Betta won't eat!

[Vivo]

I’m actually about to be at Petco and I was going to try those micro pellets! Either way I will get bloodworms too and hope he starts with those so he doesn’t starve

I saw a container at a pet store with live flying things. How do you get a living fly one at a time without letting the whole bunch go? Gives me the willies. :0

 

[ElysiumPlants]

So I got some frozen brine shrimp because they were out of bloodworms, but he actually ate it! It's the first time I've bought frozen food like that so I *may* have accidentally gave him a tad too much and his belly bloated out but at least now I know how much to give him!

Trial and error, friend.

I saw a container at a pet store with live flying things. How do you get a living fly one at a time without letting the whole bunch go? Gives me the willies. :0

They’re flightless, which helps. You basically tap the top of the container a few times to knock them all down, hold it over your tank, and open the lid. When the desired number of flies has scrambled up and fallen into the tank, you close it. Not hard at all.

 

[kansas]

It's a good idea to rinse frozen shrimp and bloodworms as the liquid feeds algae.

 

[Desi]

Marvin’s a picky cuss sometimes, but he can’t resist the fruit flies.

Mine are the same way! hilarious

 

[StarGirl]

Man mine is a giant pig. She eats anything I have put in there! Im glad shes not picky. She was begging the minute I put her in the tank. I have the Hikari Bio gold pellets and Bug bites betta flakes. (which I soak first) Frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp.

 

[TeeJay89]

Man mine is a giant pig. She eats anything I have put in there! Im glad shes not picky. She was begging the minute I put her in the tank. I have the Hikari Bio gold pellets and Bug bites betta flakes. (which I soak first) Frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp.

My other betta named Red is like that, I have a mystery snail with him and I can't give him any of the algae wafers because I learned that my little piggy will eat ALL of it and completely engorge himself

 

[Vivo]

They’re flightless, which helps. You basically tap the top of the container a few times to knock them all down, hold it over your tank, and open the lid. When the desired number of flies has scrambled up and fallen into the tank, you close it. Not hard at all.

Would they breed if they got away?

It's a good idea to rinse frozen shrimp and bloodworms as the liquid feeds algae.

Uuihhggg! Something else to think about??!! If I rinse them won’t the smell the lesson and my loaches won’t be able to find it.

 

[ElysiumPlants]

Would they breed if they got away?

They’ll breed either way. The one thing to avoid if you’re going to culture them yourself is attracting wild fruit flies and allowing them into your culture. At that point, offspring might not be flightless.

 

[kansas]

Would they breed if they got away?


Uuihhggg! Something else to think about??!! If I rinse them won’t the smell the lesson and my loaches won’t be able to find it.

dunno anything about loaches, I had less algae when I started rinsing the food.

 

[Jennie2021]

Good morning,

I'm quite concerned about one of my betta fish. He is adopted from a friend so I'm not sure if he's from specialty store or petsmart. His personality is curious, playful, however he isn't a bold male - more behind the scenes. He started refusing food a week ago. First he would take the zoo med betta micro floating pellets with krill and stabilized vitamin C (only once) and then spit it out. He then didn't eat again (that I can see). I do as suggested and remove the food after 5 minutes. I then tried smaller pellets as he is a smaller betta. Not interested. I bought Betta treats (freeze dried bloodworms) and he maybe took a stab at them once and then wasn't interested.
I thought he was bored or depressed with no stimulation (even though most will tell you they are happy by themselves) so I got a mystery snail for company. I added fresh plants and another silk one to make his space more interesting. He still is listless.

I'm really worried at this point. I have been testing the water daily and if/when it had ammonia, or nitrite, I would do a 20% water change which was about every other day. I keep a large container with conditioned water ready to go so that it is at room temperature and safe.

Second tank - now second Betta (although this only started March 20 - is now not interested in food. Won't even come to surface. He is pacing back and forth in his tank like a professional swimmer doing laps.
Now I'm a bit paranoid and completely stressed. I'm probably missing a tonne of stuff but this is a start. All same conditions except for number of plants in second tank. I'll include pictures. Actually I will have to attach pics separately - I can't see where to save this and then attach. (so new to this). Bear with me.

 

[Fishstery]

What are your water parameters? You noted that if you have any ammonia or nitrite you do a water change. Did you cycle the tanks before adding your bettas? If not, a fish in cycle is most likely the culprit. Bettas are some of the worst fish you can do a fish in cycle with because of how susceptible they are to secondary bacterial and fungal infections due to bad water quality. You also noted that you keep "room temp" tap on hand for your WCs. How warm is that water? Bettas need a heater and water AT LEAST 75 degrees but it's preferred to keep them in 78-80. Too cold of water could also cause them to become stressed and inactive. Please refer to the sick fish template that is stickied under the disease forum. Copy and paste it here and fill it out so the members can better help you!

Edit and welcome to the forum btw!!

 

[Jennie2021]

My apologies. I put all of that information in my profile earlier - where it asked for it. I’ll do this one now.
Tank
What is the water volume of the tank? 3G
How long has the tank been running? A week
Does it have a filter? Yes
Does it have a heater? No - was told it’s too small for heater.
What is the water temperature? I can’t read the thermometer but the temp is within the green zone - half way.
What is the entire stocking of this tank? (Please list all fish and inverts.) Betta & mystery Snail

Maintenance
How often do you change the water? Since it’s only been a week I’ve changed it once.
How much of the water do you change? 30% because of ammonia spike.
What do you use to treat your water? Top fin water conditioner
Do you vacuum the substrate or just the water? Will be doing substrate but haven’t yet.

