Betta Darting Please Help

Hey,

So my Male Plakat Betta is doing darting movements today. I’ve never seen him do this before and I’ve have him for almost a year. I did a water change yesterday same as normal and never had this happen before. I checked water parameters and everything is normal except PH looks a little lower. It’s usually about 8.0 and it’s closer to 7.8 which doesn’t seem like a big difference. Can someone please help me and tell me what to do.

 

Could he just be excited about something? Anything new inside or outside his tank?

 

Hmm doesn’t seem that little of a change would do anything. Do you have any new decor? Even outside his aquarium that he can see maybe?

 

Could he just be excited about something? Anything new inside or outside his tank?

Ha. Great minds

 

Anything different inside or outside the tank?

Ninja'ed!

 

Could he just be excited about something? Anything new inside or outside his tank?

No nothing new.. he ate this morning and he’s not doing it anymore. He’s swimming around normally now. All his fins are good he’s not hiding he’s acting normal again. I even took out some food to see if he would be interested and he is. I don’t know why he would do that. He’s exploring the tank even looking for stuff to nip at like he normally does. Ammonia-0 nitrite-0 Nitrate-5 maybe 10. PH 7.8, water temp is a stable 80.. I don’t know what could of caused this. It’s scary to see though and I wish I knew what the problem was/is.

 

There may not necessarily be a problem. He may just be feeling spunky! Or maybe he was excited to see you, because he knew you mean food.

 

Could he just be excited about something? Anything new inside or outside his tank?

When I noticed it I was sitting down in front of the tank and kinda jumped up real quick and that’s when he started doing it. Could that little of something really cause him to do that?

 

I'm sure he just startled or got excited then...it will happen from time to time

 

Sounds like he was excited to see you!

 

There may not necessarily be a problem. He may just be feeling spunky! Or maybe he was excited to see you, because he knew you mean food.

I hope that’s just what it is. There’s nothing out of the ordinary going on as far as parameters so I’ll just keep an eye on him.

 

I'm sure he just startled or got excited then...it will happen from time to time

Thank you and if something was really wrong he would continue to show signs right? He’s acting just fine now..

 

Sounds like he was excited to see you!

Thank you guys so much for your help and feedback. It really helps out a lot.

 

Thank you and if something was really wrong he would continue to show signs right? He’s acting just fine now..

Oh yes, he sounds fine. They are weirdos sometimes.

 

Oh yes, he sounds fine. They are weirdos sometimes.

Thanks again for your reply’s. If anything else happens I’ll let you guys know.

 

When I noticed it I was sitting down in front of the tank and kinda jumped up real quick and that’s when he started doing it. Could that little of something really cause him to do that?

Yes. It's odd that he hasn't done it before. Bettas often get quite excited to see their owners, but sometimes just yawn, too .

But watch him. When he was darting was he trying to rub himself against anything?

 

Yes. It's odd that he hasn't done it before. Bettas often get quite excited to see their owners, but sometimes just yawn, too .

But watch him. When he was darting was he trying to rub himself against anything?

No he wasn’t trying to rub anything. He was up by the glass like he usual does when I’m in the room. Did the darting thing and then stopped and now he’s just acting normal. I have no idea why..

 

My male veiltail betta keeps rubbing the sides of his filter/decorations and then suddenly darting a few inches. I'm unable to post his water information, I just noticed this before I went to work this morning.
There is no flaring, and he isn't bothering his tank mates either. I recently got 2 live plants, but I haven't changed his diet or water temperature.
Is this normal behavior?

 

I'm new to keeping bettas, but mine was darting around a lot and glass surfing and I found that its usually due to water parameters being off. when I tested my water I had high nitrites. so i'd start with testing your conditions and go from there!

 

Sounds like flashing. Something could be very wrong. It's their way of itching. They'll smack themselves against a plant, a filter, a thermometer.

What size tank is he in? Filter? Heater? How frequently do you change the water? There's a template at the top of the forum, the more information you can give us, the better we can tell you what's going on.

 

Sounds like flashing. Something could be very wrong. It's their way of itching. They'll smack themselves against a plant, a filter, a thermometer.

