Does it eat ? could be constipation. Is this a new fish or in a new tank? Does your freind use a dechlorinator? A little more info would help? Cycled aquarium or not?, size tank? Is it in a bowl or vase? Water parameters/ test results? How long has she had this betta? At any rate a pale fish that stays at the surface is stressed from bad water conditions (for fish not meaning poluted water) or disease. Could just be gas or constipation believe it or not. Don't feed him any more ( don't worry he wont starve) except to try to shell a pea and see if he'll eat it. Also what is maintainance regimen? %water changers and how often?

Hi woe,
I asked my friend your questions, and she said:

The fish is several months old, was eating fine, doesn't know if it's constipated, changes the water every few weeks, uses well water, isn't a cycled aquarium, 3/4 gallon tank, plastic bowl that hangs on the wall, and hasn't tested anything. Thanks for your help.

Bettas are air breathers which is why they need to be near the surface to breath. It's possible it's bored. Take a small mirror and see it react to it's image. It probably just needs a bit of excitement and exercise.

Ianna

"The fish is several months old, was eating fine, doesn't know if it's constipated" - Most likely not, usually swelling can occur, not always. If your freind hasn't seen new fish poop recently it could be, but I would wager this isn't the problem. "uses well water" - no reason for dechlorination then, OK. " changes the water every few weeks," "3/4 gallon tank, plastic bowl that hangs on the wall, and hasn't tested anything." This is not good. Besides the container being too small to house a fish only changing the water every few weeks is not adequate. Fish excrete ammonia , so does rotting uneaten food and fish poop. Ammonia is toxic to fish. Your freind needs to change the water completely, 100%. Also add just a bit of salt. For 3/4 gallon add about 1/2 tsp. Dont worry if she doesn't have freshwater aquarium salt from the pet store, regular table salt is fine, even if it is iodized. (It is a myth that tablesalt is toxic to fish because of iodine and anti-caking agent, but thats another issue). If she doesn't change the water more frequently the fish will die. I don't agree with keeping any fish in a bowl (except swedish fish). I would suggest her getting a minimum 2.5 gallon tank, a 5 or 10 is better. This larger tank should also be heated with quality heater that has a thermostat and can be adjusted. Bettas are tropical fish unlike goldfish. They need a temp between 74F-82, idealy 78F. Between fluctuating temperatures and the ammonia this fish is doomed. It allready has unrepairable damage and a shortened life span. The pale color is because it is stressed from the ammonia toxins. The only good thing is that the temp. is most likely lower and this makes the toxicity of ammonia a little less. Bettas are marketed in a way that leads people to believe they are invinsible fish. Walmart even has a "bulletin" near their bettas entitled " Why are thes fish in little cups?". The reasoning is that bettas live in poor water conditions in their natural habitat and that they survive in puddles. The so called puddles are created by monsoons that are quite deep and have flow. It rains quite frequently to replace water and it is an entire eco system. In other words for it being OK to keep these fish in a small container ( anything under 5 gallons) because thats all they need is total BS. Please don't take this the wrong way,this is the fault of false advertisement and ignorance of anyone who sells them this way. People go to Pet stores and are advised by someone who dosen't know any better. It is confusing because these people are supposed to be an athourity on tropical fish and stores sell products like betta bowls that are way too small. Here is a pretty good discription of the betta situation in the link below. I don't agree with everything on this forum but this part is mostly accurate.

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread from a betta forum

Ianna wrote "Bettas are air breathers which is why they need to be near the surface to breath." They don't need to be near the surface. They will surface when they need air. This fish is stressed from ammonia poisoning. Bettas can stay submerged a very long time without having to replace oxygen. Ianna also wrote "Take a small mirror and see it react to it's image. It probably just needs a bit of excitement and exercise" I agree they seemingly sulk when nothing is around to "stimulate" it. Mine will find a leaf of a plant to hang on when not "playing" the clown loaches. Another fun thing is dip your finger tip in the water and swirl it around. I guess preditory instinct takes over and they play like a kitten with a piece of string. Anyway, this is a good reference for your freind should she deside to get an adequate sized aquarium. Link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Beginner FAQ by

I'm not going to get into the whole issue that bettas need tanks with filter, light and heater just like tropical fish, but will say that I've known friend's kids who've kept their bettas going for at least two years in small bowls - but with the daily regiment of water changes. They would age water (water left out so chlorine could disappate) before they used it. These were total water changes, not just partial water changes. Feeding is just once a day, maybe about 4-5 pellets.

Woe is right - it's probably ammonia poisoning. With no filtration whatsoever and no water changes but every few weeks, I'm surprised it's survived this long. Probably has because it's in a fairly large bowl (3/4 gallon as opposed to those tiny little bowls with a cup of water)

Skygee brings up a good point of aging water before changing it, meant to touch on that before stepping onto the soapbox. With well water (as long as no chlorine is added for treatment, very rare in private wells, but your freind would know if they had a treatment system because they would have to replenish the chlorine)it isn't necessary for dechlorination. However, it will give the water a chance to aerate. Well water tends to have alot of trapped CO2 which makes it very acidic at first. After the CO2 disipates it will rise to its "normal" pH. Wells, for the most part, usually have hard water because of the dissolved solids from the rocks and minerals below. By aging the water, sometimes called "gassing off" it will be less of an abrupt change, causing less stress.

Thanks everyone!
I will forward all this great info onto my friend. Thanks again!

Just wanted to let you know that when she started giving it peas, it began improving and is now doing great.

Glad to here. The truth and peas shall set you free.