*Parameters - Very Important
Did you cycle your tank before adding fish? No. Was told betta would be good to add to tank after 48 hours
What do you use to test the water? Tetra Easy Strips - ammonia strip & nitrate, nitrite, hard water, chlorine, alkalinity & PH
What are your parameters? We need to know the exact numbers, not just “fine” or “safe”.
Ammonia: .5-1
Nitrite: 0-.5
Nitrate: 5
pH: 7.2

Feeding
How often do you feed your fish? In the morning
How much do you feed your fish? Three pellets or less
What brand of food do you feed your fish? zoo med labs micro floating pellets, krill & Vit C. Tried peas as well. Omega one betta treats bloodworms
Do you feed frozen or freeze-dried foods? No but would like to now I know about them.

Illness & Symptoms
How long have you had this fish? Two weeks
How long ago did you first notice these symptoms? One week ago
In a few words, can you explain the symptoms? He’s not a very active betta - he rests a lot at bottom or on leaves of silk plants. He flares at his reflection or he did not so much now. He is however interactive and curious. So lethargy compared to others for sure, and no interest in food. Doesn’t even notice it. I can’t tempt him at all.
Have you started any treatment for the illness? Other than getting him a snail, more plants, food to tempt him and monitoring his water, no.
Was your fish physically ill or injured upon purchase? Not that I know of but possibly as I have acquired him from a friend who “rescued” him from pet smart.
How has its behavior and appearance changed, if at all? I haven’t noticed that his colour has faded. He just can’t go much longer without eating. He seems bored or more aptly depressed.

Explain your emergency situation in detail. (Please give a clear explanation of what is going on, include details from the beginning of the illness leading up to now)
I acquired him in a small glass goldfish bowl. No filter no heater. Some pebbles and a plastic plant. Upon researching I discovered that min requirement was 5G tank or more, no tank mates in that size (fish) and that they need filter and heater. I bought the three gallon w filter for the interim, set it up with plants fake and real, a cave, and white pebbles. Everything washed without soap as per directions. I put water in tank and conditioner and waited two days to introduce him.
He had started to lose interest in food before I moved him so I thought this would help. I let him acclimate to the new water (in neither case heated) and let the water in the tank into his bag slowly so as not to shock once temperatures were similar.
he seemed happy, more energetic, curious, saw reflection for a day and was defending his turf, looked good. I thought maybe it was stress of new environment, “other” fish in reflection, etc - then bought live plants, and a snail hoping it would help if he was depressed or bored. He was curious of change but no appetite. I tried green peas - couldn’t have cared less.
In appearance he looks pretty good to an untrained eye. I’m afraid he’s going to die.
I’m looking after two other betta in bowls no filter no heater and they’re active, feisty, aggressively eating, etc. Stark difference. They’re not mine.


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

[Fishstery]

Okay so you should try and get a heater and proper thermometer for it. Fluval makes a 10 watt heater that they sell at petsmart/petco that works for a 3gal (I had one in mine) or Amazon sells a variety of 15watt heaters. 10-15watts is what you'll be looking for. Just stay away from the hygger digital 15 watt heater that's square (myself and every other person that bought one had it e2 fail after a month so it's a waste of money). You're going to need to do daily 50% water changes or every other day 100% water changes for the next few weeks until the tank cycles. Never ever change your filter pads or rinse them under tap water. If they get clogged swish them around in the water you removed from a water change and that's all it will need. I strongly suggest you use seachem prime as your tap conditioner as it also detoxifies ammonia and nitrite for 24 hours making any trace toxins "safer" for your fish. This is a band aid however so don't rely on it fully-water changes are still a must to keep your betta from getting sick. Any amount of ammonia and nitrite is dangerous for your betta, the advice you got was extremely bad about the tank being ready for a fish after only 48 hours unfortunately. It's common misguidance that pet stores give people to sell more fish. If your budget allows I would also invest in api liquid master test kit for water testing. The strips are notoriously in accurate. The price seems to be a lot for a test kit however that kit will last you 2 or 3 years and is a staple in the hobby. Bottom line is, for your betta to avoid falling ill, heater, prime, water changes, and test the water daily for at least 3 weeks until the only thing showing up in tests is nitrate that is 10 or lower ppm.

Edit: I should add too, if you do daily 50% water changes, dose prime for the full 3 gallons not just the water you are replacing to ensure that all ammonia and nitrite that isn't removed is detoxified. If you do every other day 100% water changes, dose prime on the days you skip the water change so your betta isn't sitting in trace toxins until WC day.

 

[Jennie2021]

I forgot to mention the Topfin bacteria starter which I also put in the new tank.
I am so frustrated. If my Betta was eating, then his behaviour wouldn’t stress me as much. He is still exploring just very low key, slow, chill. Maybe just his personality. But here we are.

