Is our betta fish on a hunger strike?

[annettemarie]

We finally got a fishie on Saturday, but he doesn't seem to be eating. We have an extremely simple set up. You can see it here. It's just a bowl and some gems on the bottom and a little fake plant. The Petco lady sold us "Nutrafin Max" but he's just not interested. Flakes we gave him the first day are still floating on the top of the water. He mostly hangs out at the bottom of the bowl, either being still or nosing around the bottom. He's not very active at all. I'll be really bummed if our first pet dies the first week we have him.

[nd_deadhead]

It sometimes takes fish a while to adapt to a new environment. I bought 4 glass catfish that didn't eat - shoot, they hardly moved - for almost 2 weeks. Once they settled in, they were fine.

Fish can go quite a while without food. I would definitely get rid of the uneaten food, and try just small amounts until he starts eating regularly.

I don't see that your bowl is heated in any way. Bettas are tropical fish, and are happiest with a temperature of 75 to 82°F. If your room is much cooler than that, he will definitely be listless. Because it's hard to find a heater for such a small volume of water, you might want to consider getting a 1.5- to 2-gallon aquarium for your new pet. Just because they keep them in little jars in the pet store does not mean that they can thrive in such cramped quarters long-term.

[slsurface]

I second the previous post. I also wanted to add that a great starter fish for a simple bowl set up with no heater is a gourami (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gourami). They love brackish/dirt water - so there is little cleaning - and they don't mind being cold. Plus I find that they have more personality than betas.

PS- most fish really only need to be fed once a week, maybe twice. They live longer if you feed them less.