Help! What's wrong with Nikki (female Betta)

We had a male and a female betta, 2 separate tanks. About 2 months ago, our male betta crossed the rainbow bridge. Our female, Nikki, is getting bigger by the day (it seems). I'm really concerned. If it's eggs, how do we get her to release them?? She seems fine otherwise. She loves to eat. I don't think she's merely "fat" but I am really concerned she'll "pop". Please help. Any advice appreciated.

 

We had a male and a female betta, 2 separate tanks. About 2 months ago, our male betta crossed the rainbow bridge. Our female, Nikki, is getting bigger by the day (it seems). I'm really concerned. If it's eggs, how do we get her to release them?? She seems fine otherwise. She loves to eat. I don't think she's merely "fat" but I am really concerned she'll "pop". Please help. Any advice appreciated.

Dont quote me on any of this, as I am a beginner. Did they breed? I think they release the eggs during that, and the Male betta takes care of them, while the female goes away. In order for her to release, you have to have a male to take care of the eggs, while the female is removed to a seperate tank.

 

Dont quote me on any of this, as I am a beginner. Did they breed? I think they release the eggs during that, and the Male betta takes care of them, while the female goes away. In order for her to release, you have to have a male to take care of the eggs, while the female is removed to a seperate tank.

They did not breed. They were always in separate tanks

 

They did not breed. They were always in separate tanks

Oh. Was one ever in the other tank at any point? If they didnt breed, it may be something else. How often do you feed her? She may be constipated if her belly isnt going away. Have you noticed any other symptoms or strange behaviour?

 

Oh. Was one ever in the other tank at any point? If they didnt breed, it may be something else. How often do you feed her? She may be constipated if her belly isnt going away. Have you noticed any other symptoms or strange behaviour?

Never in the same tank. Tanks were side by side for a short while. She gets fed twice a day. I saw some poop hanging from her yesterday. I fed her today with dried daphinia, not sure if she actually ate it. I was going to do some epsom salt baths in case it's dropsy but I don't have it on hand. I told my boys we're letting her fast for a couple of days to see if it helps. No other strange symptoms. She seems fine, unaffected almost. I read somewhere about adding tannins (rooibos tea) to the water. Would this be a good idea?

 

Never in the same tank. Tanks were side by side for a short while. She gets fed twice a day. I saw some poop hanging from her yesterday. I fed her today with dried daphinia, not sure if she actually ate it. I was going to do some epsom salt baths in case it's dropsy but I don't have it on hand. I told my boys we're letting her fast for a couple of days to see if it helps. No other strange symptoms. She seems fine, unaffected almost. I read somewhere about adding tannins (rooibos tea) to the water. Would this be a good idea?

Yes! Add tannins to your water, though I would recommend putting Indian Almond Leaves in the tank. 1 medium almond leaf per 10 gallons will be enough to add a good amount of tannins, and improve Nikki's life. However, they do turn the water an amber color, you can't avoid that. The more leaves, the deeper the amber color. It's probably not dropsy, seeing as Nikki is still active, and not lopsided or anything. Fast her for about 2-3 days, see if that helps.

 

She gets fed twice a day. I saw some poop hanging from her yesterday.

What and how much does she usually get fed? What did the poop look like? It would help if you could fill out the emergency template so we have all relevant info (just follow the link, copy and paste).
Do you see vertical stripes on her sides or a white dot behind her ventral fins (on her bottom side/belly)? These are signs of producing eggs.

 

What and how much does she usually get fed? What did the poop look like? It would help if you could fill out the emergency template so we have all relevant info (just follow the link, copy and paste).
Do you see vertical stripes on her sides or a white dot behind her ventral fins (on her bottom side/belly)? These are signs of producing eggs.

