My Beta fish, Lucy, is not as active as when I first bought her? Is she dying? How long do Betas live?

Lucy is a year old. When I first bought her, she%26#039;d swim around, go up and down, you know, like a normal fish. Well, lately she%26#039;s been lounging. Now she only swims up to eat and it seems as though she struggles. When she stops moving her fins, she%26#039;ll sink to the bottom. As I write this, she%26#039;s just laying at the bottom of the bowl. She is in a bowl with the lily plant, the kind they sell at Wal-Mart with entire kit, the beads, vase/bowl, etc.. Is she okay?

My Beta fish, Lucy, is not as active as when I first bought her? Is she dying? How long do Betas live?
It sounds like Lucy has some kind of problem, but what it is, hard to really say. She%26#039;s lethargic and not moving around like she had been? You%26#039;ve had her for a year now, and this is the first time you%26#039;ve noticed it?





I think part 1 is you have her in a vase. I can see you care for her by keeping and eye on how she%26#039;s acting, but that%26#039;s not the best home for her. You%26#039;ve made it a year so far, but really, she needs more space and a filtered enviroment to thrive. How often have you been changing up her water, and have you been treating the water properly? She may be in a weakend state from being in poor water conditions for a certain amount of time, which leads us back into her being in the right enviroment.





It could be an infection, it could be a parasite to be honest, and magicman, Luvinlife, kylie all have extensive experience with Betta%26#039;s. Why don%26#039;t you at least consider getting her a little 5 gallon set up so she has space, it doesn%26#039;t take up much of your space, and you can decorate it and everything? She could be with other fish if you wanted, other then some species of tetra%26#039;s, (because they are fin nippers mostly) or a Male Betta. You have almost endless possibilities, and who knows, if the bug bites you, you%26#039;ll work your way up from Betta%26#039;s to bigger fish like it happend to me lol. I wish I could help more on disease, but I%26#039;m not expertised in that. Check her water quality, look for external signs of any infections, and consider her getting a better home. Follow up if you see any extrnal signs please.





JV
Reply:First of all, your beta is most likely a male since the females are not as showy and are not normally sold in stores. Certainly not at Wal-Mart.





I once bought a beta at Wal-mart and it got an infection of some sort where it%26#039;s body swelled up and looked like it would burst. None of the meds I bought for it worked and it died. I%26#039;m not surprised your Wal-mart beta is also struggling. If this one dies, try getting one from a better pet store. I got one from Petsmart and have had him for about 2 years now. I%26#039;m not sure how long they live but he is still vigorous.





Does your beta occassionally go to the top and take a breath of air from the surface? Because it should do that. Mine also sits on the bottom a lot so that could be normal but he gets up and swims energetically when you are looking at him (show off!).





Has your betas color dulled or has it had any other physical changes? I recommend asking someone at Petsmart or some other pet store. Has it been with the plant the whole time you%26#039;ve had it? If the plants recent it could be that. Ok this is getting too long now. Hope any of that helped!
Reply:Need more info to be of help. How much water does the vase hold, and how often do you change the water? How much do you feed him, and how often? What temperature does he normally stay at? Are the roots of the plants ever trimmed; these can interfere with the fish, he does need room to swim. If the plant is too close to the top of the water%26#039;s surface, it can prevent him from receiving oxygen, because bettas are labyrinth fish, meaning they breathe at the surface and not through the water and their gills like most fish. It%26#039;s really best NOT to put the plant on top of the vase - those were just a pretty novelty. Do the plant and the fish both a favor, and plant the plant somewhere else.
Reply:Betta%26#039;s need clean warm water at least 78 F to thrive. Betta%26#039;s need at least 2.5 gallons. The more water they have the more active they are. Betta%26#039;s have been known to live 5-7 years with proper care The lilly plant that is in there is no use to her. They don%26#039;t eat plants or roots unless they are starving. Those vases are cruel to animals and alot of places (including my local Walmart) have quit selling those death traps.
Reply:She may be bored, or she may have an infection. Check to make sure she doesn%26#039;t have any white splotches or spots on her, and that her fins aren%26#039;t getting ragged (all are common signs of a parasite). You could also try changing the water to make sure she%26#039;s getting enough oxygen. Bettas live maybe two years on average.
Reply:I would say that she could be sick, my fish did this before he died. My betta lived for 3 1/2 years with many hardships during his life. I do not like the bowls with plants in them, it seems that the fish don%26#039;t live as long. Plants that grow in the water take oxygen from it, this leave little for the fish. Try getting a new bowl maybe 2 1/2 gallons (thats what my fish liked) and some medicine at the store. Good luck
Reply:Well my betta is not as active as he was when i got him but he is ging on 2 years since i got him. I think they can live to 3 years no problem depending on their habitat - if you have them in a small tank by himself they wont last as long - mine is in a 15 gallon aquarium with some tetras
Reply:She is probably just getting bored with her environment.



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