when yo say bloodworms, does that mean that is all it ever got? hope an experienced betta keeper comes along and helps you!

live food may tempt to eat, but i am not sure if it is too late for that.

what temp is the water?

Depending on your location, since fall is here the office may have done something to save energy by turning down the thermostat at night, or got a programable thermostat so the heat goes off after you leave, and shortly before you arrive.Maybe they didnt turn the heat on yet. Too cool water will make any fish lathargic and not eat. This is the time of year alot off betta keepers will ask "my betta has stopped eating?". Also, it may just be week from the parasite and have a secondary bacterial infection. Try to raise the water temp. gradually to 82F. This helps speed up metabolism and encourage eating. Since eating is a problem a shelled pea or pepso food wont work to flush him out. So epsom salt baths may help. I would suggest slowly adding epsom salts to the bowl but that may not be a good idea if you dont know your waters GH level. Epsom salt raise GH. I'll try to find the link for directions for an epsom salt bath. Is the fish pooping?, Is he bloated or emaciated?

yes, the fish only eats bloodworms. when i was given the fish, it had previously sustained on a diet of beta pellets; knowing that a beta i once cared for lived for almost 4 years on bloodworms alone, i switched the diet shortly after i got him.
as far as temperature, i live in florida and don't think cool temperatures are really the issue here. if anything, the thermostat is raised at night since we have the need for a/c to run most of the day - room temp is kept at about 76 degrees during the day.
the fish is not pooping, but is not bloated and also doesn't appear emaciated. i will try the epsom salts as well as slowly raising the temp.
also, as of yesterday, he has taken to doing "headstands" at the bottom of the tank. any idea what this behavior could mean?
thanks for your suggestions - i appreciate it.

Swim Bladder Disease, or Constipation. He may snap out of it on his own.Epsom salt will help. Try 1 tsp. per 5 gallons, so for your 1 gallon, a just shy of 1/4 tsp. will do. Dilute the epsom salt in a cup of water. Remove a cup of water from the bowl, then add a 1/4 cup of the salt concoction every 5 minutes until its all in. Sometimes overfeeding is a problem or too much protien, too much blood worms at once could do it. Try a varied diet, Hikari pellets is usually reccomended. Also there is a theory that too much "dry" food (flake, freeze dried) over feeding is more likely to cause this then live or frozen foods. Sort of makes sence. Interesting, alot of betta keepers in FL are usually more sucessful with bowl kept betas. I may start keeping score. I really am convinced it's your climate, hot and humid almost year round, or just warm enough that the fish do not become lathargic and stressed from too cold water, hmmm.

okay, woeisme, i followed your advice and added the epsom salt diluted mixture slowly and also slowly increased the water temp. the fish seemed to improve after about a week of the treatment, but still didn't eat. i tried the pellets as well as the bloodworms, but no luck. we're headed to almost a month now with no food, and this morning, the fish has gone back to occasionally floating on its side. it is not dead, but it must be miserable and close to dying. i don't know what else to do to help this fish! do you have any ideas of what i can try? i'm afraid he's not going to last much longer...my hopes were raised after his normal swimming last week, but today it seems we're back to where we were a couple weeks ago. thanks again for all of your help.

How old is the fish? Do you have a water test kit for ammonia and nitrite?

i'm not sure how old the fish is. it was given to me almost a year ago. i believe the previous owner had it for a month or two prior. so it's probably a year and a half-ish, depending how old it was when the original owner purchased it.
i do not have a test kit; is that my next step to help him?
thanks again for responding!!

Test sets are always good, even in a bowl. Minimally an ammonia test. The total age of the fish is approx. 2 years + or - a month (adding in an age of 6 months when purchased, just an average). Some bettas only live 1 1/2 to 2 years. If you plan on a replacement if the little guy doesn't make it, get the test. Reagent type will last a year and is consistantly accurate. Also do you use a dechlorinator to treat the water?

oh how sad - i really want him to pull through! i will look for an ammonia test and give it a shot. i do treat the water with Stress Coat, which claims to remove chlorine, detoxify heavy metals, and neutralize chloramines. i just wish there was something i could do instead of watching him slowly suffer. :(
thanks for all your help - i really do appreciate it. i have a beta at home, and should i have problems with him, i will definitely be back with questions!

