Betta bloated stomach

Question
I have a betta fish in a 1 gal size bowl.  I keep his water at a constant temp, and although there is no filter I change the water weekly.  
His stomach is extremely bloated.  He had long stringy feces that seemed characteristic of some bacterial infections described.  He is still very active and hearty.  I gave him an epsom salt bath yesturday to see if it would help.  I also have feed him a little bit of pea for the past 2 days instead of his dry pellet food.  What else can I do?  I don't want him to hurt anymore!!

Answer
Hi Drea;

Put him in a warmer place to help him fight the infection. Bettas are tropical and need temperatures above 75 all the time. If they are sick, they need 80 or 82. The higher temperatures will help kill infection if it is present and help his immune system kick in to fight it. If you can put a desk lamp or something close to his bowl and let it slowly raise the water temperature that might be enough. Just use an aquarium thermometer to be sure. Some people even use a heating pad laid against the bowl, but please very careful if you do that. It could overheat and/or cause a fire danger. (yikes!)

If he still seems sick after a couple of days you may need to use an antibiotic. It must be one that absorbs into the body. There are only two that I know of; "Maracyn 2" by Mardel and "Kanacyn" by Aquatronics. Use according to the instructions on the label.

Hope he feels better soon.....

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