Okay so you should try and get a heater and proper thermometer for it. Fluval makes a 10 watt heater that they sell at petsmart/petco that works for a 3gal (I had one in mine) or Amazon sells a variety of 15watt heaters. 10-15watts is what you'll be looking for. Just stay away from the hygger digital 15 watt heater that's square (myself and every other person that bought one had it e2 fail after a month so it's a waste of money). You're going to need to do daily 50% water changes or every other day 100% water changes for the next few weeks until the tank cycles. Never ever change your filter pads or rinse them under tap water. If they get clogged swish them around in the water you removed from a water change and that's all it will need. I strongly suggest you use seachem prime as your tap conditioner as it also detoxifies ammonia and nitrite for 24 hours making any trace toxins "safer" for your fish. This is a band aid however so don't rely on it fully-water changes are still a must to keep your betta from getting sick. Any amount of ammonia and nitrite is dangerous for your betta, the advice you got was extremely bad about the tank being ready for a fish after only 48 hours unfortunately. It's common misguidance that pet stores give people to sell more fish. If your budget allows I would also invest in api liquid master test kit for water testing. The strips are notoriously in accurate. The price seems to be a lot for a test kit however that kit will last you 2 or 3 years and is a staple in the hobby. Bottom line is, for your betta to avoid falling ill, heater, prime, water changes, and test the water daily for at least 3 weeks until the only thing showing up in tests is nitrate that is 10 or lower ppm.

Edit: I should add too, if you do daily 50% water changes, dose prime for the full 3 gallons not just the water you are replacing to ensure that all ammonia and nitrite that isn't removed is detoxified. If you do every other day 100% water changes, dose prime on the days you skip the water change so your betta isn't sitting in trace toxins until WC day.

oh my gosh ok this is incredibly helpful. I’ll get those items straight away. Also didn’t measure water conditioner for tank but container. Ok thank you I’ll keep you posted. I’ll do the daily 50% as well so I keep some bacteria. ??

 

[Fishstery]

I forgot to mention the Topfin bacteria starter which I also put in the new tank.
I am so frustrated. If my Betta was eating, then his behaviour wouldn’t stress me as much. He is still exploring just very low key, slow, chill. Maybe just his personality. But here we are.

oh my gosh ok this is incredibly helpful. I’ll get those items straight away. Also didn’t measure water conditioner for tank but container. Ok thank you I’ll keep you posted. I’ll do the daily 50% as well so I keep some bacteria. ??

Quick start can help but in my experience it never did anything to speed things up when I did fishless cycling. 50% daily works fine just make sure you're using prime for the entire tank volume. Keep an eye on your betta. He isn't eating because of the water quality, it's stressing him out and he will develop ammonia poisoning if it would have went unfixed, so you made a good call seeking some advice! You're doing a good job its just going to take a little work and extra attention to get there. Another important tip, when you are doing the water changes take the thermometer out of the tank and use that under the faucet to "set the temperature" before you fill your jugs or whatever you use to refill the tank. Ensure the new water is within 1 degree of the tank water. Too quick of a temperature change can also stress/shock your betta and cause secondary illnesses. Many people are led to believe bettas are hardy fish which in the wild is true, but IMO and experience over the years the mass breeding and farming is starting to naturally weaken bettas immune systems and despite having much more intermediate level fish I never had issues with I've always had problems with keeping bettas consistently healthy.

 

[Jennie2021]

Thank you for the tip - I was wondering about how to gauge the new water to ensure it was the same temperature. It’s interesting and makes good sense that the hardiness of the fish is lessening considering everything you mentioned.
I was getting so worried and was afraid to do another water change.
To make matters worse, a friend has bettas, which she never had in a tank, no filter, no heater and the vessels she did use were maybe 1 or at most 2 gallons - and bettas are super vibrant and healthy. I thought it was me. Thank you for the reassurance. I’m sure like people, every betta has a different stress threshold, needs, etc.
Ive picked up the water conditioner, heater, testing kit and thermometer. I’m extremely thankful for your help.

 

[Fishstery]

Thank you for the tip - I was wondering about how to gauge the new water to ensure it was the same temperature. It’s interesting and makes good sense that the hardiness of the fish is lessening considering everything you mentioned.
I was getting so worried and was afraid to do another water change.
To make matters worse, a friend has bettas, which she never had in a tank, no filter, no heater and the vessels she did use were maybe 1 or at most 2 gallons - and bettas are super vibrant and healthy. I thought it was me. Thank you for the reassurance. I’m sure like people, every betta has a different stress threshold, needs, etc.
Ive picked up the water conditioner, heater, testing kit and thermometer. I’m extremely thankful for your help.

No problem! Trust me I've been there. Banging my head because my betta gets finrot when I give him a heated, filtered tank with proper water conditions and water changes but other people can keep theirs in an unheated vase for 3 years and theirs are fine. I think there's a difference between surviving and living however. Betta farmers also have very vibrant and healthy bettas that are kept in water bottles. Their fish are healthy because they do daily water changes religiously and also give them catappa leaves. They are healthy fish, but are their fish truly happy? Probably not. But farmers know their setups are just temporary homes for the fish. I try to make sure all the spaces I give my fish are a proper environment to their specific needs in the wild, including planting and tank size. Not only does it better the value of life for your fish, but it also leads to a bigger reward in your fish displaying the best colors and activity for you. It's more fun watching your fish bob and weave about plants and hunt for food than to just sit there swimming in circles in an empty tank.

 

[Jennie2021]

Absolutely. My thoughts exactly. Enjoy your evening! I’ll keep you posted.

 

[Fishstery]

Absolutely. My thoughts exactly. Enjoy your evening! I’ll keep you posted.

