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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| constipated betta
Hi, I think my betta is constipated. It lies on the bottom only to go to the surface to breath air every once in a while. I tried the frozen pee thing, but it doesen't want to eat the pieces. Anything else I can try?? | 
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| Hello Maryke and Welcome to Fish Lore. Other than the peas I don't know which way to lead you. I know epsom salt may be a last resort but please wait for some experienced Betta people to sign on and help you. I don't know if a Betta can handle salt period. Best of luck and hope it recovers soon.  | 
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| Hi Maryke welcome to Fish Lore 
I'm sorry your betta isn't feeling well. What size tank is he in? Is it heated, filtered? Any tank mates?
How long have you had your betta?
Can you post a pic?
Will he eat regular food if offered? What have you been feeding him and how much?
Usually bettas love the peas. Did you cut it into tiny bits the size of his eye?
If you think he's constipated you can fast him for a day then try the pea again. Freeze dried daphnia works the same way as peas. You can find it in the reptile section at the store.
Then fast again.
Sorry for all the qustions, the answers might help us better figure out what's going on.
If you could fill in your aquarium info, it would help avoid so many questions. It's found under My Settings at the top left.
Good luck, I hope he feels better soon. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| Maybe you didn't cut the pea pieces up small enough? And did you shell them?
Generally fishies eyes are the same size as their stomach, so get a frozen pea, take off the shell, and cut it up as small as you physically can
Apparently soaking food in garlic juice will get your bettas appetite up and running if he doesn't like the pea chunks normally. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| My tank is 45cm X 24cm X 23cm. It has a heater and filter. The temperature is 26C. I have my betta for a week now. The only tank mates are 2 corys. Since this morning, when I found the betta on the bottom, he has been aggressive towards the corys. I feed him tropical fish flakes in the mornings and frozen blood worm in the evenings (only small amounts). He ate flkes this morning but is refusing to eat the pea. And yes, I shelled the pea and chopped into tiny pieces. He swam towards each piece and just looked at it. He also doesnt have his vibrant colour anymore. How do you upload photos? | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| Here you go: How to up load pics
I would try fasting him for a day or so then re-introduce the peas. He might be hungry enough to nibble on them or see if you can find daphnia.
If you continues to be aggressive to the cories, you might want to consider moving them.
Is it possible he's been eating food meant for the cories?
Is the tank cycled? What are the readings for ammonia nitrite and nitrate?
Last edited by Lucy; June 5th, 2009 at 08:08 AM.
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| welcome to fishlore!! im sorry your lil man is sick 
im wondering if you happen to know the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate readings of the tank? | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| constipated betta
Im glad to report that my betta ate a few pieces of pea! He swims round alot more now, but he is still pale and his fins do not look as full as it was when I bought him, if you know what I mean. Yes, he has been nibbling at the sinking pellets I give to the corys. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| although the pics dont show exactly, he doenst look constipated to me he is a handsome boy for sure!!!! can you get your tank readings for us? | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
|  Echoing Shawnie. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| Don't know the tank readings. The only test kits you get at the pet shop nearby, is the strips that measure only the ammonia. The ammonia can't be too high because I did a partial water change yesterday. I replaced about 3 litres of the tank. And I did at Anti- chlorine. How does a constipated fish look like then? Swollen up? | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| the ammonia can be high if the tank wasnt cycled..so can the nitrites ..both which can kill your baby and hes showing signs of that...how long has the tank been running and what did you cycle it with? ....can you find prime or amquel+ ? both of those , with daily partial water changes, will help him get through this...without a proper kit, its hard to say exactly what is making him sick... if he was constipated enough where he is lethargic and laying on the bottom, he would be much larger .... | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| A constipated betta would look bloated.
If you tank is a week old, It's a good bet he's feeling the effects of a cycling tank which would make him lie on the bottom and act sluggish. Any amount of ammonia is toxic to your fish.
Do you know about the nitrogen cycle
Can you ask the shop to check the levels for you? Ask them the exact numbers.
I'd suggest 50% water changes until the tank is cycled. Readings of 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite with 5-10 nitrate.
