Stupid me

[Eskielvr]

Now I'm wishing I hadn't bought that Betta on impulse after all. I should have listened to what everyone said but no, I just couldn't resist and just had to get him. (By the way, I put in a new 65 watt, 10,000 degree K light and he's not turquoise anymore.......he's purple! ??? Still very pretty though.)

Anyway, this morning I get up to feed them and what do I see? A very badly injured Neon struggling to swim with hardly any fins. > I don't know if I should automatically euthanize him or try to find another tank to isolate him in. Sometimes he bobs upside down for a moment or gets tossed by the current of the filter when coming to close. He got too close to the filter and got stuck to the side of it, so I had to gently nudge him away. But, he seems to be going strong. I don't know if it'd be more cruel to try to save him or not. This is the first time I've ever had a Betta that attacked another fish. (I'm assuming it was the Betta since they were all fine before, and he was chasing/charging at them last night.) I thought he had stopped. He wasn't bothering them at all this morning either when I fed them.....but he wouldn't eat anything.

All because I listened to the one stupid employee who, when asked if I could house him with Neons replied, "Yep!". I think I'm going to call them up and let them know what happened, but it probably won't do any good. Maybe they would have a talk with her though.

I'm just so upset with myself. That poor fish. :'(

 

[Gunnie]

If he appears strong, you might want to put him in quarantine in another tank. Keep the water extra clean, and hopefully he will mend. If you start seeing white around his injuries, you will need to medicate with maracyn I and maracyn II together to stop infection and keep him from getting a bacterial infection internally. Hopefully your betta will settle down and quit being so aggressive to your other fish. I'm sorry this happened to you!

 

[Eskielvr]

I just made a reply but my session timed out and I lost everything I typed. To make a long story short, the Neon is laying on the bottom of the tank now, still breathing, but I don't expect him to make it. I should probably euthanize him.

I was lamenting how I listened to one person who told me it was ok to put a Betta with them, when everyone else on here, at the same store, and at a different fish store said it was either risky or ill advised. Of course, the people on here and at the other fish store had it backwards saying the Neons would attack and nip the Betta.......but it was still the same advice. You live and you learn I guess. :-\

 

[wolfman21]

If the neon is laying at the bottom of the tank, the inevitable is going to happen. Just euthanize him, because he's not gonna make it. That's happened to me before, and it's just the best way to do it. Hopefully the others won't get it. don't beat yorself up about the Betta-they're cool fish. neons aren't hardy fish anyway-they are highly suceptible to disease-especially when they are young.

 

[Eskielvr]

I did end up euthanizing him, along with 3 others now, and 3 more died before I could euthanize them.

 

[Gunnie]

Wow! Don't beat yourself up too much about this. We all take risks sometimes and hope things work. At least you know that you can ask questions here so you don't make all the mistakes a lot of already have. It's a learning process for all of us.

 

[wolfman21]

That's too bad that you had to lose that many. I guess better luck next time. We all mess up sometimes