You too! Good luck with your betta

 

[Jennie2021]

Well I'm very sad to say I wasn't able to save him. The girl that bought him reminded me that he hadn't eaten since she bought him.
The heater I bought - Topfin 10 W submersible has been returned to Pet Smart. It did NOT shut off at 78 degrees and although it was working well when I went to bed - I found the heater hot, the water above 80 and my betta hanging straight down from the top. He died a little while later.

Just because I need to vent - Upon announcing to the store clerk that the heater had not worked as it promised (and that it killed my fish - whether it did or not), I got a "oh" and then on to other things. Could have cared less.

I hate that store.

Since I will order my heaters for future on Amazon, do you recommend a specific brand? It will still have to be 10W.
J

 

[Fishstery]

Well I'm very sad to say I wasn't able to save him. The girl that bought him reminded me that he hadn't eaten since she bought him.
The heater I bought - Topfin 10 W submersible has been returned to Pet Smart. It did NOT shut off at 78 degrees and although it was working well when I went to bed - I found the heater hot, the water above 80 and my betta hanging straight down from the top. He died a little while later.

Just because I need to vent - Upon announcing to the store clerk that the heater had not worked as it promised (and that it killed my fish - whether it did or not), I got a "oh" and then on to other things. Could have cared less.

I hate that store.

Since I will order my heaters for future on Amazon, do you recommend a specific brand? It will still have to be 10W.
J

I recommend the fluval I think it was called "p10". Honestly it's a preset heater (76-78) and it had a hard time consistently keeping the 3.5 at 78 but I'd rather have it not overheat. When using a preset heater, always closely monitor the temperature over the next 12 hours. Some heaters overheat and some don't heat enough. I usually recommend adjustable heaters for that reason. Some of them you have to play with for example, some you may have to set to 84 which only heats the water to 78. Some you have to set cooler than what you want and then it will heat to your target temp. That's why I always recommend a reliable old school thermometer. The thermostats on most aquarium heaters are usually not very accurate in my experience. For example, the 50 watt heater I bought on Amazon is rated up to 15 gallons but in my 5 gallon shallow I have it set to 84 and my glass thermometer reads out 78 even though the digital thermometer on the heater displays 84.

 

[Jennie2021]

Yes mine was a preset heater too with - auto shut off at 78. Ok that’s all interesting and good to know. I appreciate it. Thank you.

 

[Fishstery]

Yes mine was a preset heater too with - auto shut off at 78. Ok that’s all interesting and good to know. I appreciate it. Thank you.

No problem, and I'm sorry to hear about your betta

 

[Cherryshrimp420]

Unfortunately your tank was in the middle of a cycle. At 1 week the parameters are extremely bad for fish because ammonia is spiking and after that nitrites will spike which is another hurdle for fish to go through. Sorry to hear your betta wasn't able to overcome it.

There are a lot of resources on aquarium nitrogen cycle (a tank needs to be cycled in order to keep fish), so feel free to read up on them. Best of luck!

 

[BettaBoomer]

Quick start can help but in my experience it never did anything to speed things up when I did fishless cycling. 50% daily works fine just make sure you're using prime for the entire tank volume. Keep an eye on your betta. He isn't eating because of the water quality, it's stressing him out and he will develop ammonia poisoning if it would have went unfixed, so you made a good call seeking some advice! You're doing a good job its just going to take a little work and extra attention to get there. Another important tip, when you are doing the water changes take the thermometer out of the tank and use that under the faucet to "set the temperature" before you fill your jugs or whatever you use to refill the tank. Ensure the new water is within 1 degree of the tank water. Too quick of a temperature change can also stress/shock your betta and cause secondary illnesses. Many people are led to believe bettas are hardy fish which in the wild is true, but IMO and experience over the years the mass breeding and farming is starting to naturally weaken bettas immune systems and despite having much more intermediate level fish I never had issues with I've always had problems with keeping bettas consistently healthy.

Sorry for butting in (I'm new) but I have a comment about setting the temperature. Since you never know when a heater might fail I bought a second one, identical to the one in the tank, just in case. My point is that when doing a water change I use the backup heater to bring the conditioned tap water up to exactly the same temp as the tank. (Of course this might not work for everyone but I have a 5 gallon tank and for a 50% water change (2.5 gallons) I can easily put the conditioned tap water in a single 3.5 gallon bucket to heat).

 

[Jennie2021]

Hi there,
I see a tonne of posts about bettas not eating but not one 100% like mine so bear with me. Little Mars is in a 2 Gallon bowl while we’re waiting for a 5G tank to cycle. He has been in this bowl for about 12 weeks and happy. He had had an incident with another betta (different owner) so I adopted him so he could heal. His top fin had been bitten off so he is no stranger to stress.
Today it has all grown back and his colour is good, but he stopped eating two days ago and is not himself at all.
His parameters are excellent:
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 0
Ammonia 0
PH 7.5
No heater but he’s never had one and done well without. My home is warm.
I feed him micro pellets (floating) and regular size pellets (most of the time). He won’t eat freeze dried bloodworms or betta flakes but I keep trying to tempt him.
This evening he looked at the food I gave him which is an improvement. He was ignoring me yesterday and today.
I covered his bowl yesterday morning all day and again today thinking he may be stressed from a water change I did Thursday. But that’s never bothered him before.
He’s just floating. I’m really worried.

 

[Rose of Sharon]

Hi,

He looks just like my betta boy!