Using Prime as your water conditioner will detox the ammonia for 24 hours between water changes. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| The tank is up and running for 6 months now. My other fish were in the tank, but I moved them to a larger tank. Then I decided to get a betta for the smaller tank. Now I don't know whether I should do a partial water change again today, because he's been like this from this morning after the water change yesterday. Maybe it stressed him out and I don't want to stress him out further by dong another change.. He also seems agitated, swims up an down the one side, as if he thinks the grass is greener on the other side. And if he doesent does that, he just lies on the bottom. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| We didn't know the tank has been running for 6 months.
Thought the tank was a week old since that's when you got your betta.
In that case, I wouldn't recommend daily changes until we know the readings.
Please fill in your aquarium info.
We can only go by the info you provide. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| im the opposite without a test kit, it could be a mini cycle and the small partial changes IMO are better to play safe than sorry until you do know the exact readings...they never hurt...and the tank is small enough that you can use a turkey baster that might scare him less... ...but its your tank and certainly you know your baby best...I hope he does better soon!!! but im still thinking its something with his water and not constipation goodluck! | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| Welcome to fishlore!
While I will agree with everyone else here, and say that he does not look constipated from the pictures, I wanted to expand a bit on the feeding.
I experienced a very similar situation in my 10 gallon tank, when I tried to keep a betta with my cories. It simply did not work out. While he was not aggressive the rest of the time, as soon as the sinking food dropped in there, he would chase and nip and them so he could eat it. This was detrimental for two reasons. One, of course, because of the aggression (one of the cories did get a fin injury); and another, because my betta would fill his little belly too much. He did not become constipated from this, but he very well might have eventually. I ended up removing him after 3 days.
Definitely check your water. But do keep in mind that you might want to separate them anyway due to the aggression and feeding challenges you are experiencing already. It is unlikely that he will stop wanting to eat the sinking food.
Last edited by haedra; June 5th, 2009 at 09:16 AM.
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| I'll try and get the ammonia strips tomorrow. Most of the time he leaves the cories lone. But yes, the food thing might be a problem. I'll put the cories in the other tank. But wont the betta become lonely? Before he came sick he swam up and down the glass, as if he wants to get out. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Maryke  I'll try and get the ammonia strips tomorrow. Most of the time he leaves the cories lone. But yes, the food thing might be a problem. I'll put the cories in the other tank. But wont the betta become lonely? Before he came sick he swam up and down the glass, as if he wants to get out. | If he's only been in there for a week, he might still be learning his environment. All of my fish, including my bettas, my dwarf gourami, and my cories spent about a week racing the glass until they learned the confines.
In all honesty, it is my humble opinion that the only time a betta might become lonely is without their human friends. There might be some that tolerate other fish; but I don't think they ever prefer it. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| If my tank had some ammonia when I added the betta to it a week ago, how long does it take for the ammonia to show that it has affected the fish? A week? And if ammonia was the culprit, can my fish be saved? He still lies on the bottom of the tank. | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| unfortunately, you could have ammonia and the test strips wont show it..they are not reliable and you have such limited resources as you said, that id go for finding some prime or amquel + if you can, and assume there is some of either ammonia or nitrites , and do small partial changes for some time..cycling can take weeks or days depending on where you are at in the process....it will not hurt anything and again, without reliable testing, I would play it safe and assume either the tank wasnt cycled or its in a mini cycle....remember, nitrites are as bad as ammonia if they are present.... | |
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June 5th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| Do you maybe have pictures of how prime and amquel + looks like so that I can see what to look for at the pet shop? | |
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June 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| This time my betta is reallly constipated. He's not in a good state. Refuses to eat the pea. Im so sad, it's frustrating, because the pea could save his life, but he refuses to eat anything. He just lies on the gravel and only comes up for air. When I throw tiny pea pieces into the tank he only gets agitated. Now, I want to know, how can a betta get so easily constipated? I only give him one or two crushed flakes in the mornings and a small amount of frozen blood worm in the evenings. | |
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June 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| Your boy does not appear constipated to me...If anything, he looks to be on the thin side....I'd get him off of the flakes and on to some good quality pellets such as atisons betta pro....He won't be lonely if you remove the tankmates...Most Bettas actually prefer to live alone and enjoy the company of their human friends.....
Good luck! He's a handsome little fellow! | |
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June 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| So my betta died of constipation. I think it really was constipation this time, because he was swollen up. ai, toggie... | |
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June 14th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| I'm very sorry you lost him...... | |
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September 5th, 2009
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| | Moderator
| This thread is pretty old and long.
Since this is a different fish, I've started a new thread for you.
It can be found here: Another constipated betta | |
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