# Betta issues. Please Help!



## mlefev (Apr 19, 2005)

My betta...brand new...(I call him blueberry, since he's black and blue)...keeps going to the bathroom white instead of brown. 

I had to leave town unexpectedly and put a block of tubifex worms in his bowl (1 gallon right now). I was gone 4 days, and I came back to find him a little sickly and turning grey instead of the dark metallic blue he originally was.

I put him in good new water and he started turning dark blue again, but he's still going to the bathroom white. I just added a bit of pimafix to the water in case he was fighting some sort of fungus/bacteria. He's very hungry, and will eat bloodworms from my hand, but he won't eat anything else. he's also very alert and friendly..he will come right up to me and swim around all cute.

Any ideas?


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

i have no idea as i am new to bettas myself, but i must say yours is beautiful :-D


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Odds are its just from his diet. Keep the water clean and change up his food. He may not take to it for a cpl of days but he will eat when he's hungry. No worries yet.


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## starrfish71 (Jul 6, 2005)

Most likely what happened is the block of tubifex worms polluted the water- raised the nitrates, and that is why he was pale and sickly, and recovered so well as soon as you changed the water. Blood worms are great food for bettas, and I would recommend a betta formula pellet, like Hikari, for maintenance. you should feed him no more than every other day, and you should try to only feed him an "eyeball" size portion (his eyeball, not yours) If you have him in an unfiltered bowl you need to change the water every 2 to 3 days. Remember that water temperature and pH will affect him every time you change water, so the best habit to get into is fill a "fish" bucket with the gallon or so you need for the change, let it sit to room temp (about 20-30 minutes) and add whatever water conditioners you use, plus FW salt, and when the temp is right, switch him over.
Bettas natural life span is about three years, and when they arrive at pet stores the are GENERALLY between 6mos and a year old. they come from "Siam" (or Asia), and live in rice patties there, which are actually somewhat brackish, and they naturally define themselves a small territory that they defend to the death, so, living in a small bowl is actually acceptable for these guys.


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## mlefev (Apr 19, 2005)

I figured the tubifex was a culprit in all of it...and yes he snapped back quickly after I got him into fresh water...probably in about 40 minutes. I am changing the water partially daily because it looks a little cloudy toward the evening. I think part of that might be that I'm living so close to the coast...I can actually taste salt on my lips when the wind is blowing my direction...I've been using the tap water and adding Aqua Plus for the conditioner (not with him in it of course).

I had my other Betta in a 10 gallon tank, but when he died (wahhhhh) I ended up putting some little tropical fish in it. When I saw how friendly this guy was at the store, I had to get him. He had a hearty appetite from day one unlike my other betta, so I think he's a lot healthier in general.

From your feeding reccommendation, I think I may be feeding him too much. I've been giving him 3 worms in the morning and evening every day...he never stopped acting hungry so I thought he needed it. Plus it's adorable to see him eat from my hand. I'll try to back it off and find some pellets for him too. I had betta bites, but I lost the container when I moved 


Thanks for the advice...and yes fishfreaks, I thought he was really pretty too. I wish I had a better camera so you guys really could see him. He has red on the fins that hang down striped with the metallic blue.


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## starrfish71 (Jul 6, 2005)

the cloudiness is probably a build up of ammonia,(or nitrates from any left over food) which would occur if he is pooping frequently, which he will do more often if you are feeding him frequently  
he will ALWAYS be hungry. It is the nature of the fish. If you get him on a regular feeding schedule, with the sometimes treat of bloodworms, and he maintains his weight, he's getting enough food. Most bettas end up overweight because they look so 'pitiful', like the 25lb cat that acts as if it is starving to death.


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## mlefev (Apr 19, 2005)

LOL. I had to move the container of bloodworms off the counter today. I came in and noticed he was staring at it. Whenever I moved it, he'd move over to that side of the bowl and start looking at it. And they say fish are stupid...I think not.


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