I just got a cool new betta fish for my birthday yesterday and it doesnt seem to want to eat any of the betta fish food. i feel bad and hope it doesnt die. HELP!!!!!!!!

Don't worry, bettas can survive a month or more without eating. Just offer a bit of food every day, and if the fish doesn't want it, remove it immediately from the tank, and try again tomorrow.

I hope you also got a sizeable tank with a heater and a hiding spot along with your fish!

hey. My fish is doing the same "not eating" thing. -_-;

This is just a recent thing though. It's been at least 4 days. And it's so strange! I have two betas and they share the same exact tank as they have for over a year now, ((with a divider in the middle, ^^;;)) They both seem to enjoy eachothers company. It's really cute. They hate it when I have to clean the tank and they thrash about when they're in their little cups, but then once put back in the tank, they're calm and touch their little snouts together between the plastic. ^^

But anyways, both of them get SO excited when it's feeding time and they see the lid open. They've always been like that, and yeah, I feed them those Hikari pellets. Same stuff I've been using since I got them.

I'm not too sure why only one out of the two is behaving like this. Their main home is in Savannah where I go to school, then I come home to VA every winter and summer. I like my room colder than warmer, but it hasn't seemed to bother them yet. Just in case though, today I have put the tank in the other room with a space heater, so I'm hoping this will do something.

I'm going to try to see if this warming water thing works, but I don't know about the salt, since theres the other fish in there too, and he's not sick. ^^

Salt will not hurt your "unsick" betta. A heater is inexpensive and will keep the water at a more steady temperature. Temperature fluctuation is also harmful. Get a submersible one that has a control knob so you can adjust it. A thermometer is also handy. 50 watts per 10 gallons is the reccomendation. Most heaters are

Help,

My fish is not eating either- but he takes the pellet in his mouth and then spits them out???? Any ideas?

Does it look emaciated or have a crooked spine? if so could be tuberculosis. The trying to eat and spitting out is common with this. But before panic how long has this been going on? How long have you been feeding theese pellets (new brand or new package) How long have you had the fish? How much and how often are you feeding? Sorry for the list but it will help to know.

my beta is doing the exact same i am feeding him freeze dried red grubs and he will take a bite then spit out and repeat?? is this alright, 10 gallon tank 5 other fish al of which the pet store said would be alright, only had for a day though??

My first thought for Betta fish...they need to be in a biological filter tank. Yes they can be in smaller quarters but they are fish and fish do not do well swimming in their waste like swimming in a toilet bowl. For those who have their betta fish in a filter tank, I applaud you. Now if you don't have a fiter tank then you need to change the water weekly. These beautiful fish will eat dry betta food. I would let them have a balanced of live worms and dry food. Of all the fish, these fish amaze me with each living in a 1 gallon tank/vase/bowel. As many of you know, the general rule for fish space is...1" mature fish for 1 gallon of water. The Betta does not like turbulence water and tend to be moody. For any of you who really want to know about your beautiful Betta, check the internet. There is a lot of information about the Betta for better care of this sweet, misunderstood fish.
Theresa

Can someone tell me if you're supposed to feed your beta the same thing everyday or can you give them different types of food? When I bought an additional beta and an additional tank, I got some samples with it that I was giving to the fish, but then I started to wonder if this inconsistent diet was bad for them?

imaginators, you just said that Beta's don't like turbulent water? I have a filters in my 10 gallon tank that create bubbles and small waves, is this bad? They do seem to like the bubbles though because I've seen them swim into the bubbles and let the current push them away, then go back and do it again? Wondering if I should turn it down though?

You should keep your betta on a consistent diet- don't keep changing their food. If they eat pellets, feed them pellets, If they eat flakes, feed them flakes. You can alternate/supplement their meals with bloodworms or other live/frozen/freeze dried insects. Most guides I've read don't say anything about a diet of only bloodworms- I know the pellets/flakes are formulated to contain the necessary nutrients for bettas and the worms are just worms, so feeding them some flakes or pellets along with the worms might be better than just worms. Don't keep switching between flakes and pellets- it's hard for him to get used to constantly changing food types and he may start refusing to eat.

