Blind betta fish is simple to result, because of different risks. There are probably more than 73 different species of blind betta fish, which are small, vibrant pets with distinct personalities.
This particular fish species is delicate and complex and frequently loses out in the pet trade. We polled knowledgeable aquarists about blind betta fish. Everything you need to know about blind betta fish will be covered in this article.
Contents
- What Is a Blind Betta Fish?
- Features
- What Are The Causes for a Betta to Lose Vision?
- Care Instructions for Blind Betta in Aquarium
- FAQ
- Conclusion
What Is a Blind Betta Fish?
Blind betta fish is when a betta develops blindness and would lose its eyesight, the key reason why this happens is due to parasitic infections, or maybe because the fish got into a fight with another fish and the result of the aggression was blindness.
Features
You can tell if your betta is losing their vision or has become blind by a few visual cues. For instance, their eyes may occasionally be absent, or they may appear to have scales growing in front of their eyes. As well as appearing cloudy or protruding, their eyes may also appear to be.
You can even try dipping your finger into their water and seeing if your Betta will follow it. They can still be seen if you see them approach it or circle around after it. If they don’t respond, it is a clear sign that they can’t see your finger.
Another indication that your Betta is blind is if you notice it bumping into things or staying close to your hand when you’re close to the tank. In addition, if fish frequently have trouble finding their food, this is another typical sign of blindness in fish.
Your Betta may be blind if it previously consumed all of its food without any problems but now appears to be having trouble locating the food pellets in the water.
In some circumstances, it might appear that your Betta has completely lost its vision and cannot see anything around it. At other times, they may simply appear to be less conscious of their surroundings. Lastly, your betta may not be blind if you place a betta mirror in the tank and you observe him glaring at it (or if he flares at his reflection on the aquarium’s side).
What Are The Causes for a Betta to Lose Vision?
The causes for a betta fish to lose vision would be having moon eye condition, or due to an infection it has caught in the tank. Furthermore, blind betta could also be the result of cataracts development, and even an injury due to fighting with other fish.
– Diamond, Snake, Moon, and Dragon Eye
Although the condition goes by many names, the “moon eye” is a condition where your Betta’s eye begins to develop scales. Thus, the name “Dragon Eye.” It most frequently occurs in dragon scale bettas.
The scales that form the mooneye usually begin as translucent growths close to the eye, but after some time, the scales start to multiply and change color. The scales will completely enclose the eye for a few months, effectively rendering your betta blind.
Although no one is completely certain as to why mooneye occurs, some people speculate that it may have to do with the fact that an infection develops in the eye and that the scaling that results is a reaction to this infection.
– Infections
Infections may also be the cause of Betta’s blindness. Some parasites, bacterial infections, and fungi, including popeye and cloudy eyes, can harm your betta’s eyes and impair their vision.
In general, a healthy betta won’t have any trouble recovering from these ailments. However, if you’ve been keeping them in subpar conditions, their immune system may not be strong enough to fight off an infection.
The first indications that your Betta is losing its vision due to infection are clouded eyes. And the younger your Betta is at this time, the more likely it is that infection rather than cataracts are the cause of their condition.
Additionally, infections tend to spread quickly and even cause blindness, you might also experience other symptoms like lethargy and a lack of appetite.
– Cataracts
It’s entirely possible that as your betta ages, cataracts will develop in their eyes. By looking at a person’s age, you can determine with certainty whether or not they have cataracts. The likelihood that they have cataracts will rise if you notice they are older than three years.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do to treat cataracts in bettas, so you’ll just have to teach your betta to live with this issue.
– Fighting with Others
Last but not least, if your Betta has lost an eye or occasionally even both, you can be sure that they are blind.
Your Betta could lose their eyes for a variety of reasons, including physical injury from fighting and rigid objects in the tank, but infections can also be to blame.
Of course, there is nothing much that you can do to cure a blind betta, so you’ll just have to change the way you take care of them.
Care Instructions for Blind Betta in Aquarium
You may be more careful to provide care to your blind betta, for instance, the way that you feed it, and what you feed it. In addition, it is key to use secure the sponge filters, and add a lamp and a pump heater to the tank.
– Food for Blind Betta
Since they are carnivores, betta fish must eat insects and larvae to survive. As a result, you have to provide them with a balanced diet that is high in protein inside the tank.
You can also give them pellets, frozen food, or flakes that are specifically formulated for them. Feed your blind betta fish by putting food directly into their mouth with tweezers or a syringe without a needle.
Additionally, you can use a chopstick to feed worms or place their food on a floating betta log for easy access.
– Use Signals During Feeding
There might not be a feeding time for your blind better fish. Create a signal to let them know it’s time to eat, such as tapping the water or swishing your fingers around in the water. When the blind fish knows this, it will always follow, and be aware that it is feeding time.
– Use Secure Sponge Filters
For the safety of your blind betta fish, you can also use a sponge filter. Strong currents typically produced by powerhead filters and other equipment that creates robust flows in the tank always impact them.
A sponge filter would therefore be a good idea because it creates a smooth current that your fish can swim through easily.
– Lamps for Tanks
Betta fish should ideally be constantly active and require rest periods, just like other animals. Giving your blind fish eight to 10 hours of light a day is necessary for their care and for the betta’s eyes.
To prevent your fish from getting stressed out from light or darkness all around them, you can set your aquarium light on a timer. It might be a good idea to set your fish tank’s lighting on a timer. You will require more intense light if your tank contains more plants.
The majority of aquarium lights might be LEDs, and these are excellent. While some large or professional aquariums use UVB or another type of light, LED will work just fine if you plan to keep your Betta in a simple aquarium with common aquarium plants.
– Pump Heater
First discovered in streams, tiny pools, and rice fields in Asia, blind betta are now widespread throughout the world. These places frequently experience high temperatures.
For the water in your fish tank to be at the ideal temperature for your blind fish—78 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit—you must have a heater.
FAQ
– Do Betta Have Color Blindness?
Betta has essentially the same color vision as humans, though it’s believed that the hues and shades of the fish differ slightly from ours. Additionally, some bettas have a condition known as colorblindness, in which they are unable to see red light.
– Do Bettas Hear?
They are aware of your voice, yes. To find their prey, they also use their senses to detect changes in the vibrations of the water. Remember that betta doesn’t have particularly acute hearing and that water will muffle the sound.
– Do Betta Require Living Plants?
Plants are necessary for betta because they mimic their natural habitat and offer places to hide and rest. Despite having the nickname “fighter fish,” betta are typically quite timid and reserved. In divided tanks and community tanks, plants play a particularly significant role in ensuring safety and lowering stress.
Conclusion
There is a lot of data we have covered regarding blind betta fish.
To make sure you’re ready to be the best keeper of blind Betta, let’s recap what we covered:
- The Blind Betta fish is complex and delicate.
- Asia is where the first blind betta fish were found.
- Due to their flamboyant, beautiful appearance, they are comparable to Spanish flamenco dancers.
- If you notice your Betta stumbling into objects, it may be blind.
- Betta can become blind due to bacterial infections, moon eye, and cataracts.
There are things you can do to determine their blindness and feed your Betta if they become blind. So don’t give up on him when you see that this has happened. They are still capable of living for a very long time with the right care!
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