Strange Betta Fish Behavior

Question
I recently changed the water in my betta fish's one gallon fish bowl. after putting him back into the water after doing so i noticed after awhile he was having problems swimming to the bottom of the bowl. he seems to be turning sideways and floating at the top of the bowl when he's idle. since then his color has faded and around his mouth and gills are a bit grey/white. i realize he's old (i've had him for a year and two months). i've also noticed a small bulge on his right side. i'm not sure what's wrong with him. i feed him daily and clean his bowl once a week and this is the first time i've encountered this problem.  

Answer
Hi Jennifer;

He may have a gas bubble in his belly. Make sure his tank stays very warm and feed him pieces of green peas. Feed no other foods until he is feeling better.

Older bettas are more prone to all kinds of problems. They benefit greatly from higher temperatures and digestive enhancing foods like the peas.

If the greyish areas are fuzzy looking he may need medicine for fungus. There are some made specifically for bettas. BettaMax and Betta Fix are the two I am familiar with. One or both should be available at your local fish store.

Followups welcome

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins

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