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Thread: My fish is dying. Why?

  1. #1
    Yekhefah
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    My fish is dying. Why?

    K and I liked our first betta so well we got a second one. The first one, Pinot, lives in the living room; we've had him for months and he's thriving. The new one, Sir Robin, lives in the bedroom. We got him two weeks ago and named him that because he was a coward who ducked and hid behind his plant every time someone entered the room or came to feed him. (Monty Python fans will get the reference.) Anyway, Robin's dying.

    Yesterday he was doing fine, just his usual cowardly self, but he was spending a lot of time sitting very still on the bottom of his bowl. This morning he was nestled in his plant at the bottom of the bowl, so still I wondered if he had died. He only moved when I grabbed the top of the plant and shook it a little. He didn't eat his food this morning either, which is unusual because normally he gobbles up his food the second it hits the water.

    This afternoon I discovered him floating perfectly still in a vertical position, his mouth right at the surface of the water. He's still breathing (taking gulps and moving his gills) but he's not moving much. Periodically he'll go to the surface and thrash around for a minute, then dive to put his face on the bottom of the bowl and leave his tail sticking up vertically by the surface. At K's suggestion, I put some fresh water in the cup Robin came in, and transferred Robin to the cup. He barely fought at all, and he didn't eat the bloodworms I put in there for him. He's just sitting motionless now. I don't expect him to be alive when I come home from work tonight.

    So does anyone know what's wrong with him? I don't want to make Pinot sick, and we will likely get another betta to replace Robin. I would like to make sure this doesn't happen again. Any fish experts here?

    Edited to add... oh, and this morning I found a little dead bug floating on the surface of his bowl. We've had a few of these little moth-like bugs fluttering around at night this week, and one of them must have fallen into Robin's bowl. Could he have nibbled at the bug and gotten sick? I'm pretty sure these bugs aren't poisonous; they don't bite and the cat has been catching and eating them...

  2. #2
    Kaylinn
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Hmm..I don't know why.
    Cause fish are just like that?

    The behavior you described was the same way Fred the Fish acted before he died. He started floating vertical, and when I woke up the next morning, he was dead.

    Sorry I can't offer advice...

    I can tell you that when I was a child, I had an angel fish who was dying.....and I tried to give it mouth to mouth CPR.
    I was unsucessful. Probably because fish can't breathe out of water.....
    I was 5!! I didn't know!

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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    It is hot here right, this is a guess but, if memory serves hot water cares less disolved oxygen. Does his little bowl have an aerator?

  4. #4
    Yekhefah
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    No, it's just a bowl. Everything I read on bettas says they do best with a plain bowl full of still water - no filters or other machinery at all. They get oxygen from the water but they also gulp air at the surface. In the wild they live in small, near-stagnant pools, so this makes sense.

    The bedroom is the same temperature as the living room and Pinot is doing fine in the living room. It's just Robin dying in the bedroom. My primary concern is making sure we don't somehow pass a disease onto Pinot and lose him too.

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    God/dess Lysondra's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    I personally think you might have a tad too small of a bowl but I must say the WORST thing you can do is transfer them to 'fresh water' when they're sick. Even when changing their water you want to put them in water from their own bowl and dunk them back in with that water. 'fresh' water has too many chemicals for little fishies at first and need to sit for awhile but putting them with their original tank water makes the transition easier.

    I personally don't think it's the bug... I personally think it's probably the lack of decent treatment and diet the petstore gave him before you got him. I bet he was even in one of those small beta bowls that look just pathetic, am I right?

    Betas, technically, are supposed to live in 10 gallon+ tanks changed weekly, but if the water is changed daily a one gallon is okay. Also, are you filling his bowl to the top? Reccomend filling his bowl half-way. It's not the lack of water that kills but the lack of surface area. The more surface area they get the better they can survive.


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    God/dess Sirona's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Nah, they naturally live in still stangnant nasty water, a small bowl isn't an issue. They also don't require any sort of aeration device, they are able to take air by mouth through the use of an organ called a labyrinth located in the gill chamber. They do use gills but they get thier majority of oxygen through the other method and can't live by getting thier oxygen through just thier gills.

    Was it fairly big/large bodied when you got it? It could be he is just old. Fish are hard to judge age so you never really know how old of a fish you're getting. When they're heavy bodied they're older.

    I would honestly guess old age if there are no outward signs (swollen body, white patches, etc).



  7. #7
    Yekhefah
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Well, he's dead.

    I'm off to send him to his watery grave. His time in our place was so short, but Brave Sir Robin has fought his last battle. I never even got a picture of him. Ah well. Hopefully he was just old.

  8. #8
    madmaxine
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Quote Originally Posted by Yekhefah View Post
    Well, he's dead.

    I'm off to send him to his watery grave. His time in our place was so short, but Brave Sir Robin has fought his last battle. I never even got a picture of him. Ah well. Hopefully he was just old.
    Sorry to hear it.

    If it makes you feel better, Brave Sir Robin brought back all my fond memories of fine Monty Python moments...