Indeed it looks like there are some blue vertical stripes on her sides. This belly, from the front also looks like it has 1 white spots on both sides...almost like it shines through.
We feed her 2-3 BettaMin worm shaped bites twice a day (it could be that the boys feed her in between as well, but that would've been only during the last week or 2) her belly was big before that. It just looks bigger now.
The poop looks like food, same color, like a reddish brown color. She seems to poop in one spot of the tank.
Emergency form to follow
Tank
What is the water volume of the tank?
~1 gallon
How long has the tank been running? - Changed water completely about 2 week or so ago
Does it have a filter? No
Does it have a heater? No
What is the water temperature?
Room temp
What is the entire stocking of this tank? (Please list all fish and inverts.)
1 female betta named Nikki

Maintenance
How often do you change the water?
as needed, only when the tank is very dirty or there's a lot of food on the bottom
How much of the water do you change?
All of it ~ 1gallon
What do you use to treat your water?
Water conditioner
Do you vacuum the substrate or just the water? Cleans everything

*Parameters - Very Important
Did you cycle your tank before adding fish? No
What do you use to test the water?
I don't
What are your parameters? We need to know the exact numbers, not just “fine” or “safe”.
Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:

Feeding
How often do you feed your fish? Twice a day
How much do you feed your fish? 2 or 3 pieces of worm shaped bites
What brand of food do you feed your fish? tetra BettaMin
Do you feed frozen? No
Do you feed freeze-dried foods? Snacks on occasion - betta dial-a-treat daphnia, blood worms, mysis

Illness & Symptoms
How long have you had this fish? Since beginning of May (so, about 4 months)
How long ago did you first notice these symptoms? At the end of May I noticed her belly got bigger after she was placed maybe too close to a male in his own tank)
In a few words, can you explain the symptoms? Her belly seems to keep expanding. I'm afraid she'll pop
Have you started any treatment for the illness? I was reading a lot and have now added daphnia to her for food. We're going to have her fast for a day ir two or three. I'm about to add tannins in the form of rooibos tea
Was your fish physically ill or injured upon purchase? No
How has its behavior and appearance changed, if at all? It has gotten fatter in the front, almost translucent whitish, so I'm wondering if it's eggs. I thought by now she would have absorbed the eggs already since Nikki has been our only fish since the male, Zippy, crossed the rainbow bridge the 2nd week of June. She's been an only child since then. The 2 bettas has always only been in their own tanks, side by side

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) At the end of May she started getting fat but I figured she had eggs because the 2 tanks were side by side and maybe she could smell the male nearby. They went to a pet sitter at the end of May. 2werks in, the male, Zippy, died. The female was seemingly unaffected. Thereafter, my husband, being an engineer, streamlined her feeding to exactly 7pm & 7am every day. We came back (the kids and I) and took over care which included a complete water change and tank cleaning. The belly was still big, however. I am just getting concerned now because it doesn't seem to get better despite the absence of the male. She seems to be fine otherwise. She still attacks her food everytime she's fed. It's hard to get good pictures of the fish due to her movement and my slow camera, but she has vertical lines on her body (i haven't noticed that before.) The swollen part seems almost translucent white. I included a picture of the area where her "bathroom" seem to be. I'm also going to add 2 pictures of her way back in May. She was stressed after a water change but her belly wasn't swollen then, just to show how she "used to" look

Include pictures
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Hi,

So sorry that Nikki is having issues! Based on the answers to your emergency template, I will give you some basics that you can do that might help.

Nikki needs daily water changes. A one gallon tank is very small, and will need to be cleaned very often. Her water is probably full of ammonia and nitrite, both dangerous and toxic to fish. I would do a really big water change right now. Then I would start changing 50% daily. (Please make sure that the water that you put in is the same temperature as the water that you are taking out in order to avoid shocking Nikki.) As fish waste builds up, ammonia, and then nitrites (bad bacteria) will be released in the water. Both are toxic to fish. For more info about this, please read about the nitrogen cycle. Even though you don't have a filter, the info about the bacteria cycle is very important to know.

Getting a good freshwater test kit will allow you to stay on top of the amounts of ammonia, nitrite, nitrates and ph levels of the water. API makes a good freshwater test kit that lasts a long time. The test strips are not as accurate.

A one gallon is on the small side for a betta, even though they are sold in every single pet store. They will do better with a 3 gallon or larger with a heater and filter. With a tank that small, the water is definitely going to need to be changed a lot.

I strongly recommend using Prime water conditioner if you can get it. It is a dechlorinator and will hold low levels of ammonia and nitrites for 24 hours. It should be used with every water change.

Betta fish are tropical fish and need to be kept in a temperature of 78 to 81 degrees. In most places, that requires a heater unless you live in a tropical place. Cool or cold water will cause the fish to be stressed and more prone to illness and death. You can get a really cheap thermometer at any pet store, or even Wal-Mart if you are in the US.

