betta won't eat

[Terry]

I have a betta, not sure of his age but probably about 2 years old. No
change in tank, water, etc. he is in a 1 gallon lighted tank with underwater
filter. This past month he has been laying around 95% of the time, on the
bottom of the tank. He was eating a little bit, albeit not much, up until 5
days ago. He has not eaten in 5 days. He will swim if I pretty much make
him move. Is he just old and about to die? I mean, I know he will die if
he doesn't eat soon, but it doesn't appear that he is going to eat.

[carlrs]

Terry wrote:
> I have a betta, not sure of his age but probably about 2 years old. No
> change in tank, water, etc. he is in a 1 gallon lighted tank with underwater
> filter. This past month he has been laying around 95% of the time, on the
> bottom of the tank. He was eating a little bit, albeit not much, up until 5
> days ago. He has not eaten in 5 days. He will swim if I pretty much make
> him move. Is he just old and about to die? I mean, I know he will die if
> he doesn't eat soon, but it doesn't appear that he is going to eat.

It is possible it is just age, but I would try and rule out everything
else first.
What are your water parameters? Ammonia and nitrites should be 0. What
is your temperature? If you live in the Northern Hemisphere and have no
heater in the tank, temperatures are probably falling which will make
your betta sluggish. Try and bring temperature up to at least 75 F (25
C). You use an incandescent lamp placed at distance that will achieve
the proper temperature (I have used 25-40 watt Infrared reptile lamps
for this as they can be left on at night).

Electrolytes are important to all fish, but even more so to a weak fish
for whatever reason. Marine Salt is loaded with electrolytes and can
used at a rate of 1/2 teaspoon per gallon.
Another option for this that is simpler is wonder shells which come in
small packages for small aquariums or bowls.

You can try treating with a relatively safe organic treatment such as
Pimafix or you can brew your own with Usnea Lichen.

Finally, a quality food is important for health and longevity. With
betta, you want a food based in whole fish meal and other aquatic
ingredients, not a lot of cereal like Tetras. I recommend Sanyu Gold or
Hikari Gold.

For more information and links to medications, proper feeding and more:
http://aquarium-info.blogspot.com/

Carl