Hi, I bought a male betta 3 days ago. I put him in a nice tank with an artificial plant, some shells,pebbles, a small castle and an air pump. I know bettas don't require a pump but I thought it would be more hygienic. The thing is that my betta stays at the bottom of the tank with the shells/pebbles and goes in between the shells where he finds space and stays still. Sometimes I cannot see him around at all and its very hard to tell if hes moving or not. He only comes to the surface to take a gulp of air, moves around a bit and then finds a hiding spot again.
Is this normal? Whats wrong?
Answers:
I have two betta and they like to sleep at the bottom of the tank for some weird reason. Anyways it might just be shy since you just got it. Thats cool how you got it such a cool little tank and stuff. Good luck
Um, I think you should try removing the pump because that might not be good for betas. Betas only require the minimal amount of care, a bowl with water, some rocks and like a plant thing. and then just food. If worse comes to worse you can just buy another one if you aren't too attached to your current one! *wink* Good luck!
He's fine. Alot of fish like to hide.
He sounds fine to me. Mine would sleep at the bottom of his bowl most of the time for hours on end. I had another named "red" that would sleep at the top of the bowl on his side! I almost flushed him the first time I saw that! Who could have guessed a fish could have personally? You could remove some of his hiding spots, but he will probably continue to sleep at the bottom of the tank anyway. What I would do some times is put two bettas side by side in seperate bowls, of course, and watch them flare at one another. I think this actually kept them healthy because it gave them something to do!
Anyway,
Good Luck
If you look up where Beta's come from and what their natural habitat is like in nature you will see that they like environments with slow moving water and lots of plant cover. They do not like fighting currents and a tank with to much open space will stress them out. Hence he is hiding like so.
It's not abnormal. He may just be stressed from the move, and living in a small cup in the fish store. Also try turning off the pump. Unless it drives a filter it does more harm than good.
Bettas like small spaces and they dont move around very much unless its feeding time. Nothing wrong.
No air pump please. Check to see if that artificial plant is hard or it will tear its tails. Soft silk plants are okay.
My betta liked to sleep at the bottom of the tank but when I got him this ceramic tube which they sold at the fish store, he would go in there and sleep.
first take out the water pump!!
bettas has large tails its REALLY stressful for them if they have to swim in a current, its like trying to run against a storm with a parachute behind you!
here are some info for bettas! check if you did anything wrong!
ACCLIMATING A NEW FISH
What to do now that you’ve purchased your new betta? You need to take it home and slowly get him/her acclimated into its new home. To do this, you should prepare the tank the betta will be going into (making sure the temperature of this tank is room temperature (dechlorinated) water), and then slowly introduce water from the new tank into the holding container the betta came home in. Scoop a few tablespoons of water into the cup every 5 – 10 minutes for about 60 minutes.
NOTE: if you brought the fish home in a bag, it is recommended to place it into a cup for easier acclimation. Plastic solo cups work well for this purpose.
After the 60 minutes, the fish is ready to be carefully lowered into its new home and released!
DIET
Pellets:
HBH Betta Bites, Hikari Betta Bio-Gold
Flakes :
Should be specifically designed for bettas – high in proteins
NOTE: For young or very small bettas, flakes OR crushed pellets are a safer option – to avoid choking.
Frozen foods :
Adult Brine Shrimp, Blood Worms, Black Worms, Krill, Mosquito Larvae, Peas (*great for relieving constipation – see below)
Live foods:
Any of the above mentioned frozen foods can be fed live to bettas, but do run the risk of carrying parasites. Other live foods such as crickets, beetles, moths, etc. CAN be fed to bettas, however you must be 100% positive that the bugs have not been exposed to any pesticides, which can harm or kill your betta.
*Frozen pea preparation – place a small amount of dechlorinated water into microwaveable dish. Place a few peas (usually one pea is plenty for one betta) into the dish. Microwave on high power for 30 seconds. Remove from microwave, cool, remove shell, chop. Feed very small pieces to betta. Usually 2 - 3 pieces is plenty. Avoid feeding other foods to betta for 2 – 3 days. This should get things moving pretty quickly.