He looks bloated to me; if you look at the side view pic, you can see that his little tummy is sticking out. How many pellets do you give him, and how often do you feed him? Do you soak them before you feed him? If not, then you might want to start after he gets back to eating.

You might want to fast him for a day or two, and then feed him some daphnia, if you can get some of that. It helps the betta's digestion.

Also, I would get an aquarium thermometer to check his temp to make sure that he is not too cold (they are usually very cheap). What we feel and what they feel is very different. He needs 78 to 82 degrees to thrive.

I hope this helps!

 

[Salem]

He's constipated- if you look at his belly you can see its bulged out quite a bit. He is likely in a bit of discomfort and doesn't feel the need to eat because of it. Sometimes if it gets bad enough it can cause issue with the swim bladder and make it difficult for them to regulate how close to the surface they are or just how easily it is to swim in general.

If you fast him for a few more days it should be able to pass. Bettas can go a while without food and still be okay, not eating for a few days should be fine. If it doesn't pass after say around 3 days then you can try to help him out in a more active manner. Offering a small portion of deshelled boiled pea has been a method used in the hobby for a long time and works because bettas can't digest it, so it pushes things along. However it's not the healthiest thing. Other options are frozen or live foods like daphnia or mysis shrimp. You would want to feed a very small amount so as not to increase the bloat. If that doesn't work you can consider doing an epsom salt bath.

Bettas get bloated pretty easily because most commercial food for them is pellets that expands in water and they tend to eat things quickly and greedily. This results in the fish eating the food before it absorbs enough water to expand so the food will already be in the stomach by the time it does. This alone can cause bloating and discomfort- imagine if every time you ate something once it got to your stomach it doubled or even tripled in size! These little guys have a stomach only about as big as their eyeball too so even a few pellets can fill them up. Additionally a lot of people tend to overfeed them enough that even before the food expands they bloat.

In the future you can help avoid this by soaking his food in a bit of water (or something like garlic guard or vitachem) and waiting for it to puff up. You may also want to consider adding a day or two of fasting to his regular feeding schedule. Of course you can also feed him less pellets less often. A good general guide is 2-3 pieces of food once or twice daily with one day without food.

 

[Dechi]

Yes, he does look bloated. 4-5 pellets per day are sufficient for a betta. They’re the easiest fish to overfeed as they always look starved and are so cute begging for food.

Not feeding is the best for now. I would even do 4-5 days. And maybe even a little aquarium salt.

 

[Seamus111]

Aquarium salt can be a big help with many ailments. But if he is bloated or....... believe it or not, constipated, try some 100% Epsom salt. It's not salt but 100% Magnesium sulfate. It's a natural laxative for fish. It also helps, bloat, dropsy and porcupine scaling and swim bladder disorder. A quarter teaspoon per every 10 gal. Good luck!

 

[Jennie2021]

I knew I forgot something!

Twins. I was feeding him 3 regular sized floating pellets in the morning and then often two at bedtime as he was following me around the room vibrating ! telling me he was hungry.
He’s not had pellets now since Friday am and he wasn’t eating vigorously as he usually does.
I’ll try to find some daphnia. I have a couple of aquarium thermometers and can check the temperature- I had a heater with auto shutoff for small tank and it overheated and killed another betta. it was awful. Sickening. I don’t trust them. I’ll feel better when he’s in 5G and then he will have one. The lack of heater is not the issue. This I know.
I’ll keep you posted fingers crossed. Thank you for the suggestions.

He's constipated- if you look at his belly you can see its bulged out quite a bit. He is likely in a bit of discomfort and doesn't feel the need to eat because of it. Sometimes if it gets bad enough it can cause issue with the swim bladder and make it difficult for them to regulate how close to the surface they are or just how easily it is to swim in general.

If you fast him for a few more days it should be able to pass. Bettas can go a while without food and still be okay, not eating for a few days should be fine. If it doesn't pass after say around 3 days then you can try to help him out in a more active manner. Offering a small portion of deshelled boiled pea has been a method used in the hobby for a long time and works because bettas can't digest it, so it pushes things along. However it's not the healthiest thing. Other options are frozen or live foods like daphnia or mysis shrimp. You would want to feed a very small amount so as not to increase the bloat. If that doesn't work you can consider doing an epsom salt bath.

Bettas get bloated pretty easily because most commercial food for them is pellets that expands in water and they tend to eat things quickly and greedily. This results in the fish eating the food before it absorbs enough water to expand so the food will already be in the stomach by the time it does. This alone can cause bloating and discomfort- imagine if every time you ate something once it got to your stomach it doubled or even tripled in size! These little guys have a stomach only about as big as their eyeball too so even a few pellets can fill them up. Additionally a lot of people tend to overfeed them enough that even before the food expands they bloat.

In the future you can help avoid this by soaking his food in a bit of water (or something like garlic guard or vitachem) and waiting for it to puff up. You may also want to consider adding a day or two of fasting to his regular feeding schedule. Of course you can also feed him less pellets less often. A good general guide is 2-3 pieces of food once or twice daily with one day without food.

Thank you - now I know what a bloated betta looks like. Poor thing. I’ve read a lot about it and wondered.
Ok this is all incredibly helpful and I’m so glad I asked.
I’ll give an update and take your advice as given. Thank you.

