TaraC

think my betta might have swim bladder disease. He looks a little overweight, and seems to have trouble staying afloat. He swims with his head pointed straight up and is almost always resting on a plant close to the surface. When he goes to sit on the bottom of his tank, he starts to tip over towards one side and then swims to a spot where he's leaning against something.
Hes still pooping a lot and he's not breathing rapidly or anything, but I cut back a lot on his feeding to try to solve the problem. No luck yet...Any suggestions? Should I add an air stone to his tank? I tried that a while back but he seemed to hate the current. He's in a 5 gal with no filter but I do frequent water changes. I've had him for over a year and he's never been very active but lately he hardly even moves.

Lucy

Hi Tara Welcome to Fish Lore.
Poor little guy, I'm sorry he's not feeling well.
I can't answer your question, I just wanted to welcome you and bump it back up to the top.

Someone should be along shortly who can help you. Sorry I couldn't help.

sasm3

i would try chemicals if there are any. i'm no expert myself but i am careless about the risk of chemicals. i am sorry for your little friend there.

blaxicanlatino

hmmm.... welcome to fish lore. Im new here also. It does sound like he could have swim bladder disorder but, you said that he still deficating soooo... hes not constipated. How often and how much do you change the water? It could bacterial infection. What are you feeding him? Once, i fed my betta gold fish flakes by accident and bloated and became constipated and stayed on his side for 2 months but suddenly got better. My betta always leans when hes resting. Try fasting him for 3 days, feed him some pea and maybe add a teaspoon of epsom salt

Hope he gets better

blaxicanlatino

There really isnt any medication for swim bladder disorder but if it is a bacterial infection... try melafix II. I HIGHLY try to avoid ANY medications due to the side affects but you may want to try adding a teaspoon of Aquarium salt. Any ammonia, or nitrite or high nitrates?

Lucy

Before you use Melafix, please read this alert:
All Betta Owners Read!!!!! Melafix Alert!!!!!! Read!!!! Read!!!! Danger!!!!

I was just looking for information about swim bladder, it's suggested to try peas, which you have.
The other thing would be fasting him like blaxicanlatino suggested, for a few days and step up on the water changes.
I would avoid salt and epsom.

You can get Vita-Chem and Fish Protector. Garlic is also good for them, you can add a bit of juice to their water. Don't know that this would help the swim bladder though.

Rose and Dave (Chickadee and CoBettaCouple) should be seeing this soon. They're both very knowledgeable on betta care.

blaxicanlatino

WOW!! I never knew that about Melafix!!! Sorry for the faulty info TaraC. Why not use salt? Ive come from many forums and many say do it while some say not. Whats your reason for not (just so I can know)?

Devon

Hi Tara! Welcome!

I'm sorry your little guy isn't feeling well. What are the water parameters? And what do you usually use to prep the water?

It does actually sound like swim bladder to me, but I'm not an expert...

Lucy

Salt is an irritant that damages the slime coat, I believe I read it can cause dehydration.
While I think some people have used it for fungus with some success, I don't think this case necessitates it.

I'm defiantly not an expert, so I'd wait for other's opinions.

Devon

I've had great luck using slightly higher salt content when treating for fungal infections, but I haven't seen it do much good for anything else. I do use a tiny bit of aquarium salt in my betta tank at all times because it helps protect against fungus and infected scratches, etc., but it shouldn't be more than a tablespoon to 10 gallons.

tkfury

From my understanding salt is an irritant that is used to help build up a fish's slime coat. I can't recall how it was put but someone did compare it to scabs - the body trying to protect itself but all the while providing discomfort (mother always said - if it iches, its healing and then would pull out the over mitts). I belive products such as API Stress Coat help with slime coating without causing discomfort. I could and most likely am wrong though so please don't take my word for it. There are some fish that do indeed need salt (other than saltwater fish) and others that seem to thrive better when salt is added but its just a topic I've heard bits and pieces about.

COBettaCouple

Welcome to Fishlore.

Yes, salt was used to prompt slime coat generation by damaging the slime coat. Now that we have products that do that without irritation, I would only use salt on non-freshwater tanks.

Do you test with the api master freshwater kit? What are your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings? I'd HIGHLY recommend a filter for your betta.. as I would any fish kept in a closed system (ie: aquarium).

blaxicanlatino

Ive just always used salt as helping the fish in repiration and cutting down on bcaterial infections. Ever since I used it on my betta tank, the bettas colors are more extravagant. I believe I must do more research.

For a 5 gallon... I HIGHLY suggest a filter but if one is not used then a close eye is needed in removing food debri and fecal matter.

Hows thte betta dong now?

blaxicanlatino

By any chance do you have a moneywort in the tank? What does the bettas "poo" look like?

Martinismommy

Another thing you may want to try is frozen baby peas thawed out peeled and cut up into tiny peices.....I'm not sure if anyone mentioned that......A photo would also be very helpful in determining what may be wrong with the little guy.......

TaraC

thank you all for the replies.unfortunately my test strips have expired, so i can't give water parameters at the moment. i agree that i need to get him a filter, and will asap. he is doing a little bit better today, moving around more and swimming straighter. ive only fed him 1-3 pellets a day for the last week, and skipped a couple days.
here are some pics:











thanks again for the help.

Lucy

He's a pretty color, looks like a curious little guy. What's his name?

Cutting down his food was a good idea, and as Martinismommy said, try the peas and do frequent water changes
I'm glad he's feeling a little better.

TaraC

Thanks lucy i love his color and spots. cody's his name. Well i guess this thread should be renamed 'overweight betta'. ill be sure to stick with the diet and get a filter asap.

Lucy

You should also get a heater if you don't already have one.

Good luck Cody, get better soon.

COBettaCouple

Garlic Guard is what we use to help reduce the chance of infection. It also adds other benefits to their health. Vita-Chem and Fish Protector both can be used to speed up healing and they each have other additional benefits to the fish.
I'd recommend picking up an API master freshwater test kit. You'll get much more accurate results. A nice sprinkle of Hikari Freeze-dried daphnia or 3 pellet-sized pieces of a thawed & peeled frozen pea (preferable over the daphnia) twice a day would be the diet I'd have him on. I'd get some Parasite Clear as well, in case he has internal parasites. Is his appetite and activity good today?

blaxicanlatino

From the pics, the betta looks relatively healthy. My betta, every once in awhile leans on his side like that . It COULD possibly just be the way the betta is. Continue with the diet and what is the temperature of the tank?

ara

If fasting and feeding peas didn't help and if everything else (like water parameters and temperature) is fine your fish is possible suffering from bacterial infection. I have learned that if a Betta floats on the top and can't swim down - it has parasites. A fish stuck on the bottom unable to get to the top often has bacterial infections. In this case you need to use something like Maracyn-Two.

blaxicanlatino

Ive never heard of bettas floating being the sympotoms of parasites. My betta floated but had nothing to do with parasites. I highly believe it is a bacterial infection. Is there any discoloration in the fish? missing scales? loss of appetite?