatly reduced, to the point that it was almost normal.
Replacing the swelling was a red area, like a bruise, and his front lower fins looked bloodshot as well. This morning the swelling was present along with the redness. My Betta had all the signs of lethargy. I realized his water was cold so I bought a heater. I changed diet from flakes to dried shrimp and blood worms.
He puts food in mouth then spit out. What else can I do? He may simply not like that type of food. Everyone of my Bettas lod them. When I first purchased my betta from the pet store, he would not eat the flakes I bought. I went back to the pet store and asked what has he been eating, I bought the flakes they said and he still refused to eat. I bought some pellets, and he did the same with every food, tasted it and spit it back out.
I started searching online for answers, I found a few and improvised my own. Buy frozen peas, unthaw one, take skin off and cut into bite sized pieces, I was so happy, he just gulped it up, so he would eat peas, I then crushed the pellets up to very small pieces, took some blood-worms and coated them with the crushed up pellets sort of ended up like a paste and then tried to get him to eat it by hanging it at the end of a toothpick, it took a few tries with the consistency of the paste like, but he eventually started to eat the blood-worms and paste.
I did this for maybe a week or two by slowly getting the paste thicker and thicker and then one day I just fed the pellets and he ate them. He had no issues eating after that, but he preferred the pellets and not the flakes. He still got the blood-worms as a treat. I have tried a few different treatments but his symptoms keep worsening.
Can anybody offer any advice? Sorry to hear that Ella, to fix the bloated problem,first try a 3 day fast.
With time it will heal. Ella, you should try using aquarium salt…that seems like a multi-purpose cure for a lot of diseases. You could also try fasting him for a day or two.
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My betta fish right now has some white-ish thing on the scales near his face. Should I try quarantining him with aquarium salt? Or is there something else that you recommend? Thank you so much. Hello, so I bought a male betta around four months ago. I had to leave home for three weeks, so I gave both him and his tank to a friend of mine whom I trusted.
He came back alive and well, however he is a lot less active and his colouring appears to have darkened. My fish needs help! I just got him today from a pet store and he looked terrible so I wanted to help him! His small little plastic encloser had a green film coating the bottom and he had tail rot. What does he have? What can I do to help him? The ride home was also rough it was bumpy and icy. Then one day I went to feed him and he was on the bottom of the bowl dead. Visit our complete guide to the best live and fake betta fish plants.
Betta fish come from a tropical climate in Thailand so they require warm water in their tanks. Never let the water in your tank drop below 65 degrees or go above 82 degrees, and try to keep it in the range of 76 to 81 degrees Fahrenheit.
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This is the temperature bettas are happiest and active at. The average room temperature in a home is 68 degrees Fahrenheit, which is well below their required temperature. This is the quickest way to reduce their potential lifespan. The only time a heater is not required is if the surrounding temperature in the room the tank is in is at least 78 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature is too low, purchase a small aquarium heater e. Heaters that are adjustable and contain a built-in thermostat are the best solutions.
When changing the temperature and water conditions, do it slowly and methodically. Abrupt changes can stress your fish and even cause adverse health consequences. Filters reduce harmful bacteria while supporting healthy bacteria. They are your little helpers when it comes to tank maintenance and caring for your betta fish.
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A filter is relatively inexpensive and is best when included with an entire setup. Betta fish are not very strong swimmers and a filter can stress them out if the current is too strong. Prolonged agitation can lead to ripped fins, acute stress, and even death. Choose a filter that is adjustable or recommended for a betta fish. Baffle intake tubes and exits with pre-filters if necessary to reduce strong currents.
For more information on betta fish and filters, click here. Water added to the tank must be free of chlorine and other contaminants. If you use tap water, be sure to use a betta water conditioner to remove chlorine, chloramine, ammonia, and other heavy metals. This prevents any potential harm or death. Never use distilled water either, because it has been stripped of all the essential minerals that bettas need to thrive on. They do best in the pH range of 6.
Some tap water and spring water may be significantly higher than 7. Consider purchasing a pH kit to keep it in a healthy range if necessary. For more information on recommended water types and parameters, visit this page. As your betta consumes food, digests it, and eventually gets rid of it poop! The smaller the tank, the quicker it becomes polluted.