Aquarium salt can be a big help with many ailments. But if he is bloated or....... believe it or not, constipated, try some 100% Epsom salt. It's not salt but 100% Magnesium sulfate. It's a natural laxative for fish. It also helps, bloat, dropsy and porcupine scaling and swim bladder disorder. A quarter teaspoon per every 10 gal. Good luck!

Thank you this has been so helpful. I should get some aquarium salt and daphnia so I have it on hand. I’m guessing table salt would kill because it’s ionized? Just Curious. I won’t use it don’t worry!

thanks again!

Yes, he does look bloated. 4-5 pellets per day are sufficient for a betta. They’re the easiest fish to overfeed as they always look starved and are so cute begging for food.

Not feeding is the best for now. I would even do 4-5 days. And maybe even a little aquarium salt.

Funny yes they are cute begging for food. I’m a sucker.
thank you I’m so relieved - it’s unanimous- he’s bloated. I feel dumb for not seeing it.
Will follow all your advice. Keep you posted. Thanks again!

 

[Seamus111]

By the way, Great name for YOUR Betta. Mars....... the Red Planet!

 

[Jennie2021]

By the way, Great name for YOUR Betta. Mars....... the Red Planet!

Thank you!!

He's constipated- if you look at his belly you can see its bulged out quite a bit. He is likely in a bit of discomfort and doesn't feel the need to eat because of it. Sometimes if it gets bad enough it can cause issue with the swim bladder and make it difficult for them to regulate how close to the surface they are or just how easily it is to swim in general.

If you fast him for a few more days it should be able to pass. Bettas can go a while without food and still be okay, not eating for a few days should be fine. If it doesn't pass after say around 3 days then you can try to help him out in a more active manner. Offering a small portion of deshelled boiled pea has been a method used in the hobby for a long time and works because bettas can't digest it, so it pushes things along. However it's not the healthiest thing. Other options are frozen or live foods like daphnia or mysis shrimp. You would want to feed a very small amount so as not to increase the bloat. If that doesn't work you can consider doing an epsom salt bath.

Bettas get bloated pretty easily because most commercial food for them is pellets that expands in water and they tend to eat things quickly and greedily. This results in the fish eating the food before it absorbs enough water to expand so the food will already be in the stomach by the time it does. This alone can cause bloating and discomfort- imagine if every time you ate something once it got to your stomach it doubled or even tripled in size! These little guys have a stomach only about as big as their eyeball too so even a few pellets can fill them up. Additionally a lot of people tend to overfeed them enough that even before the food expands they bloat.

In the future you can help avoid this by soaking his food in a bit of water (or something like garlic guard or vitachem) and waiting for it to puff up. You may also want to consider adding a day or two of fasting to his regular feeding schedule. Of course you can also feed him less pellets less often. A good general guide is 2-3 pieces of food once or twice daily with one day without food.

How does one go about doing an epsom salt bath or aquarium salt bath? I'd like to help him out if it isn't too hard on him - it's been three days and he's so bloated. What are your thoughts on this? I'm not sure he would eat ANYTHING even if I did have some daphnia or mysis shrimp. I do have canned peas but again not sure he would even look at a bit of pea.
Update I was able to find daphnia. It will be a good supplement regardless so happy to have it. I’ll give that a try first.

 

[Salem]

How does one go about doing an epsom salt bath or aquarium salt bath? I'd like to help him out if it isn't too hard on him - it's been three days and he's so bloated. What are your thoughts on this? I'm not sure he would eat ANYTHING even if I did have some daphnia or mysis shrimp. I do have canned peas but again not sure he would even look at a bit of pea.
Update I was able to find daphnia. It will be a good supplement regardless so happy to have it. I’ll give that a try first.

Best of luck! In future if you want to do an epsom salt bath you'll need a container to do the bath itself in. I like to use something that can hold 1 gallon of water just to make things easier. The mixture itself will be 1 tablespoon per 1 gallon of water. Make sure the salt is fully mixed in and try to make the water as close to the temperature of his tank as you can. Once the water is ready and in the container you'll take a net and move Mars on over to the bath. He can stay in there for 15-30 minutes though I personally try to stick to the shorter side of that range. Then you just scoop him back up and move him back home. You can repeat multiple times every day though I personally don't like to do it more than twice a day.

 

[Jennie2021]

Best of luck! In future if you want to do an epsom salt bath you'll need a container to do the bath itself in. I like to use something that can hold 1 gallon of water just to make things easier. The mixture itself will be 1 tablespoon per 1 gallon of water. Make sure the salt is fully mixed in and try to make the water as close to the temperature of his tank as you can. Once the water is ready and in the container you'll take a net and move Mars on over to the bath. He can stay in there for 15-30 minutes though I personally try to stick to the shorter side of that range. Then you just scoop him back up and move him back home. You can repeat multiple times every day though I personally don't like to do it more than twice a day.

Ok that’s extremely helpful. Again. As an aside I tried some daphnia - he wouldn’t even look at it. I put a little in right practically on top of him and nothing. Sigh.
mill try the bath and follow your guidelines erring on the side of caution.
thank you!

Best of luck! In future if you want to do an epsom salt bath you'll need a container to do the bath itself in. I like to use something that can hold 1 gallon of water just to make things easier. The mixture itself will be 1 tablespoon per 1 gallon of water. Make sure the salt is fully mixed in and try to make the water as close to the temperature of his tank as you can. Once the water is ready and in the container you'll take a net and move Mars on over to the bath. He can stay in there for 15-30 minutes though I personally try to stick to the shorter side of that range. Then you just scoop him back up and move him back home. You can repeat multiple times every day though I personally don't like to do it more than twice a day.

