my Betta Fish!

Question
I have a Beta fish named bubbles. he has been acting up for about two weeks and i don't know what wrong. He is always at the bottom of his tank. overtime I go to feed him and drop the food in his bowl. He looks like he has trouble swimming to the top of his bowl and then he eats it and drops right back down. He also lays on the side of his body when he is on the bottom of his tank.

 If you could please help me I would really appreciate

     Thank you,
        Taylor

Answer
Hi Taylor,
Could be either swim bladder disorder which can typically characterize itself in two ways, either the fish will float uncontrollably at the surface (even upside down) or sink pathetically at the bottom and expend a great deal of energy to swim to the top. What has happened is the swim bladder (the organ that controls equilibrium) is not functioning properly. So then you have Swim bladder disorder.

This condition is most commonly brought on by improper diet. Bubbles may not be getting enough variety in his diet to keep his digestive system working at its best. He may have an impacted digestive system (constipation) that is putting pressure on his swim bladder. Sometimes overfeeding at meal times is a common trigger too. Too much dry food like pellets are a common culprit as well.

So the key here is determine if he has constipation/blockage. Does his belly look a little swollen? Can you see any droppings in his bowl? Change his water so you can definitely tell from then on if he is pooping normally. Either way, I would fast him from his regular food and feed a shelled/mashed bit of a green pea. On the end of a blunt toothpick works well. Some bettas won't accept at first but most will. This can help get things moving along better. And it doesn't hurt even if you don't think he has constipation.

*If he seems to have a lot of trouble pooing and has a swollen belly use of Epsom salt is a well-tried and true method for allowing fish to get rid of excess fluids/waste in their system. The dosage for small containers is 1/8 teaspoon divided into 5 equal parts. Add one part per gallon.

Treatment may have to continue for a good several weeks or even a couple of months. Some fish take a long time to recover fully. Some never recover unfortunately and are constantly plagued with swim bladder problems due to old age and organ malfunction, genetically deformed swim bladder, or injury to the swim bladder.

Some fish also develop internal infections that are very difficult to treat. But its not necessary to get into that right now.

Evaluate his diet and determine if he needs more variety and some fresh frozen food to supplement his menu. If you are feeding pellets is might be a good idea to switch to betta flakes instead such as "Omega one" brand. Flakes seem to be nicer on a betta's digestive system.

Keep in mind too the poor fella may also be 1.) slowing down greatly from old age (if he is about2-3 years old), or 2.) behaving listless from too cool a water temp. Bettas cannot thrive at room temp and do best at 78-80F. Unfortunately its impossible to safely heat a bowl and a tank environment would be much better if at all possible.

I do hope this helps and best of luck!
Karen~