# Sick betta??



## MellyBelle (Apr 11, 2013)

This is Clark!
Aquarium Gallery - Clark
Normally Clark is a pretty happy guy, but lately he's been really lethargic and staying at the bottom of the tank, sometimes he even looks like he's "breathing heavy." And when he moves, he darts around the tank like mad. His colors have faded too, he used to be really vivid blue and red... (Thus the name)
I think he's gotten sick somehow, but the problem is I don't know what's wrong with him. I went on a trip a while ago and my boyfriend kept Clark for me for a little more than a month. When I got back I cleaned his tank, and I noticed that there was a lot of uneaten food and what not that had settled to the bottom... So I asked my boyfriend when the last time he did a water change was... And HE DIDN'T DO ONE AT ALL. [for which I was ticked...His excuse was "it looked clean"] Anyway, I'm taking good care of him now, but I've only had him back for a week. I'm doing partial water changes every couple of days and usually I clean the tank and do a full water change every week and a half to two weeks. 
The heater is working fine,
I feed him Top Fin color enhancing betta bits most of the time, but every once in a while I'll alternate between API betta pellets and Wardley tropical fish flake food.
I use AquaSafe water conditioner when I do a full water change, although I usually use drinking water to do the partial water changes.
I can't think of any more information to give, but please take a look at the picture and give me your opinions. I'm really worried about my betta.  If you have any questions please ask!


----------



## chipmunk1210 (Jul 3, 2012)

Ok for starters, what size tank is Clark in? What temperature do you have the heater set at? Does your tank have a filter and is it cycled? When he flits around all over the tank - does he look like he is trying to scratch himself on anything in the tank?

From the pic, I can't really see anything wrong with him except that he is laying in the rocks.

Once I get the answers to these questions I should be able to help you a little more.


----------



## zwanged (Nov 4, 2012)

Do you have a freshwater test kit? I recommend the API master freshwater test kit. It should have tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH.

Most likely you're having problems due to bad water quality / improper water change routines. He was probably stressed by especially bad water conditions when water changes weren't being done properly.

Chipmunk1210 asked very important questions:
What are the dimensions / size of the tank? What kind of filter is there, is there a heater?

-Zeke


----------



## zwanged (Nov 4, 2012)

I'm willing to bet the tank isn't properly cycled. Adding chlorinated water can damage/kill beneficial bacteria in the tank if you don't use the dechlorinator when doing the partial water change. At least treat the water you are adding during water changes with the dechlorinator. Are you using Prime?

Please read up on cycling. It's critical to have a good understanding of the nitrogen cycle. It's not too complicated.

Here's a summary of the nitrogen cycle:
Fish eat food and create waste, which creates ammonia. Ammonia is very toxic to fish -- it burns their gills, stresses them, and damages them. Beneficial bacteria break down ammonia into nitrite which is also very toxic to fish -- even more toxic than ammonia. A second type of beneficial bacteria break down nitrite into nitrate. Nitrates are only toxic to fish in high concentrations (like 40ppm and over), and you keep nitrates down by doing partial water changes. You should never need to do a 100% water change if your tank is properly cycled. 

Here's a summary of cycling:
The goal of cycling the tank is to establish/colonize the beneficial bacteria so you never have ammonia/nitrite in the tank. Beneficial bacteria will grow on all surfaces of the tank, on your filter pads, on the substrate, basically all surfaces. You never want to expose it to chlorinated water (which also contains chloramines) which will kill this bacteria pretty quickly. So when you wash your filter pads, for example, you should only use dechlorinated water (most people just use old tank water you removed from the tank during a water change). 

When you're first starting out, the tank is basically sterile and has almost no beneficial bacteria. Some people seed their tank with store-bought bacteria (such as Tetra Safe Start) which contains beneficial bacteria and can help kickstart the cycle. Since you already have fish, you should just cycle the tank 'fish in' (there is a method to cycle without fish, but I will keep it simple and not go over that). Initially, as your fish produces waste, you will see ammonia levels rise. Then, as bacteria that break down ammonia start to colonize your filter + tank, you should see nitrite start to be produced, and ammonia should start to drop off. Finally, you should see nitrAte levels rise, as nitrite and ammonia start to drop off. You will be fully cycled when ammonia = 0 ppm, nitrite = 0ppm, and nitrate is some positive value, e.g. 10-20ppm. It's the amount of nitrates in the tank that dictates how often you will need to do water changes. If nitrates hit 40ppm, then you definitely should do a water change. There is some contention in the aquarium community about what nitrate concentration is optimal, but I am in the camp that says that lower (<10ppm) is definitely better -- as that is what these fish generally encounter in nature.

If the tank is fully stocked, you should do a water change of about 30% once per week. If it is less heavily stocked, you can get away with smaller weekly water changes of like 10-15%, or a water change of 20% every 2 weeks, for example.

Hope this helps!

-Zeke


----------

