New Betta Lying On Bottom Gasping

Hey guys, I just brought in a baby dumbo ear Betta yesterday and began to quarantine and treat the fish for any illnesses. I took advice from Cory and used the trifecta of apI general cure and erythromycin, and ICH-X. This morning, the Betta was lying on it's side at the bottom with his gills moving. All tank parameters are at 0 since I am not using cycled media. I did crank up the heat, so could sudden temperature increase do this to stress out the Betta?

 

What did you crank the heat up to? A hot tank has less available oxygen. Aeration is advised. Also changing water temp gradually rather than all at once.

 

You'll need the tank to be cycled before adding the betta.
What was the previous temperature, and what is it now?

 

What did you crank the heat up to? A hot tank has less available oxygen. Aeration is advised. Also changing water temp gradually rather than all at once.

I went from 78 to 82. I have an air stone and a sponge filter going as well.

You'll need the tank to be cycled before adding the betta.
What was the previous temperature, and what is it now?

I have a cycled tank, but I'm adding the betta to my 5 gallon bucket for quarantining purposes as I lost a whole tank due to internal parasites and whatnot. Also, I don't want to kill off the beneficial bacteria because I heard erythromycin will kill them. Was 78, put it up to 82. I am in the process of lowering the temp back to 78 by turning down the temp in 1 degree intervals.


Thank you for your replies.

 

what are you treating the betta for?

 

Good luck with your fish! Keep us updated on his progress.

what are you treating the betta for?

Not the OP, but prophalactic shotgunning for ich, pathogens and parasites.

 

Good luck with your fish! Keep us updated on his progress.

Thank you! I acclimated him into some clean water treated with prime and carbon filtration. He slightly improved and I will change a third of his water daily.

I'm just so sad because I had a betta die of dropsy in my tank so I decided to disinfect everything and start out brand new. I prepared for weeks and I can't even keep a betta alive in quarantine apparently....

what are you treating the betta for?

Yes, exactly what maggie said (prophylactic treatment). I guess I blindly followed those with more experience and ended up screwing myself over.

 

That's quite a cocktail. I can understand a good dewormer and a methylene blue bath but that treatment seems a little over the top. Good luck with your dumbo.

 

That's quite a cocktail. I can understand a good dewormer and a methylene blue bath but that treatment seems a little over the top. Good luck with your dumbo.

Thank you. Also, do you have any idea on how to heal his fins faster? His right one is split down the middle from when I got him in the store. I heard clean water conditions are enough, but I was just wondering if you had a special treatment for it.

 

Thank you. Also, do you have any idea on how to heal his fins faster? His right one is split down the middle from when I got him in the store. I heard clean water conditions are enough, but I was just wondering if you had a special treatment for it.

Clean water is best. You can use a water conditioner with aloe vera it. The aloe is supposed to aid healing. But most people just use regular water changes and allow time to do the work.

 

Clean water is best. You can use a water conditioner with aloe vera it. The aloe is supposed to aid healing. But most people just use regular water changes and allow time to do the work.

Is there any chance that the split fin won't attach together even with clean water? Thanks.

 

I have a betta that has a permanent split. It's fully healed and he is healthy but that tail is not going back together. You said on the right side...Are you talking a pectoral fin? That should mend.
How is the betta this morning? Is breathing better? Is it swimming around?

 

HI Kimberly, sorry about the late response!

Yes, I meant his pectoral fin oops! The Betta's condition does not seem to be improving nor degrading. Most of the time he lies on his side at the bottom. Other times when he notices my presence, he swims upright but for short periods. He is in an uncycled 5 gallon quarantine bucket and I am doing daily water tests to ensure that the water quality is pristine. When I add water every day, it's treated with prime and temperature matched. I'm also a bit concerned since he has no interest in food and probably hasn't eaten in maybe a week.

Also, how would you go about medicating fish? Do you simply add in the appropriate dosage straight into the water or do you slowly incorporate every x minutes?

Thanks.

 

To medicate: follow the dosing instructions on the package to the letter. Follow the water change schedule indicated, and withdraw the medication on the day indicated. Repeat only as advised on the package.

If he doesn't feel good he's not going to eat. You can try feeding live newly hatched brine shrimp or whatever "treat" food you normally use, or just a controlled number of thawed bloodworms. They may or may not excite his appetite.

As long as he is moving there is hope.

 

To medicate: follow the dosing instructions on the package to the letter. Follow the water change schedule indicated, and withdraw the medication on the day indicated. Repeat only as advised on the package.

If he doesn't feel good he's not going to eat. You can try feeding live newly hatched brine shrimp or whatever "treat" food you normally use, or just a controlled number of thawed bloodworms. They may or may not excite his appetite.

As long as he is moving there is hope.

Hi, Maggie. Thank you for your advice. I am aware of the proper dosage and instructions EXCEPT for how to add them. I was just worried that medications would shock the fish even more if I just dumped it in the quarantine.

 

You could try adding Indian Almond Leaves to the tank. Also I really don't agree with using erythromycin unless you know what you're treating for. Most bacterial infections are gram negative and erythromycin treats gram positive. Just my opinion though.