Lost my betta :(

FreshyFresh

Superstar Fish
Jan 11, 2013
1,337
23
38
East Aurora, NY
#1
I am not having great luck getting back into this hobby!

Woke up today to find my male betta dead and stuck to the intake on the HOB filter. The kids found him actually. He was completely intact, just pale from being deceased. His tank mates are 4 small zebra danios, 3 ghost shrimp and a mystery snail. Prior to this he had 5 blood-fin tetras as mates, but they were a better fit for my 29gal. I did notice yesterday the he didn't want to eat and was just hanging around very still, at the top of the heater. Normally he had a ton of personality and follows you around. I do two ~50% WC's on this tank a week and did one along with a water test yesterday when I noticed him so listless.

Water params:
0ppm ammonia
0ppm nitrites
20ppm nitrates. (was ~30ppm yesterday)
temp 78-80F

The only anomaly with this 10gal is with the nitrates. It's got a lot of low-light plants in it, yet I struggle to keep nitrates below ~30ppm. I don't feed heavily either?

I dunno if it's me, Petsmart (where I bought this betta), or just luck of the draw.
 

FishDad

Superstar Fish
Mar 4, 2012
1,218
1
38
Cleveland
#2
I would chalk that up to luck of the draw personally. You know how it is with those big box pet stores. There is a reason why they give a 14 day guarantee.
 

Thyra

Superstar Fish
Jun 2, 2010
1,891
0
0
Yelm, WA
#3
Bettas are very inbred and therefore I believe many of them don't have a very long life. It is hard to tell how old they are when you buy them. Don't blame yourself, Joel, just buy another betta - but I would certainly stick with the cheaper ones, like vein tails. I have been so disappointed since Walmart stopped selling them - not only were they my cheapest source, they were the prettiest and had all varieties at the same price. I also had the best luck with their longevity.
 

FreshyFresh

Superstar Fish
Jan 11, 2013
1,337
23
38
East Aurora, NY
#4
Thanks.

After I porcelain expressed the poor guy I thought, Oh NO! 30 day return policy! But yes, it seems it's 14days at Petsmart and 30 at Petco, so I'm beyond that. I've only owned him since 02/16/13. He was $6.79. Good call Thyra. I think I'll avoid the crowntails from now on.

He was a happy bugger too. Loved flake food along with his tank mates. Pretty much ignored the can of ~$7 freeze-dried Omega brand bloodworms I bought for him weeks ago. I now feed them to the piggies in the 29gal along with flake food.
 

Thyra

Superstar Fish
Jun 2, 2010
1,891
0
0
Yelm, WA
#5
One thought - you did say he was inactive the day before and had slowed down and now you mentioned he was a crowntail - I had a crowntail like that and then he got some of his tail sucked into the filter. I suspect that caused his final demise because he didn't have the strength to pull it out to get up to the top for air. I also had one that got into a fake branch type decoration that had tipped slightly forward from the substrate - he didn't find his way out to get air either. It took me a while to find him and of course, he was dead. They are very curious fish and don't seem to be afraid. I notice they are right there when I clean or am using the suction.
 

FreshyFresh

Superstar Fish
Jan 11, 2013
1,337
23
38
East Aurora, NY
#6
Geez, yeah, that's entirely possible. Normally he was a strong swimmer and seemed to enjoy current, but he wasn't himself earlier that day, so maybe he was weakened. He did tend to swim around and behind the filter suction.
 

FreshyFresh

Superstar Fish
Jan 11, 2013
1,337
23
38
East Aurora, NY
#8
Picked up another male betta last night. We were out and about and stopped into a smaller franchise pet place called Pet Supplies Plus. Nice stores. He's a real pretty blue color. Not a crown tail. I'm actually not sure what he is? This type is about half the price of a crown tail. ~$3.50 as oppsed to ~$7. This store does keep them in cups. Cup tops were labeled with "Segrest Farms" and each were dated. Mine was 02/07/13, so he's already a month past his expiration date. LOL! I hope not!! So far he seems thrilled with his new 10gal digs.