Good afternoon,

I’ve given Mars two epsom salt baths- he won’t look at daphnia. He’s not doing well and I hope this is because of shock AND things starting to move. I’ve taken a pic - the bloat is now clearly visible and lighter than the rest of him or is it something else?
Between this lighter bulge and his gill I can see a definite pulse which I assume is his heart. I’ll leave him alone for the rest of the day. He’s floating at the top with almost no movement, fins, gills included. Mouth at top but not straight down. Poor guy I feel so helpless.
Thoughts?

 

[Salem]

Just to confirm- its physically just the bloated belly, yes? If you look at him from above his scales are smooth? Or do they spike outwards like a pinecone?
Have you seen him poop at all, even if its just a bit hanging onto him still? If so would you describe it as white and stringy?

The belly becoming lighter isn't necessarily concerning as that does tend to happen when they bloat. The staying near the top could suggest that his swim bladder is being affected. This can sometimes happen because the stomach starts to press against it when it swells. It generally will go away once the bloat goes down.
If you would like to make him a bit more comfortable you could consider putting something over the tank to lower the light getting in. If you have something like a tall fake plant with broad leaves you can put it in his tank and lower the water level just enough that he can rest on the leaf and only have to move a small amount to reach the surface.
I think leaving him to rest for the day is a good decision. The salt baths help but as you mentioned can also be a bit of a shock. Hopefully he will be able to poop soon, even if it's just a small amount at first.

I know this can be extremely upsetting and make one feel helpless, my first betta once became so severely bloated after eating some of the snails food that he just floated near the top for days. I remember growing more and more anxious as the days went on and nothing seemed to help until one day he just let out this absolute monster of a poop. I swear the string of it was nearly 3 inches long! It took another day or so before he was fully back to normal but after that it was as if nothing had happened. He ended up just being really prone to bloating but after that really bad one I was a lot less freaked out when it would happen.
What I'm saying is- this is obviously worrying and worthy of concern but try to keep in mind that you're doing your best. Right now you're doing everything you can to help and very clearly care a lot about Mars, he's in very good hands. Sometimes these things just need a bit more time to pass.

 

[Jennie2021]

Thank you for the reassurance. That made me laugh out loud.
His scales are fine - smooth and his colour is good. He just seems worn out.
I covered him with a tea towel prior to messaging so will leave that. I’ll look for a plant with a broad leaf for him to lay on. That’s a good idea too.

I haven’t seen any poop but have been looking for it. I do appreciate the story - it helps to hear of others dilemmas. Relatable That’s why I love this forum and am so thankful for it.
Ok I’ll just soldier on and keep fingers crossed.
Jen

Thank you for the reassurance. That made me laugh out loud.
His scales are fine - smooth and his colour is good. He just seems worn out.
I covered him with a tea towel prior to messaging so will leave that. I’ll look for a plant with a broad leaf for him to lay on. That’s a good idea too.

I haven’t seen any poop but have been looking for it. I do appreciate the story - it helps to hear of others dilemmas. Relatable That’s why I love this forum and am so thankful for it.
Ok I’ll just soldier on and keep fingers crossed.
Jen

Good morning,

im afraid I don’t have good news but I thought you would want to know as I have leaned on you so hard. Little Mars passed away last night in the night. I found him exactly where I left him - upright perched about an inch from the top of his bowl - looks perfectly normal except his fins are out straight from his body 90 degrees, eyes aren’t responsive (dark) and there’s no heartbeat. I’m very sad but I know we did everything we could, with your help Poor little boy.
While I’m here I have an unrelated question.
I have two females in 1 gallon containers waiting to go into 5G tank. They came full of eggs about two weeks ago and are very “pregnant”. Huge bellies. How long does it take for them to show signs that they’re absorbing the eggs? I’ve caught one of them wedging herself in between her betta home and the side of the container to squeeze herself. A bit alarming actually - she looked stuck so I helped her out.
No doubt it’s eggs you can clearly see the ovipositor clearly on both girls and the eggs.
Otherwise they’re both happy, healthy and ravenous - the funniest little eaters I’ve had - makes me laugh each time they attack a pellet. Very dramatic. They get the tiny pellets - no more than 2-3 in am and 1 at night. Your thoughts are appreciated.

 

[Rose of Sharon]

So sorry to hear about Mars!!!!

Would love to see pics of your girls!

I have read that the females will absorb the eggs over time. I have also read that feeding the females daphnia will help them to expel the eggs, but I am not sure how accurate this is.

Good luck with your girls!!

 

[Jennie2021]

So sorry to hear about Mars!!!!

Would love to see pics of your girls!

I have read that the females will absorb the eggs over time. I have also read that feeding the females daphnia will help them to expel the eggs, but I am not sure how accurate this is.

Good luck with your girls!!

I have started giving them both daphnia so we will see. This is April and Aria.
Let me know if these pics aren’t decent.

