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Post by teresa on Mar 28, 2005 13:09:04 GMT -5
I have 3 tanks, 2-5.5 gal and a 10 gal divided for bettas. My hubby had fallen in love with 2 little bottomfeeders and the petstore ppl said that they are very non aggressive so he brought home SharkBait and Gil (in pic pages you can see them) Anyway... they had happily shared Percy's tank for about 2 weeks when suddenly this weekend...they attacked! The little stinkers shredded my beautiful Percy's finnage! We quickly set up an emergency tank for them, and it was leaking! so we found them a new home with a friend and Percy is now being medicated with Mela-fix and Stress coat. Anyway...warning to all...don't trust other fish, no matter how 'non-agressive' they supposedly are. I will NEVER have tank mates for my Bettas again, the risk just isn't worth it.  |
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Post by amanichen on Mar 28, 2005 13:16:30 GMT -5
Before you make any generalizations here -- what kind of fish were these? The person you spoke to might have been misinformed.
No fish is entirely peaceful all the time. Some fish are higly aggressive, and others are highly docile. And then there are fish in the middle that given the right circumstances will be peaceful, but will be aggressive under a different set of circumstances.
Fish compatability is dependent on so many different things that if a fish has a questionable reputation you should always assume that it's aggressive.
Additionally, betta fins are very tempting targets for many types of fish which are otherwise docile -- they aren't inherently aggressive, but fish are naturally attracted to flashy and flowy things being dragged around in the water.
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Post by teresa on Mar 28, 2005 13:28:49 GMT -5
We were told they where algea eaters, and after some research on the net this morning I have since found that they are chinese algea eaters. The problem is as you suggested, misinformed lps personal. they are not friendly fish. they start nice and community minded, and as they get older, they get aggressive and territorial.
Live and learn I guess. Just not worth the risk for me anymore. my Bettas mean too much to me to put their well being at risk again.
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Post by teresa on Mar 28, 2005 13:47:36 GMT -5
Here is a pic of what they did to his beautiful fins   |
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Post by amanichen on Mar 28, 2005 15:49:47 GMT -5
You probably know this now, but you should never buy fish on looks alone. You can't always trust the employeed at the pet store -- go and do research to make sure they were telling the truth.
In general (not directed to you specifically):
Make sure you're familiar with the water chemistry, diet, and behavior associated with any fish you are going to buy...before you buy them. There's tons of information out there and you can do your homework beforehand without having to go into something blindly.
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Post by teresa on Mar 28, 2005 16:07:04 GMT -5
is Mela-fix and Stress coat all that I can do for him or does anyone have any other suggestions to speed his recovery? I have no idea what/where their nerves are like but it just looks painful  |
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Post by amanichen on Mar 28, 2005 16:12:00 GMT -5
is Mela-fix and Stress coat all that I can do for him or does anyone have any other suggestions to speed his recovery? I have no idea what/where their nerves are like but it just looks painful Just use the Melafix. If you went out of your way to put in extra stress coat then that's not really necessary. It won't hurt, but it won't necessarily help either. Your betta's fin damage is relatively minor -- tears that are parallel to fin rays generally heal quickly, and don't need any medication to do so. |
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Post by teresa on Mar 28, 2005 16:24:40 GMT -5
ok thank you  |
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Post by teresa on Apr 4, 2005 18:58:15 GMT -5
An update on percy's fin damage. He is feeling well I think. He is eating and pooping and flaring and interacting with me just like always see how much he has improved, and just one ? will his fins heal all the way or will he always have tears from his encounter with Mom's inexperience? Relaxed fins  and just after he flared at Mom's camera   |
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Post by amanichen on Apr 4, 2005 19:35:48 GMT -5
They'll heal in time -- it might take two weeks. The important thing is that there's no fin rot or fungus and the fins ARE healing.
Just make sure he's getting lots of protein in the next week or two (such as feeding more brine shrimp or bloodworms and less pelleted food) because that will help speed the regrowth more than adding something like Melafix will.
Side note: when dealing Fin damage that is perpendicular to the rays (fins are chewn off rather than split), it can take a month for the fins to grow to their original size again.
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Post by teresa on Apr 4, 2005 21:33:25 GMT -5
Okey dokey thanks I will keep you up to date on his progress. I hope his fins heal good cause he is so proud of his fins but I love him no matter how he looks ;D
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