? about my betta

Question
QUESTION: I have 3 Bettas. separate tanks and plan to breed 2 of them. the other one was a healthy happy fish for the past 3 months. Lately, as of 1 week ago, started to be at the top most of the time. He keeps floating to the side and has to work at being at a normal, upright position. 2 days ago, I propped 2 sticks in the tank that he swims to and props himself up against for long periods of time? He isn't eating very much at all. Skurry is approx. 31/2 Mo. old. Is he dyeing?

ANSWER: Elaina,

 Sorry to hear your fish is ill. Let me start by saying good job on getting such a young Betta. The ones at the pet shops are normally 1 year old. There can be a few problems.

1. Are you using a heater? Betta's are tropical fish and need their water to be around 82 degrees. If you don't have a heater, then I suggest getting one as soon as you can.

2. He might be reacting to the water quality. Do you add a conditioner to the water when you do a water change? The changes need to be done at least once a week. Make sure the new water is the same temp as the water he is in. If it is colder, he can go into shock. If you don't check the water perimeters, or you don't have a testing kit, you need to get one. When we have fish we need to make sure their water is at 100% healthy. Check the water once a week. A lot of times, before you actually see a problem, the water warns you that something is about to happen. I cannot express this enough.

3. Over feeding. His problem can be a sign of over feeding. Also, you didn't mention what you are feeding him. Betta fish need a variety in their diet. I feed all 12 of my adults, frozen and freeze dried blood worms, frozen and freeze dried brine shrimp, pellets, flakes, and sometimes live brine shrimp and mosquito larvae.

4. Swim bladder disease goes hand in hand with the over feeding. If its is SB disease, take a frozen pea and thaw it out in hot water. Once thawed, remove the shell and toss it. Cut the inside of the pea in small pieces and feed them to your fish. This might take a couple of days. Fast him from his regular food while feeding the pea. This is a natural laxative for fish and this might help him.

If it is swim bladder here are a few things you can do to help prevent that in the future.

1. give him a variety of foods. I would give him the things that I mentioned I give mine.

2. Cut down on his feeding. It is better to give a couple of snacks a day than a huge meal once a day.

3. Fast him once a week. This will not harm him in any way. They can go without eating for a couple of weeks. Make sure you do this once a week. It help him to digest all that is in him before adding more to it.

4. Feed him bits of pea every 2 weeks to help him stay regular.

Now being the Betta breeder that I am, I will apologize in advance if I sound harsh or rude, that is not my intent. If you are going to breed your fish, it is imperative that you do all the right things. By that I mean a heater in the 10 gallon tank you are planning on breeding in. It can be no less than a 10 gallon. Some people breed in 5 gallons but soon realize the fry have out grown it very quickly. The female can lay upwards of 500+ eggs. You will be lucky if half of them survive the first 24 hours. Even luckier if half of those survivors make is to 2 weeks. 2 days after they hatch, and are free swimming you will have to remove the male. Please make sure you have homes for the babies before you breed them. While a lot of people say breeding Betta fish is not hard, i disagree. Please, do your homework long before you start. You have to cycle the fry tank as well, find a sponge filter so that you can keep the filter going while the nest is being made, the breeding is done, and the fry are in the tank. If you have any questions about the breeding of your fish, please don't hesitate to ask me. Just make sure you know everything you need to know BEFORE you place the female and male in the same tank.

I hope this helps.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your thorough answer! I really appreciate the
information. With the betta I had asked about, yes, I change
his water more than 1 time a wk. in fact, I just changed it
today. I wanted to say, it almost seems as though his top
fin is broken? I don't know how this could have happened so
I'm assuming this isn't the case? he then, droops to left or
right then he floats to that side? this happens only until
he works at getting himself to something to prop himself on
to stay upright. Is there something you would recommend I
put in the water to help him get better? ie: Protech,
aquarium salt granules? I have used them in the past. Thank
you again!

Answer
Elaina,

 It sounds like swim bladder to me. First thing, fast him for 3 days. Make him a salt bath. You can either use aquarium salt or Epsom salt. 1 teaspoon in 1 gallon of dechlorinated water. Leave him in that water for up to 15 minutes. Please, watch him the whole time in case there is a problem and you have to take him out. Make sure this water in the same temperature as the water that is in his tank. We don't need him going into shock. While he is in that water, clean out his tank very well. With very hot water. Clean everything that is in there. After the 15 minutes are up return him to his clean dechlorinated tank remembering that it has to be the same temp as the water he is in now. After the fast, feed him a pea. Get a frozen pea, thaw it out in warm water. Take the skin off of it and feed him the inside. This is a natural laxative for fish and it works quite well. You can also add some salt to his tank. Hope this helps.