Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Dear fish experts-

My male Betta has been a bit slow over the last few weeks. I also noticed that he swims in a slight slant at times. He then will not be perfectly belly down, but rather have one eye closer to the surface than the other. Other times he is perfectly up-right.

He is also not exploring the tank much anymore. He usually sits on top of the heater which I first interpreted as avoiding the current of the filter. He is still very hungry, comes quickly to the front of the tank when it's feeding time, and eats whatever I give him.

Today, at water change, I noticed it especially. He will not even leave my hand when I surround him with my fingers. He still eats with a great appetite, though.

A month ago, he had his first anniversary with us. I know they can live up to two years. I have no idea how old he was when we bought him. How long do they live on average?

The female is the same old perky little fish. We have had her for 7 months.

Any advice is appreciated.
Thanks so much!
Carolina

One more thing: we are leaving town in a week and will be gone for about two weeks. What if he passes away during that time? I have a friend come feed the fish, but not daily. How long can he be in there dead with another fish without harming the other fish?

Thanks!
Carolina

Another thought: could it be swimbladder disorder? I read it comes from overfeeding which I don't do at all. If anything I feel like I am starving my fish.

He now sits at the bottom, but comes up to eat and likes his food.

Someone said feeding peas helps similar things. Peas as in the vegetable peas? In small pieces? Raw?

Thanks again
Carolina

It could be a slight case of swimbladder disorder. Yes, peas help this issue or so I hear. I know my female beta liked to eat them before she passed away. Don't feel bad about starving them. Fish can live off the fats in their liver for at least 5-7 days. Feedings should be only once daily. It is a good sign that he still eats, but like you said, you never know how old he was when you got him. I had a beta that I had for less than a year, and no signs of illness. He actually ate just fine and the water was fine too. Just died one day.
What other kind of fish do you have with him? They are supposed to be species only, but some people have had success with other fish. I recommend not to, but I guess it's a personal choice.
Do you have a water testing kit? If you do, do a test to let me know what your water parameters are. Also, how often do you do water changes?
To answer your question about if he dies while you are away, he should be removed immediately after death because otherwise whatever he had could infect the other fish (although I am 95% positive he doesn't have a contagious infection or disease). Also, the other fish could eat his body, which is also not good.
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Phishie

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

Thanks for your advice. Here some answers:

>It could be a slight case of swimbladder disorder. Yes, peas help this issue or so I hear. I know my female beta liked to eat them before she passed away.<

Did you give the peas raw in small pieces?

>Don't feel bad about starving them. Fish can live off the fats in their liver for at least 5-7 days. Feedings should be only once daily.<

I feed once a day, but not every day. I often skip a day.

>What other kind of fish do you have with him?<

There is a female betta in the tank (5.5 gallons), separated with a separator.

>Do you have a water testing kit?<

I don't have a kit. I can get one tomorrow, though. The female in the same tank is perfectly healthy it seems like.

>Also, how often do you do water changes?<

It's a 5.5 Gallon tank with an in-tank filter. I change about 1-1.5 gallons (20-30% of the water) every 2 weeks. So far, they have been doing real well with that routine. The female still is.

Carolina

>>Did you give the peas raw in small pieces?

No, I put the whole pea in the water. It floats, so she made her own pieces. You can make small pieces though if you'd like. I see no harm in that. Is he doing any better yet? Are there any other changes that you see?

>>There is a female betta in the tank (5.5 gallons), separated with a separator.

I see no problems with that. And you said she is fine, so whatever he has isn't contagious. That makes me think swim bladder disorder of some sort because there really isn't any other problems that lead to swimming issues.

>>I don't have a kit. I can get one tomorrow, though. The female in the same tank is perfectly healthy it seems like.

When you get one, let me know what the water parameters are. Mostly ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. pH and temperature wouldn't hurt.

>>It's a 5.5 Gallon tank with an in-tank filter. I change about 1-1.5 gallons (20-30% of the water) every 2 weeks. So far, they have been doing real well with that routine. The female still is.

That's really good, so I don't think you would have water quality issues.

My educated diagnosis is swim bladder disorder. Let me know how the peas work... give them a few days to help get whatever out of his digestive tract. Also, have you noticed any feces since you've seen the problem?
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Phishie

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

So, I have a pretty busy week this week with school. If you would like to, you can send me an email at phishie@pethobbyist.com as I check that every day, and the boards (during busy weeks) about every other day- I try.
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Phishie

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

Thanks so, so much for your help. Sorry it took me so long to reply. I was gone for two weeks.

I had a friend feed my fish four times during those two weeks. I thought this might help the male with his swim bladder condition. When I got back from my vacation, he was still acting sick. After a couple of days, though, he changed back to the old healthy self. Now he is completely back to normal. Swimming, flashing at her, eating, making bubble nests etc. It really looks like it was a swim bladder issue.

One thing that was different after my trip was that the whole tank was tinted green with algae. Never had a problem with that. I scrubbed it off wherever I could, changes about 20-30% of the water. Not sure what to do about the algae. Not sure why I have this problem now. I will start a new post for that.

Thanks again!
I am so happy he's back to normal.
Carolin