TANKMATES
It is important to remember that while most of these recommended tankmates may work fine with most bettas, some bettas do not tolerate any moving creatures in their tanks, and therefore caution should be exercised when adding any new creature into a betta tank.
The following are considered possible tankmates for a betta (male or female):
White Cloud Mountain Minnows
African Dwarf Frogs (NOT Clawed Frogs)
Large Snails (large enough so betta can not eat them)
The following are NOT recommended as possible tankmates for a betta:
Guppies, Mollies, Tetras, Gouramis, Platies, Neon Tetras, African Clawed Frogs, Barbs, or any other brightly colored fish that a betta might mistake as another betta.
AT NO POINT SHOULD TWO MALE BETTAS BE IN THE SAME TANK.
AT NO POINT SHOULD A MALE AND FEMALE BETTA BE PLACED IN THE SAME TANK – except when spawning.
It is acceptable for two males to share a DIVIDED tank, so long as the males are not constantly flaring at each other, causing stress. Giving a betta its own tank is generally the best idea.
TANK SPECIFICATIONS
The ideal tank for a betta will consist of silk or live plants to rest on, some sort of “toy” which could include a bridge, arch, cave, or even a makeshift toy such as a piece of pvc pipe. Bettas are extremely curious creatures and will stick their heads into anything. Make sure that any “toys” which are introduced into the tank has are no holes which a betta’s head could get stuck in. This can cause drowning and/or death, should a betta become too curious and stick its head in.
Make certain there are no open gaps anywhere along aquarium lids –bettas WILL jump – right out of their aquarium and onto the floor, if given the chance. Bettas do prefer tropical temperatures, ranging from 75 – 80 degrees. However, it is acceptable to keep a betta at a steady room temperature of 72 degrees or above. Constant temperatures are essential to keeping bettas healthy.
TANK MAINTENANCE
Regardless of tank size, ALL betta tanks require regular cleanings. ALL WATER that is introduced into a betta tank should be dechlorinated by liquid dechlorinator AND/OR aging, no exceptions.
The following water changing schedule is recommended:
1/2 to gallon to 2.5 gallons – 100% water change every 3 - 5 days
2.5 gallons to 4 gallons – 100% water change once per week
Larger, cycled tanks (established tanks that have been running with a filter for several weeks) – replace 20 – 30% of the water once a week, and gravel vacuum the tank every 2 weeks
NOTE: During 100% water changes, betta should be removed into a holding container (cups that bettas are purchased in from chain stores, solo cups, etc. make good choices) during the water change. Be sure to cover the cup to avoid a jumping betta! DO NOT use a net on a betta with very long fins. This can cause tearing and shredding of fins. Rather, use a cup and gently lower it in the water to catch the fish. Some, or most, of the water will need to be removed first to allow for catching of the fish.
Also during 100% water changes, wiping the tank out with a paper towel, rinsing décor and rinsing gravel or marbles is necessary.
NOTE: When changing water, there are 2 ways to prepare dechlorinated water – ideally, water should be dechlorinated and aged for 2 – 3 days in a holding tank before using for water changes. Sometimes aging water is not practical, so simply dechlorinating tap water is acceptable. ALWAYS make sure the water that the fish is going back into matches the temperature and PH of the water they came out of.
BETTA ILLNESSES
Bettas are susceptible to many illnesses. Some are easy to treat, others are virtually impossible. Some common signs of illness include: clamped fins, swollen or bulging eyes, shredded, torn or bloody fins, general listlessness, white spot, gold dustings, swollen belly, pineconing (or puffed out scales), and many more. With any illness, it is a good idea to begin research immediately. There are many great forums on the web which offer great advice and answers to many betta-related questions.
See all that * about bettas not like large amount of water? Kick it! I don't care what those fools think they know they don't know half of it. Bettas enjoy room to swim, they enjoy being able to move around not put in a cup and left there. MER!
I have a betta for is a rather passive betta and it took him almost three days after I got him to come out of the plant I have in my tank and it took him another 4 to stay out of it when I came over. When ever I do a water change he'll go back into "hiding". I'm sure that you just have a passive fish. Don't worry about it, as long as your tank temp is between 72 and 80F you'll be fine. You might want to remove the filter.
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