About her condition....I do see the verticle stripes in the pics, which are due to breeding behavior. Hopefully the freeze dried daphnia will help her pass the eggs. If you can get frozen daphnia, that is a little better than the freeze dried kind. Fasting her for a few days can help. If you can get some pure unscented epsom salt with no additives, you can give her an epsom salt bath. Get one gallon of water heated to the same temperature as the tank water. Dissolve one tablespoon of epsom salts into the bath water. Put Nikki in, and watch her closely. If she poops, take her out of the bath and put her back into her tank right away. If she doesn't, allow her to stay in the bath for 15 to 20 minutes. This may help relieve some of the build up.

Hope this helps! If you have any other questions, please post them!

 

Thanks. I bought a heater today already. I'm ready to give her an epsom salt bath and we are planning on putting her in a bigger tank with more fish, filter, heater etc.
I was not successful in finding any other forms of daphnia, so for now, I'm feeding her the dried daphnia, once a day, hoping she'll look "better" soon

 

Update: Nikki is still round as a ball. I have been giving her salt baths twice a day, watching closely and daphnia: once a day. I'm not sure what else to do to help her release or reabsorb the eggs. I've added a heater to the tank as well. Thanks to everyone who responded and tried to help. Please let me know if there's anything else I can do to help her. Thanks!!

 

Guys, I'm sorry but so far: no change for the better. I'm attaching a new picture. She seems to have new symptoms now...or maybe I just didn't notice this before: red around the gills. She seems "normal" otherwise. Begging for food. I just gave her a tiny piece of a pea hoping it would help with the size of the belly. I've been giving her daily epsom salt balths as well as feeding only a tiny bit of dried daphnia (apparently none of the stores around me carry it), installed a heater (top fin for tanks of 5 gallons or less). Please tell me what else I can try.

 

Hi and welcome to the forum! Here is a list of minimum recommendations, I know you've already started on a few.

Heater appropriate for your tank size. (Nice heater you picked out, good brand!)

A minimum of a 2.5-gallon aquarium but 5 is a nicer number.

Filter appropiate for your tank size. I reccomend a spounge filter for bettas.

Some live plants can do miracles in cleaning the water. You should be able to get some easy care ones at your local pet store.

You will need to perform an in fish cycle asap.
=====================================================

I've been breeding bettas for years and that's not eggs. I have never once had a girl get more than mildly "chubby" looking. It also appears that the verticle stripes are a natural coloring, as they can still be seen.

I would guess bloat, constipation, or a mixture of both. Continue with the salt baths, get some robust tea and IA tannins in the water, and fast her for a few days. See if shell poop or if the boating will go down.

When you do a WC, you need to use an aquarium vacuum to such up the gunk on the bottom. Right now I would do 50% daily change. Do not rinse out filter media and let the filter pad stay in until in wears out when you get to the filtration point. Do not wash the gravel, decor, or walls as you will remove the beneficial bacteria. If you have algae, and you must remove it, you can gently wipe the walls with a cut-out fabric piece of unused filter media. Algae doesn't hurt anything though and you will be removing some bb which is very vital right now.

The red gills is most likely ammonia burns from the tank not being cycled, so I would get your in fish cycle started up now or ASAP.

To me, she looks better then the first pictures you posted.

 

Thank you! A quick question about the tannins. I have rooibos tea bags. Can I add a tea bag to the tank or do I make tea and add that to the tank.
I just (before posting) did a 100% water change. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.
Thank you again for the help

 

Thank you! A quick question about the tannins. I have rooibos tea bags. Can I add a tea bag to the tank or do I make tea and add that to the tank.
I just (before posting) did a 100% water change. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.
Thank you again for the help

No problem, I'm happy to help. You make a tea out of it with some conditioned water and then add it in. Make sure it cools down though so there is no big temp change.

 

Just to add betta’s are hungry fish , in the sense that they will eat food if you add it and will always act hungry if you approach the tank ( or look sideways at it !) do not be tempted to over feed . You feel like you’re spoiling your fish and giving it what it wants , the reality is you’re damaging the fish and the water quality , which further weakens the fish.

don’t be tempted to over feed .

do regular weekly water changes to help your fishy friend , if not more for now until the tank has settled . You’ve had great advice above too so lots to think about.

 

Thank you.

My son just noticed some white stringy stuff on her fin...probably something I missed because the water was so clear before adding the tannins...and now I'm really freaking out.

