Betta Fish with breathing issues

My betta is having some issues with breathing. I am just wondering if any other betta owner has had this issue, and if there is something that anyone would suggest to help. I have about 7 years experience with bettas, so I'm not a newbie. I've dealt with a ton of health issues with my bettas over the years. I did have another betta that had a similar issue, but his main problem was a swim bladder issue that was an injury, not related to constipation.

I have had Flash for a year and a half; he was maybe 5 months old when I got him. I did get him from PetSmart, the only pet store within 60 miles. There were no outward signs of disease or illness. This issue presented itself after I had him for about six months. I am assuming it is due to something genetic. It is not related to gill flukes or parasites or disease. He has no other outward signs of illness, and his gills are normal. Color is normal, too. He eats about 4 pellets a day (Omega one, or North Fin, or Fluval Bug Bites). He's a big boy, but not over fed. I actually have to coax him to eat sometimes. He is not your typical betta in that he is not very food-motivated.

He releases air bubbles from his gills a lot. He looks like he gets chocked sometimes. He has recently taken to staying at the top of the tank in order to get air quickly. He does swim around some, but not a lot.

He is in a 5 gallon tank, cycled for almost 2 years. Water parameters are ammonia - o, nitrite - o, nitrate - 0 (because of the pothos ivy; they suck up every bit of nitrate in the tank). His temp is set for 80 degrees, and he gets a 50 to 60% water change every week - water changed and gravel vacced. He has live plants in the tank along with plenty of Indian almond leaves. He has a betta log and some betta beds to lay on at the top of the tank as well as an anubias with large leaves. Since this is the only tank that I currently have, he gets lots of attention.

I added a little aquarium salt to the tank to help with his osmoregulation. I don't use aquarium salt constantly, so there is no danger of over dosing or over use. At this point, I am just trying to make him as comfy as possible. If it gets to the point where he is gasping for air and in severe distress, I know what to do about that (unfortunately).

Does anyone have any thoughts? Ideas about how I can make him more comfortable?

Thanks in advance!

 

Sounds like you got it about as comfy as a person can. Any type of swelling around the gills that you have noticed?

 

Sounds like you got it about as comfy as a person can. Any type of swelling around the gills that you have noticed?

No noticeable swelling around the gills, and no uptick in mucus production, no rubbing on things, no deterioration of gills or gill tissue...

Oh well, guess I will just keep things as clean as possible and keep the aquarium salt in the tank. I kind of figured that this was going to be the way things were going to go when I first saw him begin to release those air bubbles, but was hoping that maybe there was something else that I could do to prolong his life.

If you think of anything else that I could do, please let me know...I would appreciate it greatly!!!

 

So these posts will be just to let you guys know what I do, what works, and what doesn't, in case you ever have to deal with this issue.

I suspected that soon Flash would stop eating due to the breathing problem, and today is day 2 of his going without food. He did try to eat, but quickly spit out what he had taken into his mouth earlier today.

Even though this is going on, the little guy is swimming around like nothing different is happening, and even gave me the biggest flare! That was good because it gave me the chance to look at his entire gill set and beard, and there is nothing that looks wrong there.

I tried to help someone out with a similar problem, and another person who kind of had this issue, too, so I am going to medicate him based on the fact that one of those ended up developing some sort of internal infection due to a possible scratch in the throat that turned deadly.

I have added a dose of Fish Flex (cephalexin - a form of Keflex) in the hopes that it will kill any thing that is trying to rear it's ugly head. It is broad based, and therefore milder than some fish antibiotics.

I am soaking various flakes and pellets in some garlic guard to see if I can entice the betta to eat, even just a little.

Hope this works! I would love to be able to learn how to solve this issue, if that is possible, and pass on that knowledge to others.

 

Today is day 3 of dosing with Fish Flex. I do a partial water change, and then add the med along with the right amount of aquarium salt. The betta is still swimming around, flaring at himself in the glass, interacts, and is mostly acting normal. This is the 4th day that he has not eaten. He sometimes will swim quickly across the tank, and then stop short. I think it is part of his flaring behavior. He is still going up for air a lot, but not as often as he was a few days ago. I still see bubbles come from his gills, but not nearly as much as before.

My biggest concern is that he isn't eating at all. I soaked food, and tried a variety of things, but he wants nothing right now. I know he can go a while without eating. I just hope that he bounces back, and gets his appetite back, too.

 

So I was able to coax Flash into eating one pellet this morning...a small victory!!!

I may skip the water change and med/salt routine today. I am sure that I have damaged the cycle a bit, so I will have to start testing his water. Since he is the only tank inhabitant, and since he ignores most of the food that I put into the tank (food for bb), I may be able to salvage the cycle without a ton of effort. If not, I will just do what I have to do to get it straight.

I was getting nervous, so I ordered some API General Cure, just in case his symptoms start pointing towards a gill fluke infestation. I really don't think that is the case, but you never know....

I also ordered some new food (A201 recommended New Life Spectrum Thera A+, which has garlic mixed in and will help with both appetite and has antiparisitic properties), and also got some Omega One betta pellets, since it is available again. I will be throwing old food away due to its age.

I think that this is going to be a continuous issue with him.

 

Flash is back to his old self, eating well, and has a clean tank and new Indian almond leaves. I stopped dosing with meds yesterday as he was starting to eat normally again. So glad that he got past his illness. I guess I will never know for sure what was going on, and I am sure that he will continue to have bouts of trouble with his breathing. I got the New Life Spectrum Thera A+ in, and it is extremely small granules. I will have to try to get him to realize that it is food. Hopefully it won't take too long.

Here's a pic of Flash chillin' in his floating betta log and another one of him tangled up in the pothos roots (sorry it's so blurry but he won't stay still at all)