Depressed?

[ennuichic]

Can a betta get depressed?

I've had Barracuda for about three weeks now. The first two weeks he was pretty much always lively, swimming around, doing what I call his "sassy dance" when I came into the room.

However--This past week, I've noticed that he's hanging out at the bottom of his bowl a lot and being very still. Nothing has changed on my end; I am treating his water in the same way, have him on a regular feeding schedule, and change his water on a schedule as well. When he hangs out at the bottom he stops wiggling his fins and gets very still, and if I call to him or touch the tank he immediately "wakes up" and acts "normal" again (moving around the tank, his gills flutter faster in response to my cooing his name, just general swimming around). Then when I am not right in front of him, paying attention to him, he seems "depressed" again and hangs out at the bottom of the tank, being very still.

This is not *all* of the time but it is becoming more and more frequent. I don't notice any changes in his fins or anything else. In the course of typing this post, in fact, he was being very still. Then he swam around his tank a few times. Then he went and chilled at the bottom again.

Does it sound like I'm doing something wrong? I'm a little worried about him because when he gets so still like that he looks...kind of "dead."

[accountingchick]

First have you checked the water chemistry(ph, kh, nitrite, nitrate and ammonia)? Bad water quality can make a fish sick. Also cold water can make a fish sick. What is his water temp? If these are both okay and as long as he is not showing any other outward symptoms such as lack of appetite, struggling to breath or swim, abnormal looking fins, pine-coning scales, swollen belly, or lint looking white stuff on him to name a few, then he is fine. It just could be that maybe he is aging, or that he is just not very active. Bettas are not the most active fish. Are you giving him any flaring time? If you are not then stick a mirror in front of his tank for five minutes twice a day and see if that helps pep him up. Keep checking his outward appearance frequently though to make sure that he is not showing any other changing signs.

[ennuichic]

Ph is about 6.6-7.0 (kind of hard to tell with these cards where you compare color). Water temp is 78 degrees. Ammonia (24 hr old water change) is 0.5. The instructions that come with the testing kit say that this is not too bad (though I know you always want to keep ammonia as low as possible). I use a turkey baster to pull out any of his poo pretty quickly. Nitrite levels are maybe 0.05 (again, those cards are not exact to me but it's a very light, pale blue and the 0.5 or higher concentration, which the instructions say is harmful, is a purple color). He didn't have a mirror before today and so I've picked one up and given him some time with that.

So as far as I can tell, his water is okay. (Does this sound okay?) Perhaps a few days with some mirror time will perk him up?

[ennuichic]

By the way--I bought some PhUP and PhDOWN and I was wondering if I needed the PhUP. When performing water tests, I tested my regular tap water (Ph=8.2!) and then my treated/conditioned tap water (Ph=7.0ish as I said above). It seems to me that the battle I'll need to face is keeping the Ph down, not up. Should I return the Ph up to the store, or is there ever a scenario where you think I'd need to up the Ph?

[accountingchick]

First, I am glad that you do test your water chemistry, however those test strips are not very accurate. I recommend that you go buy a test tube kit instead as soon as you can. Second, I would do a 25% water change just in case because if that test you used is somewhat accurate, then your nitrite and ammonia levels are to high and are stressful on your fish. Third, once you get an accurate test and the ph levels are at 7.0 after you condition the water, then there is nothing to worry about. I also have ph down, but I have never used it in my tank when fish were in there. I have heard too many horror stories about it screwing up the chemical balance of the water, your best bet to fix bad water is by doing partial water changes with water that has the proper ph, kh, nitrate, and ammonia levels every day until it gets to where it needs to be. If you don't have one already, invest in getting a gravel vacuum. They only cost a couple of bucks at most stores, and are easier to use then a turkey baster.

[ennuichic]

Sorry, I should have said--these test results are all from a test tube kit, not a test strip. When I mentioned the cards, I meant that the ones they ask you to compare the water to just don't seem "obvious" to me--there are several shades of green on one, for example, and the water doesn't *exactly* look like any of them but it's kind of close to one in particular.

I've set out some new water this afternoon and it's currently being treated with conditioners, etc. I'll test it in the morning and provided that it's in good shape, I'll do another water change.

Now I'm getting paranoid, though--his tail does seem a *teensy* bit frayed on the bottom and there is a tiny little pinhole. Columnaris? Fin/Tail rot? But I don't want to start treating his water with stuff if this is just random...

Poor widdle guy!

[accountingchick]

I am still learning about the different water chemistry test kits, but I have never heard of a test tube kit that you compare to a color chart, usually something that you compare to a chart will not give you 100% accurate results.

If you could possibly send a picture of your betta's tail, that would help. Also, on the homepage of this website there is an illness section that gives a list of symptoms for each illness, that might help you out a bit. If your betta had columnarus it would have a white lint looking substance on it and it would be gasping for air and would not have much of an appetite. Those are some of the symptoms of that, and from what you have described, it does not sound like that, but a picture would help.

Have you done a water change yet? I recommend that you do that as soon as you can.