Keeg

I am glad to see a post like this because I did not want to be the only one to think this. I feel that a lot of people that tell others about certain criteria and such are not 100% accurate. It is kinda bizarre to see "rules" set up for what people should and shouldn't do when in reality it should be centered around how both the person and the animals can be happy. People say there is minimum tank sizes for certain fish and such, but in reality if you can provide a tank that the fish can thrive and you can enjoy, then you are doing it perfectly. Screw the "rules". Even the co-op has this tiny 3.3 gallon aquarium masters tank on display with I want to say some CPD at one point, a dumbo betta with one eye at another, and im pretty sure either a scarlet basis or Dario Dario, I absolutely loved the look of the tank, so I got one and have been keeping guppies and shrimp in it and they have been doing wonderfully for years now. I have to take out the babies so I dont over crowd it but they love the over grown jungle of pearlweed and are thriving nonetheless.

I dont know if you are actually buying it but sometimes when I see these errors, you can talk to one of the people at the store and get 50% off the wrong price. Thats how I got like 4 20g starter tanks for like 80$ back when covid didnt make everything expensive.

its literally acid 😀

Yeah, manufacturing errors can never be 100% absent, so I look for overall scores and the reviews that are based around longer periods of time, rather than the people that do a review after a week. I dont even want to risk a manufacturing error, that's why I do the smaller than recommended.

I dont really discriminate on price, more on reputation. I go through looking for heater reviews online and base my options on those. I also check out YouTube videos and such as to get a good idea from creators. What I personally do it use smaller heater than recommended as to help further prevent the issue of over heating. Rather than having the heater go on and off every day, its pretty much running all the time to the point where it can't over heat and only turns off when it gets hot out. I am not very experienced with sumps and so I do not know how it could affect what is a needed heater wattage. Looking into an ink bird or some kind of temp regulator that turns off the heater completely could be a good idea, like what @Melkor said above, but I dont know too much on those as well.

Yes, it slowly started to fail by dropping temps, and then all of a sudden it crashed fully and over heated which killed a bunch of fish. I would replace the heater ASAP to stop the possibility of another event.

I use a coarse filter sponge from a bubble filter from the co-op, while the mesh cover would allow more water flow, the coarse sponge will decrease the flow so they can't get sucked against the side like the mesh could. Plus it prevents fry from getting sucked in as well. Plus its an additional spot for beneficial bacteria to live, adding more biological filtration.

From my experience of glass surfing, I would assume she is stressed from a change in environment. I dont know where you're from but back where im from we just had a heat wave that lasted a couple days and as a result, some tanks got a little warmer than normal. Was there any unusual events in weather where you're from? To reduce stress, I would dim the lights if possible or turn them off for a little while. As well as decrease traffic around the tank as to not startle the fish as they are adjusting to their new layout. You're parameters seem perfect so I dont think those are the cause. I know from puffers, they will glass surf when they're bored, so maybe add some live food in the tank to see if that gets her occupied and happy.

looks like fin hemorrhaging. Usually from internal infection or damage to fin structure from objects in the tank. Im not good with medicines so you might wanna ask @Colu

I planted octopus plants around the stone so that the bubbles are slowed down from hitting the dense leaves. Just another idea out there : )

Hi there Lauren, I feel like this discussion should be in the "Fish Swap" section. But if it helps, I am a betta breeder that specializes in plakats. I breed only the healthiest of individuals and never line breed. I look for any disabilities and possible disorders but I have yet to find any. Right now I have Black/ blood red hybrid plakat females left from this last batch. The fish are trained on dry foods and they're semi aggressive but curious. I am located in Washington but can possibly ship. If you're looking for a breeder, I dont know how much I can say because it could potentially lead to competition with the co-op which is against the rules unfortunately. If its allowed, send me a PM and I can give some recommendations. Theres plenty of breeders all around the US, just gotta do a little research and check social media. Best of luck!

Awesome! If you need any tips and tricks, please reach out. I love breeding bettas and I have a method that has yet to fail me 🙂

Are you going to attempt to breed those two splendens?

around a year and a half, betta was completely fine before I left for vacation for a week while I had a family member take care of the tanks. When I got back, one of his pelvic fins was missing a piece and there was a fuzzy part attached to the end of it. I treated it with some mild anti bacterial/fungus meds and it went away for a few days until he all of a sudden took a turn for the worse and died a few days after that. Both fish were considerably old but healthy beforehand.

Thank you so much for the help. I have pima fix on hand, would this work or should I go out and get a different antifungal medication? and if so, any recommendations?

Both fish had been quarantined before hand, the second fish was just from a different tank that I thought would enjoy this one more. Im not completely certain that it was TB but both had fuzzy growths on their pelvic fins, grey spots (appeared an hour before each died), pine coning, and both died in a constricted shape of their body curled and their head pushed up. All this happened with 3 days for each fish

im fairly certain betta tuberculosis, both died within 2 days of showing symptoms

I have a tank that two fish have died in. I did not think the disease was contagious until I added the second fish in it a couple weeks later, only for it to have the same fate so now I am uneasy about adding another fish until it is properly disinfected. After the second fish died, I removed the water, not really cleaning the gravel. Then filled it back up, it has now been around three weeks with the same water and with no fish. Any help would be appreciated greatly. Also if there is a natural way without medication, that would be even better! Thanks

And if you are interested in using some kind of animal to solver your problem, dwarf and honey gouramis do eat them 😋. Just another reason why they're amazing

So sorry for the late response, I have been in the mountains with no reception. I usually just poke it with a blunted toothpick and hold it. Blunt it on the table or surface

if you think its because of feeding too much, I would fast the tank for a day or two. After that I would give a small amount (size of his eye) of unshelled, cooked pea. That should get things moving for bowels. Continuing forward, try to feed less or even every other day, betta fish stomachs are only the size of their eye ball. If it doesnt get better within a few days, I would make a new post with pictures. Best of luck for the little guy 🙂

In my opinion, nothing. Every time I have had a pea puffer, they have just wreaked havoc on anybody and anything else in there. Thats the main reason why I won't be keeping them again anytime soon. I think your best shot would be something super fast, mobile, and short finned such as tetras. Some people have had luck with keeping them in a community tank, but personally havent seen this happen 😕

If it was methylene blue, then prolonged exposure can damage/kill live plants, kill beneficial bacteria, disturb fish, affect inverts and possibly turn the silicone sealant of the corners a slight blue. If I were you, I would do a good water change of 30-50% to dilute it. As a future tip, I would never add the water from the bag to the aquarium after acclamation, only add water from the tank to the bag in a separate bucket or bowl.

I have found wild bettas to be fun. An idea could be a black water tank. Or you could even do a pea puffer tank. If you want to stick with the live bearers, I personally enjoy short body sword tails or balloon mollies. Some people they shouldn't be bred or kept because of their malformed body, but hey if people can enjoy some thick goldfish then why not some thick mollies 😂

There is some truth to that, the leaves leach out a sort of tea that turns the water brown. This makes the water softer, which bettas enjoy and thus allows them to feel better to fight off minor damage or infection with their immune system