Betta still bloated...

Question
Thanks.  His belly is really stretched and translucent and looks like it's filled with fluid.  No pinecone effect. This sounds awful, but I have to ask... Can his belly be pricked to release the fluid?  Don't worry, I'll wait to hear back from you and I will follow your instructions.
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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
I first contacted you on 10/28 and followed your suggestion with no improvements.  I'll start from the beginning.  
Monday will be 3 weeks from the time I returned from vacation.  My betta was bloated but eating and swimming fine.  We did use a vacation feeder.  I called our local pet store and was told to not feed for a few days - may have overeaten.  No change.  I then did small water change to our 5-gallon tank and discovered lots of residue from the vacation feeder and thought maybe he was still eating on it.  I went another few days without feeding him.  Still no change.  I contacted the pet store again and was told to give him amoxicillin for 5 days.  No change.  I then contacted you and tried your suggestion of feeding him peas.  I did for a few days - still no change.  I contacted yet another pet store and was told to try and soak his food in some cod oil.  I also took in a sample of water to be tested - was told the water was fine.  They said they did not think it was bacterial due to him still living and had already used amoxicillin.  It's the third morning food soaked in cod oil with no change to the bloat.  This is the first time he has not eaten and he seems to stay at the bottom of the tank.  I did move him to small bowl using water from the tank.  Is there anything I can do?  He has held on this long...
Thank you.
Lisa
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Hi Lisa,
I'm very sorry to hear your better still hasn't recovered. Seeing as he is still bloated i would think he has dropsy.
Sometimes in advanced cases of dropsy the scales may stick out giving a "pinecone" effect. Unfortunatly there is no treatment or medication available that is effective enough for dropsy. Sometimes dropsy can cause damage to the inner organs and cause organ failure. The only thing you can do is make sure his water is very clean by doing daily water changes and there is a little chance he may recover.

Regards,
Chloe.

Answer
Hi Lisa,
A fluid-filled abdomen is a bacterial disease. It is difficult to treat. You could try short-term baths for a few hours each day using anti-bacterial products such as chloramine-T, potassium permanganate or antibiotics.

Hope this helps!
Chloe.