I had to rescue a betta that I wasn't equipped for! Please help!!

A family member had a betta living in a bowl that looks to be .5 gallons. The water was extremely foul and the betta appears to have a couple of ammonia burns on its head and body. They no longer wanted the betta and asked if I could care for it and of course, I took it in. However, I wasn't properly equipped to care for a betta. I have a planted 10-gallon tank that I was setting up so I could put cherry shrimp in it. This tank has no heater, (the water temp is 75F but the temperature will fluctuate eventually) no lid, medium-strong flow, and high lighting. All of which is not ideal for a betta. This tank has been up and running for about 2 months now, I've been dosing Bacter AE (to promote biofilm for the shrimp I was going to add) and plant fertilizer. I don't have a dedicated betta food, the only suitable food I have in my stockpile is Repashy community plus. I have no way of telling if this tank is properly cycled because I don't own a test kit since I wasn't planning on adding any livestock until my plants fully grown out. My question is: Will this betta be okay living in this setup, or should I rehome it as soon as I can? Are there any plant and shrimp safe options I can use to treat this betta's ammonia burns? Also, I don't know a whole lot about bettas because they're not something I normally keep. I will be doing more research online to figure out how to properly take care of this betta but are there any important tips you could give me on keeping a betta that I might not find in a care guide?

 

I would look at this forums care guide for betta. Some online info still has some questionable info on betta care. There is also a decent number of videos on YouTube that do a good job.
I would not put the betta info the planted tank unless you can test the water. Lots of planted substrates release large amounts of ammonia which will only make the betta worse. I would start my changing the water in his bowl daily and try to either re home him or get a test kit for your tank. Another option is getting a set up for the betta that is at least 5 gallons which is heated and filtered but since it’s a rescue, your may not be wanting another tank.

where are you located generally? There might be someone on here willing to take him in?

 

First of all, I feel so bad for that little guy! I'm glad he got out of there and hopefully you can get him well soon. However, Bettas will eventually pick at your shrimp, the bigger ones might be okay but it would be easier to put him in a separate tank eventually if you want any chance of growing out your shrimp colony. You could always get a 3-5g tank for him eventually and just make sure to keep up on the water changes. It wouldn't require a huge heater or anything super special if you can afford it?

 

There aren't a whole lot of fish keepers around where I live and the few fish keepers that we do have aren't well educated, so rehoming might be an issue. I'll make a trip to Petco to pick up a heater & test kit (and maybe a 5g). Thank you guys for your advice!

 

There aren't a whole lot of fish keepers around where I live and the few fish keepers that we do have aren't well educated, so rehoming might be an issue. I'll make a trip to Petco to pick up a heater & test kit (and maybe a 5g). Thank you guys for your advice!

I use the 5.5 g kit from top fin for one of mine. I like it and its pretty cheap but its only available at petsmart. From petco, I recommend getting a 10g (ranges from 10-$15) and getting a HOB filter with an adjustable flow (betta need a slow flow) and a 50W heater. For substrate, just make sure you get something that doesn't affect pH. And for decor, betta need places to hide. I suggest using silk plants or real plants as they wont damage their fins. Real wood is always better because it releases tannins, but make sure to get wood meant for aquariums, not reptiles.

 

Hope it works out for you! You could try a local marketplace like facebook or something to see if someone is selling an old tank, but I don't think 5g basic tanks are too overly expensive at pet stores either.