update on Betta sitter and 'Fishie'

[alicemagooey]

i think we have a happy fishie here..thanks to you all and your assistance..fishie is actually 'frolicking' around his bowl..

poor creature..he had really been consistently kept too cold by his 'person'..who just had not been informed,i think,(and who had no internet access by which to learn..about the needs of Bettas.)

i am having trouble keeping the bowl at a consistent enough temp..because the weather here is cold outside,my apartment is cold inside (drafty),but i have one room which i am keeping toasty by heater.He also has a heating pad leaning against his bowl,so even if the room gets chilly,he always has a place in his bowl to go to to get warm..

i have a stick on thermom..which is all Walmart had,which reads 74 degrees now..
but since all this is so experimental,temp has fluctuated between 64 and 74..which seems like a lot...

64 is what his 'person' kept him in,i think

anyway,his grey lines seem (i am biased)to be disappearing,and he is making bubbles again,and flares when i put a mirror near..and all seems good in fishie world here,thanks to you all..

i also fed him a meal of freeze dried blood worms..and also got him some betta gold pelletts..both of which he is relishing..

spoiled fishie..he deserves it..i love him..

i have changed his water once in one week,but would like to do more..i just read a thing on the Internet which recommends a 30 percent water change with each feeding..

that sounds good to me..

the 'total change and cleaning' i would like to do more often..and when his life is as stabilized as i hope it will become,i would like to change it every few days..because the 'turkey baster thing' just is not working for me.

can you imagine being 'fishie'and seeing this vacuum like thing,coming into your 'space'..like every other day??

i do not know about the tank cleaning regimes that you all use..some of you have sadi that you use a cup and take fish out with some water while cleaning tank.

would there be a problem with
'pouring' fish from one tank into a temporary tank..with some of his own water..like riding a wave??

it seems to me to be less stressful.but then again,it may not work..and fish might become stranded in tank #1,rather than riding the wave into tank #2.

well.
thanks again.
comments welcomed
alice


thank you all so much

[twoluvcats]

that is so great to hear he's doing better!! You have done so much for this guy in a short amount of time.

They really do get used to the cup transfer after a while. I lure mine to the top with food, and then plunge the cup in as soon as they hit the top of the water...scoops them right up without too much stress...i do have one guy that enjoys evading the cup, he treats it like a game "how can i eat that food without getting caught" LOL As long as they realize that nothing bad happens while they are in the cup, it really becomes a non-event for them. Plus they usually get extra food, and a clean tank out of it, so the stress is worth it hehe;)

[alicemagooey]

i just wanted to do another change of water..i started to do a 30 percent change,but,well,i keep a really clean house myself..and i want fishie to have te BEST..so i got the water temps all similar of tank water and 'water which has been sitting' for a coupla days,readyfor change.
i tried to get a small cup into the tank,but the jar which owner has 'fishie' in has only a small opening at the top,so i had to resort to the

***'wheeee!! 'fishie' rides the waterfalls over the Niagara' routine****

to get 'fishie' out of his jar while i cleaned it;into a jar of fresh water which was correct temp,etc...;and then back into his origional jar..

ugh.i think it did stress him..

but doggone it..owner dumps him into a strainer while she changes the water..and that almost seems cruel to me...(i know she doesn't mean to be..)because he is out of water for a period of time.

anyway..poor 'fishie'..altho he is a happy 'fishie',i think it has been a bit of an ordeal for him..being with me..poor 'fishie'..he is so sweet. and i do love him so..

i just keep going over to his bowl and apologising..but
don't know if that helps much

thanks for
response,and comments
alice

[abm]

Hi Alice, glad to know things are going well for you and Fishie

but doggone it..owner dumps him into a strainer while she changes the water..and that almost seems cruel to me...(i know she doesn't mean to be..)because he is out of water for a period of time.

It IS cruel to leave him out of water for a length of time. Just because he 'survives' the experience doesn't mean it's the best way to do it. Also, there's a very real danger of fin and body damage from the strainer.
I would suggest you tell your friend to do water changes by putting Fishie and a cup or so of his regular tank water into a tupperware bowl (or whatever - the point being she doesn't have to buy or use lots of specialized fish equipment to do this safely and properly). Let him sit in his water in the bowl while she cleans and refills the tank and dechlorinates the water etc, then add bits of the new tank water to his bowl when the temps equalize and then pour fishie and water all into the cleaned tank. Whole process can take less than 10 minutes if water temps are equal to begin with, and fishie won't be stressed at ALL.