I've discovered that while my betta (I've only had him a few days) loves the freeze dried bloodworms I got him, he won't eat the flakes (only a nibble here and there if I crumble them to resemble worm fragments). I'm going to try the pellets on him when I get a chance to buy them. For now, I'm feeding him freeze dried bloodworms. Plus uneaten soggy flakes are hard to get out of the bowl and get the water dirty more easily.

By the way, I'm keeping my betta in a smallish fish bowl (not too small) with no filter or heater in my dorm room. It gets really warm in here at night when the heater's on, and normal room temp during the day. I think it's warm enough for my betta in here.

I am having a similar problem. I just got a turquois crowntail betta from Petco last saturday. it is now thursday and he has yet to eat. I called petco to ask them what to do, and they just told me that he's fine and to "tease him" with the food a bit, poking at it an moving it around in the water. they were feeding him betta bio gold, so I tried the same food. no result. I contacted another specialty fish store, and they told me to try blood worms, along with this stuff called "Betta Revive", its sort of a blue liquid that you put a few drops in the tank. I also thought that it may be a temperature issue, as when I had a nearby lamp on, he seemed to stay toward where the light was coming from. My roomate keeps the apartment at about 65, and likewise this is the aprox. temp of the water. the guy at the fish store told me to keep a lamp on him, but this doesn't seem to be raising the temp. what should I do?

he swims around just fine, doesn't look bloated, he lives in a 2.5 gallon rectangular tank with some ornaments including a small ship he can swim into, as well as a small plant. there is no filter on the tank. should there be? Captain Morgan (my last betta) lived for 5 years in similar conditions and I never had any problems like this but Atlas (my new betta) seems to be having a problem. any advice would be helpful

hi all.. my beta floats to his side unless he is laying by my lucky bamboo (which is leaning in the bowl giving him an area to rest between the bowl and plant) or he lays between the legs of a ceramic frog that hangs in the bowl... or now he puts his nose into the marbles at the bottom and stands head down!! ALSO he is not eating..for weeks now.. he will attempt to bite at the pellets i put in,,BUT cant get them..tries maybe twice and then quits... i have tried squashing them into smaller bits ,,but he still misses..am using mini pellets that he has had for over a year. could he be blind?.... also tried giving him pieces of a pea because the fish store said it would help with the bladder issue (him floating) BUT the peas sink,,he wont eat from the bottom.... can anyone help..? please

What are the other conditions of his environment - temperature, aeration, filtration? Can you obtain frozen food or live food?

my fish is doing the same thing.....

i got it on oct,9,2008.i'm feeding him "BettaMin-with color enhancers".(red flakes with freeze dried brine shrimp).

he takes it in his mouth but then spits them out!
next morning i was looking at the fish,the fish color changed! it looks like the color had faded away.it is much lighter than i got it, and he was not moving around.he just stay at the bottem of the bowl( mostly at the side of the bowl). my first action was to feed him. than after 5 minutes, the color came back, but it began swimming crazily around the fish bowl and bumping into wall and the stones. it make nosie when it bumped into the stone >____<..>i did a full water change and afterwards treated the water with betta bowl essential(which claims to remove chlorine, detoxify heavy metals, and neutralize chloramines).

i always keep the water clean and i don't think the temerture is the problem here, 2 of my roomate got betta fish the same day i got it.we got the same size of bowl, some kind of food, same type of stone....etc. and their fish is doing great!

and now the same things( color fading, bumping into wall, swim crazily....etc.) happened every day.it is almost 6 days now!! the color alway comeback after i feeded him and i notice he is not pooping......

plz help!\(>_____

Hi I am new to this forum but have been keeping Betas (And Koi and Goldfish) for years. Test the water and of course make sure the temp is at least 72 degrees. How does the water test such as PH, Ammonia ect? When was the last water change and how often and much do you change the water? Also some good advice a vet gave me "No animal likes light 24/7". So make sure you have a timer on the light so the Beta gets some dark and some stress relief. Increase oxygenation if needed with a subtle bubbler or a small trickle of water from a small pump. I am in love with those bio wheel filters as they provide oxygenation, and bio filtration.

And for years I have offered a varied diet and used the inside of peas for constipation. Your fish seems beyond that at present so the water quality and temp and oxygenation are my main concerns.