One of the most common issues linked to poor betta health is sustained exposure to increased levels of ammonia and nitrites. Water quality declines as ammonia builds up from waste and uneaten food. This forces the pH level of the water to get out of a healthy range. Your fish will be swimming in its own waste and over time can lead to illness or even death. A good filter can help reduce these levels and establish healthy bacteria in tanks 3 gallons or larger.
Filters are not recommended for tanks smaller than 3 gallons. A systematic maintenance schedule must be adhered to. Tanks under 3 gallons will need more frequent and complete water changes to avoid dangerous levels of ammonia. Remember, adding live plants can also help reduce ammonia levels in the water naturally. Water cycling removing some and adding new and changes complete volume replacement are necessary for filtered tanks too but are more frequent and important in non-filtered habitats. Unnecessary removal can lead to potential stress and injury.
Because of this, you should cycle more than you do a complete change. Removing too much of the existing water in the tank and then adding new can cause your fish to go into shock. This may be due to changes in water parameters or temperature. Always acclimate your betta fish when re-introducing them to their tank after a complete water change.
Betta Fish Care: How to Care for a Betta Fish | leondumoulin.nl
Whenever adding new tap water, make sure to use dechlorination drops or spring water that has chlorine already removed. Only use approved aquarium decorations and materials that are safe for fish. Use a magnetic or algae cleaning wand for regular algae removal while the tank is filled. Filters and their media should be cleaned by rinsing them in existing tank water to preserve healthy bacteria.
Other components should be cleaned and disinfected. Never clean a tank or its components with soap! All existing and new decorations including stones should be washed thoroughly with hot, hot water to remove dust and other contaminants. If you want to increase the cleaning power, you can use distilled white vinegar to remove stubborn stains and smells.
Regular bleach that is free of detergents and perfumes is another excellent and powerful cleaning option; especially after disease. Always rinse, rinse, rinse all surfaces with clean water to remove any bleach traces before refilling. Part of betta fish care means regular feedings! Betta fish need specific food because they are carnivorous and like meat. Replicating their feeding environment and food will keep them happy and healthy. Betta food comes in different varieties including pellets, flakes, live, and freeze-dried options.
The most common ingredients are meat, fish, and shrimp. Do not feed your betta other tropical fish food because they need a specific protein-rich diet. Betta fish can be very picky eaters too. Persistent refusal may mean trying a different brand or blend until you find the right one. Some owners prefer to use freeze-dried bloodworms or shrimp as their exclusive food source. Breeders may also stay away from manufactured pellets and flakes, opting for live foods to prepare for shows and breeding. The most important part, however, is ensuring a rich and varied diet. Food labels are often unclear and inconsistent.
Overfeeding leads to bloating, constipation, swim bladder issues, and a build up of uneaten food in the tank. If you decide to feed your betta twice a day, make sure to feed them about pellets max during each feeding. Feeding once per day should be pellets. Betta fish may also refuse to eat during stress, especially when first bringing them home. Consider printing or saving it for future reference:. The difference between female betta fish care and male betta fish care is very minimal.
Females can also coexist together in sororities which lead to different recommendations on care too. Betta fish fry babies require special care during upbringing. Petco recently began selling baby betta fish, and with improper care, they can die prematurely.
The Complete Guide To Betta Fish Care
Fry require special care, and special diets to survive because they cannot fit most betta pellets into their mouths. Fry upbringing should be reserved for experienced caretakers and breeders. There are over 70 different species of betta fish, with the betta splenden being for sale in pet stores. Betta splendens come in many different tail variations through selective breeding, however, all require the same level and types of care. These include, but are not limited to, the crowntail, veil tail, double tail, delta tail, butterfly, and halfmoon.
Ensure the water temperature is between 76 and 81 degrees Fahrenheit. Look for odd behavior and signs of illness or fin damage. Check heaters, filters and other equipment. Feed your betta fish. Consider fasting your betta one day a week for digestive health. Vacuum up uneaten food and waste.
Check pH and bacteria levels. Check the functionality of filters, replacing media as necessary. Prune live plants, clean fake plants, decorations, and algae.