What size tank is he in? Filter? Heater? How frequently do you change the water? There's a template at the top of the forum, the more information you can give us, the better we can tell you what's going on.

Tank

What is the water volume of the tank? 5 gallons
How long has the tank been running? 2 weeks
Does it have a filter? yes
Does it have a heater? yes
What is the water temperature? 80degrees (f)
What is the entire stocking of this tank? 1 male veiltail betta, 2 ghost shrimp, about 2 inches of christmas moss, 1 petite anubis, 3 small fake plants, 1 large hide

Maintenance
How often do you change the water? about a week and a half
How much of the water do you change? 100%
What do you use to treat your water? water conditioner and bacteria starter
Do you vacuum the substrate or just the water? yes I vacuum the gravel

*Parameters - Very Important
Did you cycle your tank before adding fish? yes
What do you use to test the water? a dip test kit
What are your parameters? We need to know the exact numbers, not just “fine” or “safe”.

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 1.0
Nitrate: 20
pH: 6.8

Feeding
How often do you feed your fish? twice daily
How much do you feed your fish? 3-4 pellets per feeding
What brand of food do you feed your fish? Omega One betta buffet
Do you feed frozen or freeze-dried foods? sometimes freeze dried bloodworms

Illness & Symptoms
How long have you had this fish? 4 months
How long ago did you first notice these symptoms? today
In a few words, can you explain the symptoms? darting
Have you started any treatment for the illness? not yet
Was your fish physically ill or injured upon purchase? no
How has its behavior and appearance changed, if at all? just noticed today

 

I ended up doing a 25% water change last night, and he seems to be doing better. I went to Petco for a second opinion and the woman blamed it on overcrowding. I recently added driftwood, the real plants, and 2 ghost shrimp to his tank.

 

It's because ur tank isn't cycled. If u have nitrites in ur water that's very dangerous and that's y hes doing that. U need to get a liquid test kit, apI freshwater is one that's popular. Test strips suck, believe me, they are way off and I know from experience so u might have more nitrites then u thought. U need to do daily water changes until it cycles, 0 ammonia 0 nitrites. And use prime water conditioner, it keeps fish safe from ammonia and nitrites. Also, I wouldn't do 100% water changes, do like 25-50% DAILY and keep testing ur params. And don't clean the filter or replace it unless it's ripped and useless. Alot of ur beneficial bacteria live there. Sorry for long post. I don't know what all u already know but ur tank isn't cycled my friend

 

I ended up doing a 25% water change last night, and he seems to be doing better. I went to Petco for a second opinion and the woman blamed it on overcrowding. I recently added driftwood, the real plants, and 2 ghost shrimp to his tank.

It's not from overcrowding. Don't believe everythin pet store people say. It's the nitrites that's the problem

 

It's not from overcrowding. Don't believe everythin pet store people say. It's the nitrites that's the problem

I just ordered the API liquid kit off of amazon. I also already use a betta water conditioner. I'm a bit skeptical about changing the water 20% daily because this is a filtered tank, however I will test the water daily when my new test kit arrives

 

I just ordered the API liquid kit off of amazon. I also already use a betta water conditioner. I'm a bit skeptical about changing the water 20% daily because this is a filtered tank, however I will test the water daily when my new test kit arrives

Ur filter doesn't remove ammonia or nitrites so daily water changes are essential while ur tank is cycling unless u want ur inhabitants to suffer and potentially die. It has nothing to do with ur filter. Ammo and nitrites are very toxic to fish! The water changes will remove some of the nitrites making it safer for ur fish. That's why he is doing what he's doing because of the water quality issues. Get some prime water conditioner too, it takes less and goes along way and also detoxifies ammo and nitrites, betta water conditioner doesn't, it only dechlorinates. U said urself he seemed better after a water change and since ur tank is still cycling u need to make sure those toxins don't build up until ur bacteria are established. I would ATLEAST do 25% every other day. If ur nitrites reach above 1ppm u have to do a water change, but Prime conditioner can buy u some time and help alot.

 

The tank's not cycled yet, for sure. Frequent, daily if you can, water changes are needed if you don't want to hurt your little guys. 25-50% with Prime to condition the water, and a beneficial bacteria starter if you can. That will only help establish the good bacteria you desperately need in your tank.