I have had a betta fish for 8 months, I have no idea how old he was when I got him from the pet store. For the entire time I have had him he has been so full of personality, more than any other fish I've ever had. He has always been a great eater, very active and seemingly happy. Up until 2 weeks ago when he stopped eating. He shows no signs of disease (still has great color, is not *as* active but still active, no sign of fin rot or white spots, etc) but for the first few days I noticed it he would spit his food out, and then he started ignoring the food altogher (freeze dried blood worms and pellets) so I did a full water change and switched his food to smaller pellets and the same freeze dried blood worms.For 8 days now he has been ignoring his food, until this morning when he again tried to eat, seemed to be chewing, and spit the food out again. I am now convinced that he can't swallow? Is this possible?? The rocks in his tank are smooth marbles far to big for him to have swallowed and lodged in his throat, and he doesn't have a plant, so could this be a disease or parasite? I feel helpless! Should I be getting him some medicine??
I know he won't last much longer without food, I'm surprised he has lasted as long as he has! Is there anything more I can do other than watch this beautiful fish waste away!?! Any help that ANYONE could offer would be GREATLY appreciated!! THANK YOU!!
There are 28 known species of betta and you don't specify which you have but I assume you have the common siamese fighting fish variety. This species is a hardy fish and can survive 2-3 years unlike others so don't get too worried just yet.
Betta's are not big eaters so it is extremely important NOT TO OVERFEED them. They can be fed solid frozen food, fish pellets, floating flakes, freeze dried blood worms, live black worms, or frozen brine shrimp. Some live food is good but be careful not to give your betta too much live food as this has been known to cause problems.
If your betta is rejecting the pellets try soaking them a little to soften them before feeding. Two or three flakes or pellets is plenty. Generally, a betta fish should take about two to five minutes to fill up, so don't feed your fish more than they can eat in that time. The betta fish, as with most fish, can go a couple days without eating, in fact it is good practice to skip a day of feeding once a week as this gives the betta fish's digestive system time to recover and clean itself out.
Your fish's living environment may also affect its behaviour. Tap water is generally safe to use in your betta's tank but it should be left standing for 24 hours in order to condition it and bring it to room temperature. If your area has especially hard water you may need to use water treatment chemicals to remove chlorine and other contaminants. Distilled water should be avoided.
The temperature of the water is also important - the betta fish is considered a tropical fish so water should be between 72 and 82 degrees fahrenheit. One way to tell if the water is too hot or too cold is by watching the betta fish's behavior - too cold is likely to cause sluggish lethargic behaviour, too hot will cause hyperactive behaviour.
Ammonia poisoning is most common causing your fish to be lethargic, gasp at the surface for air, lose its appetite, lay at the bottom of the tank or develop red or purple gills that appear to be bleeding. You must check the pH balance of the water and lower it below 7.0. Change 25-50% of the water (replace with aged water), use a neutralizing chemical if your fish is very distressed and reduce feeding as the excess food in the tank will only cause further problems. If your fish is not eating remove excess food from the tank. If the ammonia levels are extremely high discontinue feedings outright (sometimes for several days if necessary).
Plants also help keep your aquarium stress-free as betta fish like to rest on the leaves. Occasionally place a mirror in front of a male betta fish for some entertaining exercise. However, do not leave the mirror in place for long, as it will exhaust him!
