Unhappy Betta

Question
QUESTION: Hello,

I have a male crowntail betta. I have had my share of bettas in the past, and all seemed to be fairly happy. Little Fighter is in a 5 gallon tank with a heater and filter. He has two plastic plants, one of which has big leaves on which he could rest on. There are also two mini caves in his tank. One which he sleeps in. I have gravel as the substrate. He also has two African dwarf frogs as his tankmates, I've read that they usually get along. There are also about 10 mini snails in his tank. I feed him about 2-3 betta pellets a day. He gets a mixture of gourmet betta food, color enhancing betta food, and tetra betta food. He also gets blood worms every few days because of the frogs.

Fighter just doesn't do anything. He just lays around or hangs out at the top of the tank. The only time that I really see him swimming is when I feed him. When I first got him, I would put the mirror up against his tank so that he could have some fun and "defend" his territory. But he doesn't even care anymore. I honestly don't know what it is that is making him unhappy. I have searched for hours and nothing that I have read sounds different then what I am doing. I'm really attached to this little guy and would really like to make him happy enough to make a bubble nest. Do you have any tips?

Also, he has this blue-ish dot on his left eye, I'm not sure what it is. Is it maybe a parasite of some sort? If so would Melafix work? I also have a community tank that just got over a parasite...this stuff seems to work pretty good. Could this maybe be the cause to his misery?

Thanks soo much for your time! I would really appreciate any help at all!! All I really want is for him to get better, I want him to be one of the few bettas that actually lead a happy, healthy
life!

Cheyenne



ANSWER: Hi Cheyenne,
I would first check the water to make sure he has no ammonia, or nitrites.  Ammonia, and nitrites are the number one killer of fish.  Never use melafix for Bettas unless you use half the dosage.  Melafix is much too strong for Bettas, and may kill him if used full dose.  I would use coppersafe incase it is some kind of a parasite.  It could be just a growth.  Bettas sometimes have growths, lumps, or bumps.  These growths are tumors, and nothing can be done.  Bettas live a long time with growths.  Sometimes it is a boil, and it will come to a head on it's own, much like the ones we have.  Never squeeze it, just let it be, as squeezing it would be painful, and kill your betta.  
Check your water to be sure the chemistry is right, and add coppersafe.
Feed him 2-3 times a day in small amounts.  Two pellets or two flakes is enough for one meal.  His tummy is the size of his eye, so it is better to feed them little meals.  He should also have a cooked frozen pea with the outer layer removed, and cut into tiny pieces once a week.  On the day you feed him the pea, feed him nothing else.  This is so he can clean out his system, and avoid Swim Bladder Disease to which Bettas are prone.
I hope this will help.
Lynda

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

QUESTION: Sorry to bother you again Lynda. Your answer was very helpful and probably saved my betta, I probably would have ended up using Melafix. I will most definitely test the water and give him the pea. I wanted to ask you if giving him blood worms every couple of days was too much.? If it is I could use a cup to scope him out and let the frogs eat. Also when I feed them bloodworms, his stomach becomes very big, it goes back to it's normal size after a few hours, so I didn't think much of it. Is he over eating? Could this have something to do with his lack of movement?

Sorry that I didn't mention this earlier.

Thank you soo much.
Cheyenne

ANSWER: Bloodworms should be given to him once a week as a treat.  Be careful not to give him too many at a time.  The day you feed him Bloodworms, don't feed him anything different on that day.  Feed him small amounts.  Bettas are gluttons, and will eat their little hearts out, so we must really be careful when feeding them.  Try not to mix the food you give him.  Feed him pellets one day, flakes the next, and so on.  His tummy shouldn't be swollen after he has eaten.  You will be able to judge this.  If his tummy gets swollen, feed him less, until you reach the right amount to give him with bloodworms.  Feeding bettas bloodworms more than once a week is not good for them.  It's a food they should have, but only once a week.  Make sure that no food fall to the bottom of the tank and remains uneaten.  Fish food spoils very quickly in tanks, and causes ammonia build up.  Betta must have clean water to stay healthy.  They never eat food that has fallen to the bottom of a tank.  You can buy these small test kits at your Pet Store to test your water.  They should be number one in your fish cabinet.  Check for ammonia, and nitrites often, this is really important.  Let me know when you have checked it, and I will be able to tell you what to do, when I have the results.
Lynda

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

QUESTION: The nitrate level was 10, and on the test kit directions it said that a nitrate level of 40 or less was recommended for freshwater. The ammonia level was 0. What I will start doing is when I feed my african dwarf frogs, I will scoop out my betta with a cup, let the frogs eat, and since bettas don't eat anything from the ground, I will put him back in once the blood worms have fallen to the ground. I also think that he may have Popeye. I am not sure though. How can you tell? And if he does have it, is there anything I can do to help him?
Cheyenne

Answer
Bacterial infections, injury and water quality are the most common problems for Popeye Disease. It is difficult to know the exact reason for Popeye.  Water changes are very important.  If the situation does not change after water changes, treat with "Tetracycline"  Popeye is very difficult to cure, and must be treated when first noticed.  You may also feed him anti-bacterial food, which would help.  You know your fish has Popeye when the eye protrudes from it's socket.
The eye may be cloudy, and in severe cases the eye may completely pop-out of the socket.  You can read more about Popeye on the web, simply put in "Popeye disease on fish"  It would be quite long for me to explain this all to you.  There are also pictures of fish with popeye on the net.  This would give you a better idea.  Adding one teaspoon of aquarium salt to 5 gallons of water is also very good to prevent disease, but never add salt if your fish has Swim Bladder disease.
Lynda