Betta swimbladder disease

Question
I tried the pea a day ago, but it does not float and I have not seen him look for the pea in the bottom. I tried hanging something from the border with the piece of green pea on it to see if he bits it. I do not want to leave the uneaten pea ther for it can rot and spoil the water, so I will try to change the water over the weekend. He seems happy and responsive though. I just hope he recovers is constipation is the issue. Do not think it is bacterial infection. He looks very healthy.
Thanks again!

Dali

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Followup To
Question -
I've had a betta for a year and a half now. A little more than a month ago, I noticed he was "bebded". He seemed ok. Eating fine, activity ok, but simply bended. As a biologyst/microbiologyst I supposed something was wrong with the swimbladder, but couold not think of anything to fix it because no signs of infection was present. I have had fish since I was a girl. Searching I found they can suffer of swimbladder disease because of constipation. I have been fasting him for a week now. I have not yet given him the pea but will do tomorrow. What if this does not work? Is there other way of fixing him?
Answer -
Hi Dali,
Do you mean by 'bending' in the Betta as he is floating at the surface with little control over his equilibrium and doubling over in a curve? If so, he certainly has problems with his swim bladder either by too much dry food, causing the betta's overloaded stomach to put pressure on his nearby swim bladder organ, or there can be problems with bacterial infections but this is somewhat unusual.

But as far as treatment goes, a week is plenty of time to fast him and I would recommend feeding the green pea. Always insure the pea is completely thawed out and it's shell removed. From my past experience I know it can be tricky to get a Swimbladder betta well. But it takes patience and special care. Insure his water is warm to maintain good metabolism--78-82 is best. And, very importantly, insure his water is as clean as possible. This means don't ever allow ammonia, or nitrite to be measurable in his enviroment. These chemicals can easily be measured with aquarium test kits available online or at your local petshop.

I do hope this helps! If you have anymore questions or concerns, feel free to email me..

Best Wishes,
Karen~

Answer
Hi Dali,
Here's a tip for pea feeding=
Instead of just dropping it in the bettas tank--use a blunt toothpick ((or similiar non-toxic device)) and stick a small bite size piece of pea on it and hold it very near his mouth or head. Your betta should see it and go for it immediately. This handfeeding avoids the common problems of losing the fast-sinking pea in the bottom substrate.
*Try to feed the pea two or three times a day in tiny amounts...

I wish you and your betta the best!
Happy fishkeeping!
Karen~