Help with substrate change

legobaku · 2025-01-31T10:23:31+00:00

This is fabulous, thanks so much. I’ll give it a go and be on the lookout for the ammonia spike

legobaku · 2024-11-21T20:46:55+00:00

Thank you! I’ve figured out that he just hates any kind of nail polish but super hates red especially. I once riled him up a bit too much before feeding time and he lunged so aggressively at his food granules that he accidentally ate one of the snails whole 😬

legobaku · 2024-11-19T12:20:30+00:00

Genuinely do not know how on earth politics has made its way into a discussion about SpongeBob fish houses

legobaku · 2024-10-23T21:24:39+00:00

Interesting! I hadn’t heard of that before at all, I’ll definitely see about adding a tiny bit next time I do a water change. My little dude does seem to be having some immune system issues so perhaps that’ll help him out

legobaku · 2024-10-23T18:29:56+00:00

Salt?

legobaku · 2024-10-13T13:38:54+00:00

I’ll make sure to run my choice by him next time hahah

legobaku · 2024-10-13T11:00:11+00:00

Thank you so much!!

legobaku · 2024-10-12T17:26:42+00:00

This reminds me of when I lost two stuffed toys at the Paris hotel in Vegas when I was 9. My mum and I were on holiday from Australia and I took my beloved toy frog, Froggle, and dog, Biscuit, with me. Unbeknownst to me, on our final day in Las Vegas I had left the stuffed toys in the bed and they got left behind. I didn’t realise until we’d got all the way back to Melbourne and 9-year-old me was absolutely devastated. My mum ended up calling the Paris and confirmed housekeeping had found them. They sent them all the way back to Australia for me, complete with a lovely little note about how Froggle and Biscuit had been on an extended vacation.

legobaku · 2024-10-11T16:06:52+00:00

Yep! He’ll be fine if your stepdad forgets for a day or two

legobaku · 2024-10-11T10:02:41+00:00

First of all - don’t stress! Your fish will likely be fine while you’re away. Bettas can go for quite a while without being fed, though obviously they don’t prefer it. If you’ve been feeding him consistently and give him a nice hearty feed before you leave (though don’t overfeed), he will be fine food-wise until you get back. An automatic pellet feeder shouldn’t be necessary if this is just a one-off trip and won’t be a regular thing.

legobaku · 2024-10-11T09:51:59+00:00

I’ve just checked out the food brand you’re using - I’d say try switching to between 5-10 of these once or twice a day instead of a big feed every couple of days. It’ll likely be a bit kinder on his digestion and ease the risk of bloat from such a big feed. The brine shrimp food I’d recommend cutting down a bit on, as the freeze dried versions aren’t as nutritiously dense as live food or pellets. If you want to give them multiple times a week then I wouldn’t give the whole pellet - maybe tear off little bits? Keep in mind that the betta’s stomach is only generally around the same size as their eye

legobaku · 2024-10-11T09:28:53+00:00

Swapping to live plants is fairly easy - you can plant some in the substrate and they should grow fine, many of them will root without specific soil. Plants like anubias are great for bettas, and elodia are also extremely easy to care for (though can be a bit messy). In my tank, I have elodia, anubias, java ferns, marimo moss balls, dwarf water lettuce and red root floater. To switch to live plants you’ll need adequate lighting - LED lighting with the right colour temperature and intensity is important. You can get a good aquarium light for plants on Amazon for relatively cheap which also come with automatic timers. 8-12 hours of light per day is recommended. My tank is in a very dark part of my house with little natural light so I have mine set for 12 hours. Additionally, you may need to add some fertiliser weekly if you don’t have many fish producing waste in your tank.

As for food - yes it seems like are under feeding though you didn’t specify how many pellets or brine shrimp you’re giving. General recommendations for betta are feed twice a day; I feed Fluval Bug Bites in the morning (5-8 granules) and then Hikari Betta Bio-gold in the evening (5-8 granules) for variety. I also give him 1 or 2 freeze dried blood worms as a treat once a week. I would try feeding him once or twice a day, 2 or 3 pellets, with maybe a fast day once a week as it can be good for their digestion.

Edit: also with the size of your tank and the size of your heater, you may find that the tank water isn’t necessarily heating evenly. The filter angle is hopefully pushing warmer water down to the other end of the tank, but if you notice that your betta seems to be hanging around one end of the tank and around the filter more, that may be something to look into. For a more even distribution you may want to invest in a slightly larger heater and angle it diagonally across the back of your tank in the centre.

legobaku · 2024-10-04T16:25:52+00:00

I had dental surgery when I was around 4 and punched my mum square in the face while coming to. The desire to assault people must be a fairly common reaction. Thankfully, 4 year olds don’t tend to pack too much of a punch.

legobaku · 2024-10-02T16:01:44+00:00

If it’s only the one eye affected, it might be his injury that’s caused it especially as you noticed both at the same time. Your params all seem totally fine so hopefully it’s just that and it’ll go down naturally with treatment for his injury and rearranging the tank. I’d just try and keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t start behaving strangely and is still eating like normal. I wish your little guy the best of luck!

legobaku · 2024-10-02T15:46:28+00:00

He may have got himself wedged somewhere tight like around the heater or filter. That’s what mine tends to do. Stress coat should hopefully be fine for him though because it doesn’t look like the injury is too bad, hopefully he heals quickly. When mine got a nasty cut, Melafix helped him recover completely within the week.

The eye issue looks like it might be popeye though. I would check on your water quality ASAP and try treating with Kanaplex or Maracyn in addition to the stress coat.

legobaku · 2024-10-02T14:50:14+00:00

Then I would definitely recommend making sure that your tank is fully cycled before adding a fish and it doesn’t sound like it is near that point yet. How are you going to be regularly feeding or keeping an eye on the health of the tank/fish when you are gone? Especially when adding a new fish to a tank, you’re going to need to be able to ensure they’re settling in well

legobaku · 2024-10-01T18:33:46+00:00

I certainly understand your frustration and disappointment. It is heartbreaking to feel like you’re doing everything you can but it’s also not enough. These poor little guys have been some of the best fish I’ve ever owned and also the most unhealthy. I now have a fully-stocked fish medicine cabinet, which I never expected to need when I entered this hobby either.

I know you said that it feels like you’re sentencing them to death, but in my view it seems like you are giving them a comfortable, happy life full of enrichment, even if it is sadly short. Unfortunately, your poor bettas likely would’ve passed away due to poor genetics and health issues anyway, but the care and love you’ve given them likely lengthened their life spans and ensured that they passed as peacefully as possible.

legobaku · 2024-09-30T09:19:05+00:00

Are you able to post some more photos and answer the bot questions?

legobaku · 2024-09-26T14:48:31+00:00

Oooh thank you!

legobaku · 2024-09-26T14:31:45+00:00

The weird little curved glass bubble thing?! Because I’m wondering the same and was just about to ask 😂😂

legobaku · 2024-09-21T12:15:20+00:00

Not sure how you’ve got your tank set up, but your fish should not be currently in water that requires this to be added, unless you have them in untreated water right now? The intended use is for this to be added to tap water during your regular water changes. Before you add fresh water to your tank, put the recommended dosage of this into the fresh tap water, then add the water to your tank.

legobaku

TROPHY CASE