help my betta is sick

[tonifersangel]

I just got a betta a few days ago from my boyfriend's grandmother who didn't want it. I changed his water last night (he's in a bowl) and ever since he's been acting sick. All he does is lay at the bottom, and occasionally comes up when I call him. I think it has something to do with the water. We live in the country and both have well water, so there's no chlorine. I let the water set in the same room 2 days before i switched it, and I left some of his old water in there too.What did I do wrong? . . . Is he going to be ok?

[veggiegirl]

Even though the well water doesn't have chlorine in it, it may have a different ph than what he was in before. You might want to do some searching on the net and find out what ph bettas prefer. Then you can get a test kit at the pet store and find out what ph your water has. I've never kept my bettas in a bowl before so I can't give you much advice on that. Here's a really good site to check out: http://www.bettatalk.com/

Bettas like warm water too, so if there was a temp change, that could be affecting him. Good luck and I hope he's ok!

[tonifersangel]

Quote: Bettas like warm water too, so if there was a temp change, that could be affecting him. Good luck and I hope he's ok!

I let the water sit in the same room so the temperature is the same. I am going to walmart (we don't have pet stores) in a minute to get a ph tester and prolly some ph down. Thanks

[PicOlio]

I prefer keeping betas in ten gallon fully filtered aquariums but certainly understand why so many keep them in bowls. Either way your goal should be to keep him at about 78 to 84 degrees F with a pH at about 7.0 and a dH no more than 25

Next time you change the water try removing just a bit of his water and adding that amount of the new water repeatedly over 15 minute intervals until you feel like a water change has been accomplished.

E.g. if I had a beta in a gallon of water I may remove one cup of water and add one cup of water...wait 15 minutes..and then repeat... This gives them time to acclimate rather than doing a full change suddenly on them.

Also, I wonder how old he is. Beta's do not have the longest of lifespans. I think it's only 2 or 3 years...

I wish you and the beta the best of luck. They are wonderful fish.

[tonifersangel]

I just got back from getting the stuff I needed for Phishpish, and he was swiming around the tank. . .the jerk! lol. Well I do have a question, as per the info I got from bettatalk, I got some salt, aquasol-like stuff, and a plant. Is it ok to use the stuff and put the plant in as is, or should I add the stuff later and slowly?

[indychinchick]

My mom has had really good luck with her latest beta (she killed her last one really quickly and has had this one for a year or so). She runs the old water through a coffee filter before putting it back in.
She does keep her beta in a bowl. It's the kind with a plant coming out of the top. I think she only feeds hers 1 or maybe 2 times a week and changes the water once a week, too.
If you want more info on her good luck, let me know. I can get better details tomorrow.