    & A memory of a kid I babysat for who blamed himself (with big welling tears in his eyes) for his dead fish..(It was so cute and bittersweet. Yes, we went out and bought another fish.)

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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?



    Bravely bold Sir Robin rode forth from Camelot.
    He was not afraid to die, O brave Sir Robin!
    He was not at all afraid to be killed in nasty ways,
    Brave, brave, brave, brave Sir Robin!
    He was not in the least bit scared to be mashed into a pulp,
    Or to have his eyes gouged out, and his elbows broken;
    To have his kneecaps split, and his body burned away;
    And his limbs all hacked and mangled, brave Sir Robin!

    His head smashed in and his heart cut out
    And his liver removed and his bowels unplugged
    And his nostrils raped and his bottom burned off
    And his pen--

  10. #10
    God/dess Lysondra's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    See, this is what ya get for naming things after Monty Python jokes.



    *hug*


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    God/dess Roulette's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    I'm sorry. i'm sure he was just an older fishy when you got him.

    http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/an...s2/p/betta.htm if you're interested in getting another Beta. I didnt read everything on there, but I have always heard that they are solitary fish that dont like to live with other betas... I could be wrong.
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  12. #12
    God/dess UtahMike's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    There is no danger of transferring a disease to the other fish as long as you don't transfer any water to the other bowl. Or the other plant, which would have water on its roots.

    Pet stores often do not take very good care of their fish, and many die soon after purchase. Places that supply fish to the pet stores also are rather careless. A reputable place will give you a one week exchange if the fish dies. Of course, you have to take back the dead fish, so if you flushed Robin, you can't take him back any more.

    When you put new water in the bowl, get a product to remove the chlorine from the tap water. I use one called "Chlor-out" which is only a dollar or so a bottle, and you only use one drop per gallon. Drop the drop in the water, stir it, wait a minute or so for the chemical to neutralize all the chlorine, and then add the new water. If you don't change part of the water every now and then, nitrates will build up in the water from waste and any excess food.

    I have a lot of reservations about those bettas in the bowl with a plant. I've never tried to have one myself (I prefer fish that are harder to kill, like fancy guppies.), but I've had several friends try it, and every time, the plant has outlived the fish. In fact, your Pinot has lived the longest of any of these I've ever known about.
    Last edited by UtahMike; 06-27-2007 at 11:43 PM. Reason: typo

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    God/dess Roulette's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Quote Originally Posted by UtahMike View Post
    I have a lot of reservations about those bettas in the bowl with a plant. I've never tried to have one myself (I prefer fish that are harder to kill, like fancy guppies.), but I've had several friends try it, and every time, the plant has outlived the fish. In fact, your Pinot has lived the longest of any of these I've ever known about.
    I had one I didnt want for about 3 years. It's name was sushi. My friend had one that his mom gave him as a house warming gift and he didnt want it either, four years later it died and he has bought a new one. he named it Adolf Jr. (as the first one was Adolf... he really didnt want that fish) They can def live a long while.
    Quote Originally Posted by Alaska View Post
    I just got hollered at by a CUTE guy, at dusk, in my car, in gym attire and hair. Word?
    Picaresque is the shit, I loooooves her!!!

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  14. #14
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    One other thing...

    What's the lighting situation like in your bedroom vs living room?

  15. #15
    God/dess jaizaine's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Quote Originally Posted by Yekhefah View Post
    K and I liked our first betta so well we got a second one. The first one, Pinot, lives in the living room; we've had him for months and he's thriving. The new one, Sir Robin, lives in the bedroom. We got him two weeks ago and named him that because he was a coward who ducked and hid behind his plant every time someone entered the room or came to feed him.
    Fish usually display this behaviour during the end stages of illness from exhaustion unfortunately.

    Bettas can live up to 3 years. Mine died after about 2 years.
    Because fish are totally dependant on the conditions of their water for their health, slight problems with the water such as wrong PH or too much amonia.

    If he is still alive when u get home try putting some aquarium salt into the water - yes fresh water fish do need a little salt (u know the bluish salts?).

    I nursed my fish back to health after he/she had swim bladder disease. The guys at the aquarium told me to kill the fish as there was no cure for swim bladder disease but I refused to give up until I had tried everything I could.

    So I confined him into a baby-fish raising net - to stop him getting exhausted and I gave him daily baths in a warm water and epson salt bath. One day he was swimming around like normal again with kind of a hole in his side - where I think he kind of popped.

    He then got an eye infection and lost his eye to it.

    I still have him. I adore this fish it's such a fighter and now only has one eye.

    I hope yur fish pulls thru.

    good luck!

  16. #16
    God/dess jaizaine's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    sorry i shokuld have read the entire thread before posting. sorry to hear that he died.

    make sure u sterilise the bowl coz the other fish can get the disease. Sterilise only using some boiling water - not any chemicals.

    then use water conditil0ner and some aquarium fresh water salt.

  17. #17
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Jaizine, that's awesome. You're one helluva fishie nurse!

    i'm sorry to hear your fish didn't make it, Yek...

