Betta fish sinking to bottom, lopsided

[StickyFishy]

My betta fish was kind of odd ever since I bought him. I noticed he had a slight buldge in his tail but it didnt seem to affect him. more recently for about two weeks or so he has been falling to the bottom of the tank, and looking lopsided when he rests. I assumed this was a problem with his swim bladder, but less food doesnt seem to be resolving the issue, can bacterial infections in the swim bladder be treated? And if so what should I treat it with?- Also his temperature is in the safe zone, a little below 80 so I cant imagine what could be causing it besides maybe bacteria.

 

[Crimson_687]

The bulge in his tail is where the swim bladder is.

Do you know your water parameters? Poor water quality one of the biggest causes of swim bladder. Another factor is quality of diet. What are you feeding him?

Have you tried doing an Epsom salt bath? It helps them release air from their swim bladder. All you need is another container, about 1 tablespoon of salt per a gallon of water. Use tank water so you don’t shock your fish, and you can do a WC as well since you won’t add this water back to the tank. Only leave him in there for 10-20 minutes. Make sure you use just Epsom salt, not anything with scents or additives. You can do this once or twice a week until he is better.

If you are certain his swim bladder is infected, you will need an antibiotic, such as erythromycin or metronidazole. Do NOT try to use any of the pima/mela/bettafixes or oils to treat your fish, these are not real medicines and will only irritate the fish

 

[StickyFishy]

No I do not know the water parameters but I am sure I need to change his water soon, I work 8 hour shifts and have been so busy but my next day off is in two days so I'll do it then... and buy water a water testing kit. Thank you for the advice with the Epsom salt. I feel so bad but Im waiting on my paycheck to give him and my other girl 5 gal tanks! I can tell you that his water is around 78 degrees almost constantly, and that he lives in a 1 gal tank ( i know too small). I feed him Aqueon Pro Betta Formula pellets. It had pretty good reviews so I assumed this was a better food to feed them, it also helped with my female's swim bladder issue that had to do with food impacting her swim bladder.

 

[Shrimp42]

No I do not know the water parameters but I am sure I need to change his water soon, I work 8 hour shifts and have been so busy but my next day off is in two days so I'll do it then... and buy water a water testing kit. Thank you for the advice with the Epsom salt. I feel so bad but Im waiting on my paycheck to give him and my other girl 5 gal tanks! I can tell you that his water is around 78 degrees almost constantly, and that he lives in a 1 gal tank ( i know too small). I feed him Aqueon Pro Betta Formula pellets. It had pretty good reviews so I assumed this was a better food to feed them, it also helped with my female's swim bladder issue that had to do with food impacting her swim bladder.

Do you know about the nitrogen cycle?

 

[Crimson_687]

I’d recommend omega one or bug bites as opposed to the current food.

Here are a few things I’ve learned that might help out. Fishkeeping can be an expensive hobby so I like saving wherever I can.

As you probably know, Petco has the dollar per gallon sale every so often. Great way to get a tank. I recommend downloading the petsmart app. By playing the treat trail game on their app, which is a fun and easy game, you’ll be able to win a 15%, 20%, and 25% off single-item coupon. Additionally, both Petsmart and PetSupermarket price match with chewy.

 

[StickyFishy]

Do you know about the nitrogen cycle?

yup

 

[Shrimp42]

yup

Okay just making sure, a lot of people on here have problems and have no knowledge of the cycle.

 

[Shrimp42]

yup

I would go to petco and if you have 2 bettas I would buy a 10 gall then put a divider in the middle. Or you could buy 2 5 gallons. Like crimson said petco has a dollar per gallon sale right now and you can buy a cheap Walmart filter then buy some aquaclear sponges instead of cartridges. Thats what I do and they should last you.

 

[Orion1066]

No I do not know the water parameters but I am sure I need to change his water soon, I work 8 hour shifts and have been so busy but my next day off is in two days so I'll do it then... and buy water a water testing kit. Thank you for the advice with the Epsom salt. I feel so bad but Im waiting on my paycheck to give him and my other girl 5 gal tanks! I can tell you that his water is around 78 degrees almost constantly, and that he lives in a 1 gal tank ( i know too small). I feed him Aqueon Pro Betta Formula pellets. It had pretty good reviews so I assumed this was a better food to feed them, it also helped with my female's swim bladder issue that had to do with food impacting her swim bladder.

As for food I would agree. My fish would not eat the many different foods I offered him, pellets, freeze dried, flakes, etc. After much worry, I tried bug bites. H loves them! Once in a while, I give him frozen brine shrimp. He really enjoys them.