# Not eating, lays on bottom, seems to be breathing heavily =(



## Kridigurl (May 20, 2008)

**Sigh** So, I just got my new betta fish, and he's awesome. His name is Batman.  I also got a small striped algae eater. I got him on Saturday and since then he has not eaten any of the pellet food I got him (Aqua culture). Monday he wouldn't hardly swim and he was laying on the bottom breathing heavily. I have a 1 gallon tank with a black filter under the gravel and an air pump (a clear tube is connected to the filter under the gravel and it has a blue thing connected to the air tube). I also have a miniature clover plant in the tank. Worried about him dying, I took him out and put him in the cup he came in along with some of the water from the tank. He is doing better, swimming more and not breathing heavily, but he still wont eat. I don't really understand... was he getting to much oxygen? If I turned off the air pump would the algae eater die? 

I put an algae chip in the tank for the algae eater on Sunday and Batman ate a little of that, and that's pretty much all he's had. I leave the lamp on the tank on 14 hrs of the day which keeps the water warm. Would it be better if I just got a bowl?

I'm really concerned for him. Thanks for your help.


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## paws (Feb 25, 2008)

please get a heater ASAP and i don't think yuo should of had 2 filters only for a 1 gallon tank..... I think you should return the tank you got and buy a 10 gallon or at least a 2.5. It will improve Batman's health incredibly. Also try different foods. I tried pellets and all my betta did was just stare and flare at them so i got him flakes and bloodworms which he eats with joy! =)


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## stephenmontero (Mar 15, 2008)

yea u cant have the betta and the algae eater in that small of a tank. you need an upgrade pronto. a 5-10 gallon would be best. get a heater and set it at 78 also get a few diff foods to keep things interesting for him


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## Meatpuppet (Mar 1, 2008)

yes get a heater (5 watts per gallon) and a 5-10 gallon tank. 1 is way to small even for 1 betta. dont let the pet store tell you bettas will be happy in litte tanks. a big tank will be better for you (better water maintanence) and the betta. even a filter is good too. 
and the air supply is'nt neccesary. bettas can breath from gulps of air from the water surface.

i hope everything works out for you


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## herefishy (Dec 14, 2006)

" Not eating, lays on bottom, seems to be breathing heavily"....Sounds like me after a good night with my friend Jimmy......You know... Jimmy Beam? 

Are you sure your betta isn't an acquaintance of my my friend?

I agree with all the replies you have received. But, I would add that you need to feed your betta some vegetable matter. Many feed fresh(not canned) peas. Get the frozen ones and you will have a large supply. Thew them before feeding and go infantile and smash it between your fingers and drop it into the tank. Pure rocket science at its best.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Like other people have already mentioned, I would think about upgrading the tank to something larger. You can keep a betta in a 2.5 gallon tank (they make great rectangular ones that look like miniature versions of a ten gallon that sell for about $11) but he'd be even more happy in a five gallon more more tank.

My two guesses about his behavior would be either that he's far too cold or that he's suffering from ammonia/nitrite poisoning. Do you have a heater in the tank? Bettas need to live at around 78*F, so in most cases room temperature is not warm enough. I would use caution about some of the smaller heaters, though. I've tried several different brands and have found that in most cases they overheat the water in even 2.5 gallon tanks. Sometimes the aquarium lights on a tank that small can do a decent job of heating the water to the appropriate temperature. I would at least get a thermometer (they sell very inexpensive stick-on thermometers at pet stores, but in-tank ones are even better) to make sure that your fish isn't too cold.

Did you let the tank cycle before you put him in? Sometimes it can be very difficult to cycle such small tanks, so usually it's better to change his water by 50% every two days or so. This will eliminate wastes in the water that are toxic to your fish and cause lethargic behavior (as well as eventually just killing them outright). 

I would recommend returning the algae eater. Any sort of algae eating fish is going to need more space than a 1g tank as anything but an Oto would need more room than that and even an Oto produces far too much waste for a 1g tank to handle. In a tank that small, you're better off just cleaning the algae yourself.


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## Flashygrrl (Jan 18, 2008)

herefishy said:


> " Not eating, lays on bottom, seems to be breathing heavily"....Sounds like me after a good night with my friend Jimmy......You know... Jimmy Beam?


Ahhh, sounds like you've been hanging out with him.


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## Kridigurl (May 20, 2008)

*Great!!*

That clears things up so much, thanks for all your help everyone!! =D


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