Carthel - 1; Rach & Callie - 0

Carthel the fish again refused to eat all day yesterday. I got on the internet and tried to find out why bettas might not eat. What I found was that bettas won't eat if their water's too cold. They are tropical fish and their water needs to be kept around 72 degrees. We don't have a thermometer for him, but his water felt cold to us. I also learned that some bettas do this when they've been moved; one person said it took his betta 3 days to get acclimated to his new home. And I learned that bettas can go several days without eating, so we were no longer panicked about Carthel fasting for a couple days.

In an effort to get him warmer, I put Carthel in Rachel's bathroom with the heater turned on. I closed the door and left him in there all day. Also, in my internet search, I learned some foods that bettas might like to eat. I read that pieces of a shelled pea will stimulate their appetites as well as clean out their digestive systems. So now Carthel's got us cooking for him! I fixed him a few green peas and cut one up into little pieces. I put one piece in and he ate it! About one minute later, he spit it back out. So I put one more piece in there; he ate it and I never saw him spit it back out!

Later I went to Walmart and got a cheap little thermometer and some freeze dried bloodworms (betta fish are supposed to LOVE those and the internet suggests trying them if your betta won't eat). According to our thermometer, his office was around 74-78 degrees - perfect. Of course Carthel wanted nothing to do with the bloodworms.

We tried once more to feed him after church tonight. That tricky little fish gobbled up the first pellet we dropped in...and promptly spit it back out. Again he wouldn't touch the bloodworms. So we finally gave in and put him back in his bowl. He won. It's a sad day for fish disciplinarians everywhere.

However, Carthel still hasn't eaten since being back in his bowl. He wouldn't eat the pellets at all, but he has attempted to nibble on a piece of a pea. He seems to be just playing with it, though. So not only has he gotten his way and been put back in his bowl, but he's playing with his food right in front of us! I don't know what we're going to do with him...