I got a test kit yesterday and everything looks fine except for the ph which is on the low side of 5.5
The tank with the epsom salt has hard water. I added tannins to that tank also. Both the nitrites and nitrates are at 0 or safe. My test kit doesn't test for ammonia.

I have some API fin and body cure. Should I add that too?

 

I would start using the Fin and Body Cure. It has doxycycline, which treats gram negative bacterial infections, and can help with internal bacterial infections. This is helpful in case she has an internal bacterial infection, and in case what you are seeing is fluid retention due to that and not constipation.

As far as the ph issue, I have found that chasing ph levels is a never ending battle if you use chemicals. You can add some crushed coral in a mesh bag to the tank, and that will raise ph safely. I would not use any of the chemicals that are sold in bottle form; I also would not add baking soda, even though some people do that.

I would also go ahead and buy a test kit for ammonia.

Hope this helps!

 

I would start using the Fin and Body Cure. It has doxycycline, which treats gram negative bacterial infections, and can help with internal bacterial infections. This is helpful in case she has an internal bacterial infection, and in case what you are seeing is fluid retention due to that and not constipation.

As far as the ph issue, I have found that chasing ph levels is a never ending battle if you use chemicals. You can add some crushed coral in a mesh bag to the tank, and that will raise ph safely. I would not use any of the chemicals that are sold in bottle form; I also would not add baking soda, even though some people do that.

I would also go ahead and buy a test kit for ammonia.

Hope this helps!

I agree with the above.

I would get an ammonia test kit asap as well. Great that the nitrates and nitrites are at 0 though.

 

Hi guys,
Thanks to everyone who tried to help. Nikki took a turn for the worse, she got very sick and colorless (see pic). I dipped her in methylene blue and she looked like she made a miraculous recovery, but 2 days ago, even though she looked fine, she stopped eating. She was very lethargic this morning and she just passed. She was peaceful. Of course our hearts are broken. My 10yo insisted on an immediate funeral.
R.I.P. Nikki, swim free baby girl!!

Here are some pics of her at her worse, (very colorless) and then the last pic I took of her a day after the methylene blue dip. (her color was back and she looked good)
The water perimeters are pristine. 10gal tank with a betta filter & heater. No other life. Ammonia at 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 0, ph 6, hardness was ideal. Not sure why she passed away but she did have the big chesty look that never really subsided despite feeding her daphnia and fasting her and giving her epsom salt baths.

 

Hi guys,
Thanks to everyone who tried to help. Nikki took a turn for the worse, she got very sick and colorless (see pic). I dipped her in methylene blue and she looked like she made a miraculous recovery, but 2 days ago, even though she looked fine, she stopped eating. She was very lethargic this morning and she just passed. She was peaceful. Of course our hearts are broken. My 10yo insisted on an immediate funeral.
R.I.P. Nikki, swim free baby girl!!

Here are some pics of her at her worse, (very colorless) and then the last pic I took of her a day after the methylene blue dip. (her color was back and she looked good)
The water perimeters are pristine. 10gal tank with a betta filter & heater. No other life. Ammonia at 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 0, ph 6, hardness was ideal. Not sure why she passed away but she did have the big chesty look that never really subsided despite feeding her daphnia and fasting her and giving her epsom salt baths.

Nooooo!
SIP Nikki
So sorry!

 

Hi guys,
Thanks to everyone who tried to help. Nikki took a turn for the worse, she got very sick and colorless (see pic). I dipped her in methylene blue and she looked like she made a miraculous recovery, but 2 days ago, even though she looked fine, she stopped eating. She was very lethargic this morning and she just passed. She was peaceful. Of course our hearts are broken. My 10yo insisted on an immediate funeral.
R.I.P. Nikki, swim free baby girl!!

Here are some pics of her at her worse, (very colorless) and then the last pic I took of her a day after the methylene blue dip. (her color was back and she looked good)
The water perimeters are pristine. 10gal tank with a betta filter & heater. No other life. Ammonia at 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 0, ph 6, hardness was ideal. Not sure why she passed away but she did have the big chesty look that never really subsided despite feeding her daphnia and fasting her and giving her epsom salt baths.

I'm really sorry, you tried your best...

SIP little Nikki.

 

So sorry for your loss!!!!

SIP, Nikki, you beautiful little girl!!!!!