Betta Help

Question
Hello Lynda...

 I have been growing betta for some time like 1 yr. I have some 6 Adults and 7 smaller bettas.

Thing is that.

One by one my bettas are falling sick for no reason.

I dont see any external symptom's of any disease.

while all the bettas remain normal..!!

One of the bettas start acting weird.

1)It stops eating suddenly.

2)It has a problem swimming.

3)It gasps for air, rushing to the surface like that.

4)some time falling to its side at the bottom floor
(Not floating sideways). It doesnt have a bloating problem for sure.

5)It starts giving jerky moments suddenly.

6)It starts getting scared.
(When every thing is normal when i come it starts jumping for food)

7)Its spine gets deformed.

I dont know whats causing this but the elder ones are facing ths problem.
I dont think its a water problem cause the remaining bettas seem pretty normal.


Please Help.!!

I get the best ones from market and they start dying like this.
I cannot Continue loosing fishes:-(

Answer
Hello,
This sounds like Swim Bladder Disease.  This disease is caused by overeating, and poor diet.  It begins with constipation which often goes unnoticed.  It leads to swim bladder disease, then if not cured quickly, will lead to Dropsy.
Try feeding your betta a cooked frozen pea.  Remove the outer layer, and cut the pea into small pieces.  Feed the pieces to your betta one at a time making sure he eats them, and that they do not fall to the bottom of the tank.  Do not feed him anything else for one day.  He must waste.  If he does not waste, you will have to treat him.  "Kanamycin" is very good for Swim Bladder Disease, but sometimes hard to find.  If you cannot find it, buy "Tetracycline" or "Furan-2."
Follow the directions on the package, and keep your betta's water very clean.
Bettas must have one frozen cooked pea cut into tiny pieces one day a week.  On the day you choose to feed them the pea, feed them nothing else for the rest of the day.  This is so the Betta can clean out his system, and avoid Swim Bladder Disease.
Vary their diet.  Daphnia is very important, because it helps the Betta with his digestive system.  A betta should have Betta Pellets, Betta flakes, Plankton flakes, bloodworms now, and then, Glassworms, Mealworms, and Frozen Brine Shrimp.  He should be fed 2-3 times a day in small quantities.  Two pellets, or two flakes for one meal.  We must always remember that the betta's tummy is the size of his eye.  
I would also like to mention that Betta's are tropical fish, and need 80-82 degree water.  Under this temperature the betta is cold, and miserable.  When bringing up the temperature for bettas, we must do this very slowly.  Bring up the temperature one degree every day.  Bringing up the temperature too quickly will cause death.  When Bettas are kept with no heater, their water fluctuates, and fluctuating water is very bad for fish.  Bettas should be kept in 5 gallon tanks.  In their habitat, the betta's water may be shallow but they have lots of room to swim.  Bettas kept in bowls, containers, and small tanks will get sick, and their lives are cut short.  They must have a silk plant, or real plant in their tank, as well as a little toy for them to go through.  Make sure that your bettas do not see each other.  Bettas who see each other, will cause them stress, and stress brings sickness.
I hope this helps.
Lynda