Bloated Belly in Betta

Question
I've had my betta for a year and 2 months ago he developed a swollen belly.  Sometimes I see brown stringy stuff hanging out of him after being fed (last night it was white)and he has to swim around for a while before it leaves his body. He becomes a little stressed while it is coming out.  He is swimming around, curious, very interactive, eating well and fed one pellet twice a day. I stopped feeding pellets (was feeding bio gold, then switched to betta bites - his stomach swelled before the change in food) and am doing the pea thing.  His head has raised gray patches on it and his body color looks dull (he's blue - tail has red in it, but I think that part of his color).  Over the course of 2 months I have treated him with tetracycline, methyalane blue, fungus clear - everything.  His scales are slightly raised (hardly noticeable, mainly where the bloat is)thought he might have dropsy.  Maybe intestinal?  

Both of my bettas (the other one is doing fantastic)  have their own 10 gallon tank, filter, heater everything gets rinsed off once a week, cleaned well once a month.  
I also have had major problems with ammonia in the water.  Was using tap water with 1 tablespoon salt, aquisol, amquel and Novaqua but had to switch to bottled water because the ammonia would rise within one day of doing a full change, then have to do a half water change for the ammonia to go down and maybe a little ammonia clear. (I only feed 2 pellets a day am & pm)  Haven't had much problem since using bottled water, but sometimes i have have to use Jungle's ammonia clear to get it down - I put a fan on the tanks during the hot  humid days and that seems to help somewhat (I only have this problem during the summer)  I also have high ph in both tap and bottled water and nothing seems to bring it so I've just left a alone.

These are my first fish and its been trial and error and by all accounts, these two fish should be dead. In fact, I'm very proud that they have even lived this long!! I never thought I could get attached to fish, but I have. I only want to do the best for them (as I do all critters).  ANY information you can give me would be helpful.

Thank you


Answer
Hi Doreen,
Sounds he could be constipated with the trailing poo. Sometimes too much pellets and not enough variety in the form of frozen foods and fiber can cause digestive problems. Peas are a good solution, but you may have to help him out further by feeding him some frozen foods like brine shrimp (their exoskeletons can provide good roughage) and continuing with the peas. I also prefer to feed my betta good quality flake food. I use a brand that has all-natural ingredients called "AQUEON" and it is intended for all tropical fish and not labeled for bettas, but its ingredients provide enough protein as well as vitamins and garlic (immune system) to keep bettas quite healthy and strong. Plus my bettas have never had digestive trouble from it.

The bloat with the raised scales is concerning. It could be an internal infection (Dropsy is the term used to loosely to describe any kind of illness bloating with raised scales) however. Bettas with such a severe kind of illness almost always act sick and refuse to eat. Your betta seems to be doing great despite his health condition. Maybe it is overfeeding? But it sounds like you are feeding him a very light diet as it is.

So it may be either a tumor :( or kidney problems can develop if they are damaged by toxins or overuse of medications.

I once had an oscar who became bloated and no matter what treatment I gave him he wouldn't ever shrink back down. Yet he swam about and ate food happily all the time. However, after almost a year of this he eventually became too weak and sickly and I had to put him down.

Epsom salt is often recommended to help relieve bloat. It can help draw excess fluids from the fish.

A sudden bloating is usually caused by bacterial infections, slow gradual bloating is often growing tumors or even parasites, while other slow swellings can be virus or internal organ damage.

So with all these factors into mind, you can see how treating bloat is very difficult. And sometimes no matter what you try, treatments prove unsuccessful. But of course that doesn't mean you shouldn't try.

Ammonia in the water is definitely not good as you know. Water changes are typially the best solution along with using a water conditioner that neutralizes ammonia which is what you've already done. Keep in mind some ammonia neutralizers can in turn produce false readings on your test kit so check the label for any advice.

I can definitely relate how much you can get attached to your fish and what I would do if this was my fish is start an aggressive water change regimen (you wouldn't believe how good bettas feel when their water is kept very clean) of about 50% everyday with gravel vacuuming. Water changes never hurt as a precaution. I'm not sure what medications you should give your fish. The raised gray patches might be fungus but I'm not sure. A picture would help and if you could send some pictures here-

nature_girl2u@hotmail.com

This will really help. I don't really like advising medications when we aren't sure of what we're treating.If I read that correctly you said he had the bloated belly for 2 months? Then it may be a tumor. All you can do in this situation is provide the best care you can until it becomes so stressful and uncomfortable for the fish, then you should put him down. The easiest and most humane way to do this is by oil of cloves. This oil can be bought at most health food stores and similar places. Make sure to try to get pure clove oil if possible. I hope you don't have to go through this anytime soon but if needed, 25 drops per liter is the lethal dose. It causes the fish to fall asleep and drift away completely. It is used at lower doses by fish veterinarians and experienced fish keepers. I've had to do it before and trust me, the little fish goes very quietly and peacefully.

Best wishes and I hope this helps!
Karen~