I Need Instructions on How to Keep a Fish Alive!

Depending on where you live, don't use tap water. There is too much chlorine in tap water. I use RO water and my fish has lived for 3 years. However, the first fish I bought I used tap water...he died. My husband who is a water treatment specialist said "You can't use city water!!" Poor Beta.....

Your pet store will have a book about Bettas. They will have little bottles of Betta water conditioner droplets to treat the water you're using specifically for your Betta. Feed him a little bit daily. Make sure his water temperature isn't too hot or cold. I've had Bettas for a long time and always get a year or more out of them.
J. B.
Work At Home Mamapreneur
877-216-1940

S.,
You need to buy some water detox. It is very cheap and can be bought at any pet store. Regular tap water has lots of toxins and they will cause fish to nosedive quickly, so a few drops of the detox and the water is safe for them. Hope this helps. I have a beta and instead of tap water we use bottle water because it doesn't have any of the junk in it so that maybe another solution.

Hi S.,

When we moved, my little one who had been taking care of her Beta decided to change the water as she always did. We had been on well water, and now in the city, had chlorine and fluoride in the water. Charlie died a slow and painful death.

A Beta may be able to survive in that kind of water but fish need consistency. Nothing can change unless it is slow and methodical. Lydia had kept that fish alive for four years and her naive eagerness to BE consistent is what ended it all because she wasn't aware of the changes.

Hope I helped!

M.

Very possible the fish was sick...also you need to treat the water for cholorine. I know I had a betta that lived for 3 yrs., I had him in a tank with an aerriator (I think that is how it is spelled)..all it does is make bubbles and circulate the oxygen in the tank. It also helped in the fact I didn't have to clean the tank but once a month if that.

usually you keep in him the bag.. and lay the bag on top of the new water.. for about 1 hour.. so the water in the bag and in the vase are about the same temp..then put him in... this should work fine.. good luck

Fish can't survive in tap water! You can buy "water treatment" drops at the local pet store!

Beta Fish don't have very long life expectancies....but he should last for more than a few days with treated water, right room temp and right food!

Hope this helps!

Okay. My aunt is the QUEEN of Beta fish. Hers live for years and years. Here's what she does:

1. ALL of her containers are at least a gallon.
2. She never does a complete water change. Well, HARDLY ever.Instead, she has an ivy growing profusely out of the top of all her glass vases. The ivy absorbs the nitrogen waste the beta puts off. Thus cleaning the water and feeding the plant. The only problem I've ever seen with this is that the Ivys grow such a root system that after 2-3 years she had to take the ivy out and start a new one because the roots take up too much room in the Vase, and she had one beta tangle and drown in them. So, she takes a cutting, starts a new ivy and gives the big ivy to a friend every few years.
3. When she does add water, or if someone "helps" her feed the beta and sours the water she uses water conditioner.

4. There is beta food that looks like TINY little pills. I think the hame is "Beta Gold". She feeds 4-8 pills a day (depending on the age and size of each beta), one at a time until the beta quits eating. Her betas will almost take them out of your hand. Your kids would love that.
5. Betas like warm water. Keep your beta in a warm part of the house and away from drafts. They will also follow you around the room if you put them on the bar or somewhere they can see you moving about.

Good luck!

T.

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Sometimes you get a sick fish right from the store. Take it back. They should replace it. It doesn't sound like anything you did.

never do a complete water change thay need the bacteria that is in they water and when you do the water change put some water treatment and no put so cold water and you need to put your fish with the bag in top of he water so he can regulate his body temperature

Did you buy drops to put in the water that clear out the chlorine? This may be what killed your fish! Ask someone at the pet store to help you buy the right drops. Also, the drops may say "just put the drops in, stir and ready to go"...not true. Let the drops work for at least 8 hours before putting the beta in. I learned the hard way and killed one of my daughters beta fish!
Good luck to you!

I have same problems as yours, but mine are guppies.. If it dead, you can take it back and get another one for free if you have reciept and within 15 or 30 days. You better ask for their advises. I took their advises wisely and they are still living since April 2009. Good luck!!

I think Beta fish are kind of notorious for not always making it. Our school carnival gives them as prizes every year. We've had two that died within a week, one lasted 6 months and two that have almost 2 years. I've heard the same thing from other people, although I think my husband accidentally killed the first two.

Here's what I know:
-Feed them a pinch of food every other day.
-Don't use water straight from the tap. Buy fish tank water at the pet store OR get a little bottle of water conditioner and add it to tap water that's been allowed to sit for several days. (We have a rotating gallon of water that sits in between weekly tank cleanings.)
-Clean tank every 7-10 days. Hubby uses Dawn with bleach. (I don't have anything to do with this, but rinse well!)
-We have a little filter hose or something in our tank. Nothing big.

Also, be careful of decorations you put in the tank. My son wanted a plastic rock. When we washed it, it smelled strongly of chemicals. My husband used it--the fish died. Another one we bought smelled strongly of chemicals, too. Washed it numerous times...smell never went away so we threw it away...the fish lived.

Ask the people at your local pet store and/or get a book at the store or library. Have fun!