 

[FishFor2018]

Hello fellow fish lovers!!
My betta bandit has been giving me some issues lately with his eating and he has gotten quite skinny because of it. He started by not eating his normal pellet food, he would stare at it and sometimes grab it but then spit it back out (no matter how small it was) so then I got betta flakes which he ate for a few days and then did the same thing, either stared at it or grab it and spit it back out. I’ve tried many different types of food of different sizes and flakes and pellets but he shows little to no interest or just spits it back out. The only thing I’ve gotten him to kind of eat is frozen brine shrimp but when he does eat it he looks like he’s gasping for air or I guess choking for a while after eating. Could he have some sort of blockage in his throat like a growth that’s making eating difficult for him? Or what could be the issue? Should I try different frozen foods?

 

[AIvinn]

Hmm. It may be a problem with how frequently you feed him. How frequently do you feed him?

 

[FishFor2018]

Hmm. It may be a problem with how frequently you feed him. How frequently do you feed him?

I try to feed him twice a day, with my other bettas I feed morning and night everyday but I will usually skip a day sometimes two in a row for a quick fasting to prevent any bloating but I haven’t with him since I haven’t been able to get him to eat

 

[AIvinn]

I try to feed him twice a day, with my other bettas I feed morning and night everyday but I will usually skip a day sometimes two in a row for a quick fasting to prevent any bloating but I haven’t with him since I haven’t been able to get him to eat

Hmm. This would probably be a personal preference but in my humble opinion, I believe that it's wiser to feed your betta every other day rather than twice daily. I say this because it takes fish 12 hours, less or longer to digest their food. Feeding every other day is healthier and prevents bloating.

Also, have you noticed any abnormal behavior in your betta? Any weird body protrusions? Have you noticed a stringy white thing hanging from his anal area?

 

[Sophie292]

Actually that happened with my betta too! For a week and a half he would stare at food but then refuse it or completely spit it out after trying it, and for a day or too I thought he had some problem with his throat as well. However, my betta personally started eating when I got him Hikari betta biogold floating pellets. Where did you get your betta from? He could be used to eating one type of food and not recongnize your food as well, food. Last thing, if you can manage to get the food to mimic a struggling insect (by dipping it in and out of the water) his instincts might kick in and he may try it. Got my betta to eat freeze-dried bloodworms this way

 

[AIvinn]

I guess Laura could try want you mentioned while closely monitoring her betta for some time.

 

[Rose of Sharon]

Hi,

How old is Bandit? And how long has this been going on? And, this may sound like a weird question, but do you have gravel in your tank?

 

[FishFor2018]

Hmm. This would probably be a personal preference but in my humble opinion, I believe that it's wiser to feed your betta every other day rather than twice daily. I say this because it takes fish 12 hours, less or longer to digest their food. Feeding every other day is healthier and prevents bloating.

Also, have you noticed any abnormal behavior in your betta? Any weird body protrusions? Have you noticed a stringy white thing hanging from his anal area?

Okay thank you! Maybe I will try that then, they might be mad at me tomorrow lol. Nothing else seems abnormal with him. He dose sit upwards when he stops swimming sometimes but he has huge fins so that’s probably why.

Actually that happened with my betta too! For a week and a half he would stare at food but then refuse it or completely spit it out after trying it, and for a day or too I thought he had some problem with his throat as well. However, my betta personally started eating when I got him Hikari betta biogold floating pellets. Where did you get your betta from? He could be used to eating one type of food and not recongnize your food as well, food. Last thing, if you can manage to get the food to mimic a struggling insect (by dipping it in and out of the water) his instincts might kick in and he may try it. Got my betta to eat freeze-dried bloodworms this way

Okay thanks for the tip!! I got him from some random person who was breeding bettas and ended up with to many!! I have had him since he was really young though but I’ve had him for enough 4 months

 

[AIvinn]

Okay thank you! Maybe I will try that then, they might be mad at me tomorrow lol. Nothing else seems abnormal with him. He dose sit upwards when he stops swimming sometimes but he has huge fins so that’s probably why.

Okay thanks for the tip!! I got him from some random person who was breeding bettas and ended up with to many!! I have had him since he was really young though but I’ve had him for enough 4 months

Please keep us updated.

 

[FishFor2018]

Hi,

How old is Bandit? And how long has this been going on? And, this may sound like a weird question, but do you have gravel in your tank?

He’s around 6 months old, stopped eating about a month ago roughly, he’d eat occasionally but the last week or two has stopped eating fully pretty much I’d say and yes I do have gravel in the tank, it’s small gravel since it’s capping off soil
This is him, I got a picture from above and you can see he is a bit skinny at least compared to my other bettas he is and then you can see how he will sit sometimes in an upward position but I think it’s from his fins, I feel bad for him having to drag those things along. Could he maybe not have the energy to catch his food at the surface?

 

[Rose of Sharon]

Ok, so he is young, so not an age thing.

They can go a while without eating before issues set in due to lack of nutrition.

If you haven't tried this, you can try soaking his food in garlic juice. If you have some minced garlic around the house, or can pick some up from a store, then you can use the liquid that the garlic is soaking in to soak his food. It will make the food soft, and it will appeal to his sense of smell.

I did have a betta who was acting like a vacuum cleaner looking for food, and he did get a piece of gravel which lodged in his throat. They tend to get into everything! I am not saying that this is what happend to your aqua baby, but just something to keep in mind as you try to get him to eat.

The only other thing that I can think of is to look very carefully at his mouth to see anything develops there (white spots, fungus, etc.). Keep track of his body shape, too. If you see anything changing, post a pic. I should get the alert, and I will take a look at it.

I do hope that he bounces back, and that he is just being a fincky eater!!!