Best of luck,
Lisa

our beta fish we've had for close to a year now. just recently in the past two weeks we've been giving him a bit of bloodworms with his regular pellets which we've always fed him. at first he was unsure of what they were then he took a liking to them. last night i went to feed him and he would only eat 2 pellets where he normally eats five. we haven't switched up foods on him just supplemented a few meals with some bloodworms for some variety. the temp. hasn't changed any more than what it normally does. we've done the regular cleanings and water changings like normal. he's not bloated but he does seem to be faded from his normal brilliance. he is inactive. he just sits on the bottom of the tank. he would always get so excited when we'd feed him, and now he acts as if he doesn't even realize we're doing it. he won't touch the food. what can i do? please help!

Hi:

Beta is not eating, behaving strangely, seems depressed. Stay at the bottom of the tank only swim up once and then goes back to the bottom of the tank.

On the norm he is very active and come to the front of the tank when I approach and swim all over the tank. In the pass he will run away from your finger but when I put my face to tank he will always come. Now he just sit at the botom of the tank even when I put my finger there he does not run and that's strange because he always run when he sees the finger. I just notice he was not eating yesterday morning.

The night before I could not find him so I knock on the tank and he did not surface, and he always surface. I put my hand in the tank because he was not responding and was moving his items around, I hope I did not damage him when he fell out of the clam shell in the tank. I became afraid when he did not respond. Please help.

My Beta is at least 3 years old and has always been really active. Lately he has taken to laying on his side or completely vertical at the bottom of the tank. He only wiggles a fin when you tap on the glass and surfaces a few times a day to get air and then sinks again. I have changed his water added the beta water solution, and raised the temperature but he still is acting the same. Is he just getting old or is there a reason why he is acting so strange.

My 3 1/2 year old beta is doing the same. Not eating, swimming on his side or vertical at the bottom of the tank. I also notice that he is a little white on his belly and not bright red as he used to be. He looks as if his spine was bent. He began with this behavior like 4 days ago. I'm buying the salts today.. what else can I do?

i just got my fish about three days ago and he's not eating. I've tried pellets (Betta bites),flakes(Betta min),and even frozen dried blood worms (nutrafin), but he's still not eating he doesn't seem sick because he's swimming around like normal, he still lies at the bottom but he swims too. he's not discolored, and i have him in a 1 litre gold fish bowl with rocks at the bottom. I've tried changing his water, and i put Betta conditioner in, and it's room temperature. i am thinking of just leaving him alone and maybe letting him adjust for a couple days and see what happens, maybe he just needs to get used to the bowl. but i was just wondering if i could do anything else to get him to eat.

my betta is not moving just moving on the bottom of the tank and i immediatly changed his water and warmed it up and fed him but he wouldnt eat this continued for 3 days now what do i do? help i dont want him to die!

OKAY.
So my boyfriend and I had a Beta (Neppy) for about 5 months then we moved to our new apartment and he died within the first two months. He seemed to have "ick" or something my boyfriend called it. One of his fish had had it before. ANWAY so we went and bought a new Beta (Neppy 2) about maybe a week/ week and a half ago and he is not doing so well. We thought it was the tank (it was a bit dirty) so we did purchase a sucker fish (Sebastian) as well (I am unsure of the actual fish type it is, but it sucks all the stuff off the sides of the tank) - So, like I said, Neppy 2 and Sebastian don't bother each other and get along fine but Neppy 2 is now refusing to eat and literally stays at the top of the tank on his side where the bubbles come out. Also, I noticed that on his fin I can see some cartilage from his fin. My boyfriend tried putting some warmer water in there but no dice. We also put beta conditioner in the water but it seems to turn his underbelly all while. We think he is going to have to meet the came fate as Neppy in fishy heaven. Please help!

We have two betas and each has been lively and social. We've had them for almost two years, only. Today I woke up to find one fish floating dead.
Both males have been in one tank BUT with a divider - they can not interact.

In the week or so prior to this, both fish changed behaviour - less lively, more lethargic and just kind of floating there. Both eating habits were reduced also.
I've fed them beta pellets and change their water every 3 weeks or so. There have been no changes in temperature or food or moving of the tank...so what explains this behaviour and sudden death? From what I understand, beta fish should live 5 years or more.
Thoughts? I would appreciate any insight, tips and advice.

