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Oh... so it should only be partial water changes? Alot of sources I've read say I should be doing 100% w/c once a week if I'm not using a filter (which I'm not).

Also, did you mean I should dump the gravel, or dump the Java-Moss. Is there any problem with a bowl without gravel, aside from looking silly?

good thing about bettas, they don't demand that much. my guess is that the betta was picked up at a lfs and has been in the fish trade, so his fins are like that. don't worry. they may not heal, but you shouldn't worry.

1. Uneaten food pellets

Feed him only as much as he will eat. DO NOT overfeed. If you do have uneaten food pellets floating, remove them. Dont attempt to put your hand in the bowl and remove them if they have sunk.

2. Showing Off

Bettas love to show off. If he see's you, he will show off. If he sees food, he will show off, if he sees his reflection, he will flare up gearing for a fight. The more he shows off, the more healthy he is, so dont mind it too much.

3. Water Changes

Always, partial water changes only. If you think you cant clean the gravel out with the Java moss, dump it. No more than half an inch of gravel in the bowl.

Wen doing your partial water change, start a siphone using a thin plastic pipe (easily available at aquarium stores) and siphone the poo and uneaten pellets out until you have performed a 10-20% water change. While siphoning, stir the gravel a little. Dirt will fly and try to catch it in the siphone.

4. Keep a close eye on the fin rot, if it increases, we can think of some meds, but as of now, his fins look good to me. I will try and get a second opinion for you.

5. Please ask as many questions as you wish. We were all newbies once

Clowny.

Alright, sorry to spam my own thread, but here's a few more questions.

How important is it that I clean out uneaten food pellets; is it a health concern for water quality, or just worrisome that he'll eat too much? Because the java moss and my rather variegated gravel make the fallen pellets hard to spot.

How do I tell if he's seeing his reflection and being stressed? Sometimes he'll swim by a corner of the bowl and start darting around a little, and his fins get better displayed, but I don't know if that's just natural behaving or if he's flaring due to a percieved competitor.

The possible fin-rot I'm worried about is displaying on his middle tail (I think it's 'caudal'? I'm not sure.) Areas of his tail look thinner than normal- you can see them as lighter splotches in the pics I provided.

The 100% WC I talked about was what I read was suggested for healthcare- so far, I've only changed his water once- I've owned him for a week and a bit.

Anyway, thanks for the help you've provided so far.

Edit: Thanks for the links, Clowny... I'm thinking that Darwin might be part crown-tail, but I don't know if he's quite spiky enough to be breeded true. Given that the Bride and Groom were looking for temporary decoration, I think it's doubtful that they went for purebred or high-end fish stores. But whatever... I didn't save Darwin for his geneology. And thanks for the compliment...

His dorsal fin looks crown, but his mid-fin... is very flat edged, so I'm not sure if he's lost his spikes or not. How fast does fin-rot move? I haven't seen anything noticable, but I don't want to rule anything out yet.

Last edited by BettaVu at 05-Jul-2005 17:04

Well, BettaVu, he is a combtail, or a crowntail Betta, so the tattered fins are really the crowny kind, but if you are sure wat you are seeing is fin rot, I would suggest partial water changes of 10% weekly for the little boy, and not daily, and watch the temp. Make sure its not too warm in there.

The heater should be alright eventho its for a 2 gallon tank. I am linking you to some crown tail bettas and let me know if all you see is a combed tail, or real fin rot.

http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&q=crown+tail+betta

Here is a picture of a Betta with Fin Rot starting up:

http://www.petfish.net/pix/arts3/finrot.jpg

BTW, Darwin is very beautiful.

I see... well, since I can't post direct, here's the folder of the pics I have of him so far. feel free to visit if you're interested.
http://photobucket.com/albums/v718/DejaView/Fish/
password for viewing is boot1

And here's a better pic of where he's staying.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/DejaView/Fish/100_7021Large.jpg

Last edited by BettaVu at 05-Jul-2005 16:44