  18. #18
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Bettas live 3 years? The Betta we had lived for 4 (Makayla was crushed when he died...she used to watch him as she fell asleep for those 4 years).

    Yek, sorry to hear about Sir Robin.

    The next Betta you get, you should name him Master.

  19. #19
    Yekhefah
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Thanks, y'all. Our fish don't live in tap water because L.A. water is nasty; we get the gallon jugs of spring water for 79 cents and put them in that. And this isn't the betta-plus-plant setup that you see all the time; Pinot has a tall vase with a lot of surface area, and Robin had a wide round fishbowl with even more surface area. Each bowl holds about a gallon of water (Pinot's vase holds a little more). I think they were good betta setups. Like I said, Pinot doesn't seem to mind.

    I'm glad to hear that Sir Robin was just old, and I didn't kill him. I mean, I brought him a shrubbery and everything.

    Brave Sir Robin ran away -
    (No!)
    Bravely ran away, away -
    (I didn't!)
    When danger reared its ugly head, he bravely turned his tail and fled,
    Brave Sir Robin turned about and gallantly he chickened out,
    Brave, brave, brave, brave Sir Robin...

  20. #20
    God/dess Lysondra's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Quote Originally Posted by Yekhefah View Post
    I'm glad to hear that Sir Robin was just old, and I didn't kill him. I mean, I brought him a shrubbery and everything.
    ...Eheee....


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  21. #21
    Yekhefah
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    I heard Monty Python fans have mostly hated "Spamalot." I haven't seen it yet but I'd still like to.

  22. #22
    cameron_keys
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Aww...sorry to hear that..he was pretty. Any fish you buy at a pet store is iffy...(actually most pets in general you can buyat pet stores are iffy). Some are ill in the store. They dont always show signs right away, so you may never know. Def. sterilize the bowl before getting a new one.

    Poor Blue Fish....

  23. #23
    God/dess jaizaine's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    Quote Originally Posted by Yekhefah View Post
    Thanks, y'all. Our fish don't live in tap water because L.A. water is nasty; we get the gallon jugs of spring water for 79 cents and put them in that.
    hunny that might be your prob. spring water is for us to drink and the chemistry might not be ok for your fish. Bottled water still contains some things such as copper and other minerals that are toxic to fish. The spring water may also have a PH or alkaline level that is not well suited to the fish.

    You need to use a water conditioner for fish that will take everything out of the water so that the water is perfect for fishy health.

  24. #24
    God/dess UtahMike's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    This is a true story.

    My father-in-law, now gone to his reward, used to smoke a pipe, which made buying him birthday and Christmas presents easy. He always smoked cheap rot-gut tobacco, so for a present we would go down to the local tobaconnist (sp?) and buy him a couple pounds of really good tobacco.

    The proprietor of the tobacco store always had a goldfish swimming around in a big bottle, the kind that sits on top of a water cooler. I thought this looked really neat. I decided that I would have a bottle with a goldfish in it in my fourth grade classroom. I had a bottle like that at home, so I bought a goldfish, filled the bottle with water, and dropped the fish in the neck.

    The kids showed up the next day, ooed and ahed, admired the fish, and named it "Goldy." Every day, a different kid had a turn to put a small pinch of fish food in the bottle. Saturday, I went in to school to feed Goldy myself and found him floating. I was glad he had died when the kids weren't at school and though that he must've been one of those sickly pet store goldfish. I buried him in the toilet, bought a new goldfish, dumped him in the bottle and went home.

    On Monday, the kids thought it was the same fish. Each kid had an assigned day to feed Goldy a small pinch of fish food. I went in the next Saturday, and Goldy II was floating. He/she/it went down the toilet after Goldy I, and I bought Goldy III.

    "It must be something I'm doing wrong," I thought, and I thought that maybe the water in the bottle was getting polluted. So, for the next week, every day, I siphoned the bottom 1/3 of the water out of the bottle and replaced it with new water that had been sitting 24 hours in buckets so that the chlorine would evaporate out of the water.

    Saturday, Goldy IV was floating. He went down the toilet after Goldies I, II, and III.

    I tried water conditioners like you would use with tropical fish, but not usually with goldfish. Goldy V didn't even last until Saturday. He died on Thursday.

    I thought maybe there wasn't enough oxygen in the water, so I dropped an airstone on a piece of plastic tubing into the bottle. Changed the water with conditioned water. Goldy VI lasted until Sunday. After Goldy VI, I gave up.

    The next time I went to buy tobacco for my father-in-law, I asked the proprietor how he kept his fish alive in the bottle.

    "Oh," he said. "that isn't the same fish. About once a week, it dies, and I just replace it with a new fish."

  25. #25
    God/dess jaizaine's Avatar
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    Default Re: My fish is dying. Why?

    I know u posted that for a laugh but I prob know exactly why the fish died - not enough surface area for oxygen.

    Should not keep fish in bowls with a skinny opening at the top such as a bottle neck because not enough air can form on the water surface.
    The fish would have died from oxygen starvation.

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