I observed the same with my betta too. Don't always feed the same food (like blood worms, pellets etc.).you need to change the food once a month. Don't feel amazed, I normally feed with chicken flesh (cut it very small so it can eat) once a month.Good thing is it started eating blood worms again after feeding with chicken flesh.

I just got my betta 3 days ago, I feed him the fish flakes but he doesn't eat? His water has also gotten cloudy?

Do you have a filter? Cloudy usually goes away after the water cycles. Get the test strips to ensure the water quality. Water conditioner is usually needed with well water.

Try to give your betta a green peeled frozen pea, or give it a filter? Do you ever given him pellets

My betta is over 3 years old and seems very anxious. I change his water once a week with well water from tap. He is acting lazy...floating on top usually. He has been on our island in kitchen where he can see people coming and going. Usually he comes straight to me when feed him now he just sits in one place. Several weeks ago when trying to catch him with cup to feed him I hit him by mistake a little. Put in a marimo ball this past week too to give him something new. I have a 3 1/2 gallon tank that has some bubbling that want to put him in but do not want to shock him. Just got some API stress coat to help him too. Suggestions? thank you

Hi,

I recently got my betta fish and he seemed to be doing okay in his 3 gallon tank until this morning I went to go feed him and he wasn't going for the pellets. I would put it in front of his face and he would just swim away, i then dropped in a bloodworm in case he preferred that but he just ignored that too. i then noticed that he was just laying at the top of the tank breathing really hard. I have a filter, lights and heater for him so I'm confused as to why he's breathing really hard and why he's not eating.. any help would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!!

I'm not sure if I can get answers here, but my betta isn't eating either, and his back is crooked. I'm definitely concerned because he hasn't eaten in almost a week. I know that he can go up to a month but still... Any help??

I've had my betta for almost 9 months. When I got him, he wouldn't eat, and the pet store told me he was probably anorexic because of missed feedings from his previous owner, so I got him betta treats and he loves them. He's always very happy, approaches the glass when he sees me, is relatively active, and recognizes the feed jar so swims toward me when he sees it. It's been about 4 days now since I've seen him eat anything, treat or pellet. He's swimming around a little less than usual too. He's not interested when I move the feed jars, and he doesn't approach the glass. I thought he may be bored or need a water change, so I changed his water and his plant about 4 hours ago. Now he's moving a little more but has been flaring almost the entire time since the water change, still is not interested in food whatsoever, and almost seems slightly distended right in front of his 2nd ventral fin, maybe a little dull in that area as well. He has been moved to and from my dorm room 3 times in the last month: thanksgiving break, back, and now back home, but the not eating began before the move today. Any ideas? Could he just be stressed? Should I be worried?

My Betta is doing this exact same thing. I've had Bonnie (my Betta) for a little over a year now. two weeks ago, I went on vacation making sure someone was there to feed her. When I got back I tried to feel her but she just ignored the food, which at first worried me bacuse she has always been an aggressive eater but I just figured my brother had already feed her. The next day I cleaned her tank and tried to feed her, but again, she just ignored the food. She stays on her favorite side of the tank all day long and hasn't really moved for the past 5 days. I was able to get her to move once and I noticed 2 things, 1 was that her moves looked very jerky and 2 was that she has a little bald looking spot on her left side. I'm worried because I have no idea how long this has been going on. It could have started the day of my return or the day I left home.if anyone has any idea about what this could possibly be I would be extremely grateful for you help. I've had other Bettas before and am still grieving the lose of one of my favorite bettas, Clyde. Who had recently died after 4 1/2 years of living with me.

my fish is acting the same i do not know what to do

So I have a small bowl that is 1 gallon and it has a filter but lately for the last like 5 days he only stays at the top right and does not eat and does nothing but he still alive so I don’t know what to and I looked at all the diseases but none seems to resemble what he has

So I changed the water and nothing changed and some times he will float on it side on the top right like he is dead and he also does swim when I shake the bowl to make sure he alive but he swims in a weird pantren like shaking and swims right back to the coner and continue to stay and he just won’t acknowledge there’s food so I’m very worried he will die so plz respond ASAP thanks and also I have changed how fast the filter goes to see if it’s just that making him stay to the side but it changed nothing on higher or lower or none