kaitym

I've had my betta for a week and recently he's been acting rather oddly. He'll be sitting in the back corner of the tank, not really doing anything, then all of a sudden he'll dart around the entire tank before going back into his corner. Is this normal or should I be worried?

Lucy

How's his coloring? Is he eating?
What are the readings for ammonia nitrite and nitrate?
Are the guppies still in the breeder net? Any other tank mates? Have you changed anything in the tank?

Sorry for all the questions, the answers will help us narrow things down.

kaitym

His coloring is fine, bright and beautiful. He's eating normally. Not sure of the water parameters. I had the tank set up and running for a month and a half before I got him. I had the LFS test the water and he said that it was perfect. I'll either have it checked again or buy a kit soon. The guppies aren't in there anymore, I gave them to a friend who had a large group of guppy fry already. There aren't any other fish in the tank and I havn't changed anything since I put him in there. I've done a water change (prolly 20%) but that was before I even put him in there.

Lucy

Not knowing your readings, it would be a good idea to go ahead and do a water change now.
Go ahead and get your water tested ask them what the exact readings are. Don't let them just say 'they're ok'

Have you changed anything near his tank that might be bugging him? Is he getting less attention? Bettas can be fickle.

Otherwise, keep your eye on him for any other changes.

kaitym

I'll take a sample to the lfs and get him to write down the readings. The people there are actually very good and cooporative. Nothings been changed around his tank and the cats that are in the house show no interest in him what so ever. They don't even go near the tank. There is a window about 3 ft from where the tank is but we keep the curtain shut so it isn't right on him. He's getting as much, or more, attention as usual. I usually spend about 30 mins watching him just swim around in the morning and again at night. My grandparents also spend a lot of time watching him. He'll follow their movements hoping for food, but they know better than to feed him unless I'm not gonna be home.

agabr123

when you had the tank set up for a month and a half, were you putting anything in it for a source of ammonia? fish food, raw shrimp, or pure ammonia? otherwise your tank wouldn't have cycled unfortunately, the bacteria needs a source of ammonia to grow and to feed on to survive.

kaitym

I had made an extremely novice mistake of getting Guppies the very same day and just throwing them in there. They did wonderfully but were becomming more than I could handle with the schedule I had at the time. The lfs gladly accepted them, thank goodness.