Is this ich / popeye eyes? Betta fish

Hi, I've been struggling with my sick betta for few weeks.
After changing to sponge filter and water change, he got better but he not really active, laying on the bottom of the tank or floating on top.
Yet there was no physical sign of any illness.
His appetite did not change, he still runs for the food.
10 days ago, I went to LFS and bought some anacharis. Few days after putting the anacharis, my tank started to smell exactly as the LFS, dusty fishy smell. I did water change and got better.
Since the small tank is harder to maintain the pH and water quality, I bought 10 gallon tank and the water height is 6inches.
pH 7.0. Temperature 77.5, there is sponge filter & air stone (both low powered with valve)
Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 5
In the new tank I added driftwood (boiled for 2 hours and soaked for 1day)

After moving him to the new tank carefully, he seemed be little more active; however, today I found a white spot on his dorsal fin. I took a close picture. Then by zooming the picture I could see very tiny white spots all over his pelvic and caudal fin. The white spots are so small that it is very hard to see with naked eyes. I have to open all the window and turn on the light, take picture and zoom in to see.
the first 2 pictures are 15 days ago, he was sick but did not have any white spots. The rest are taken today.

Also his right eye has some fuzziness, and his left eye looks puffy.
Is this ich? Is ich contaminated from the anacharis or driftwood? or is it true that it can be in any tank and since my betta is sick with low immune system it took over his body?
I see no sign of scratching, but he is floating or at the bottom of the tank and gasping or breathing the air from the surface. Sometimes he gasps for air moving his gill.
Still he swims and comes whenever he sees me / when I give him food.

Is it best to raise the temperature? wouldn't it make him even harder to breath?

The fish doesn't have white spot but its left eye looks a big swollen.

There looks like hydra on the glass in one picture. Hydra are nothing to worry about and won't harm adult fish.
https://www.fishforums.net/attachments/5-30-15-jpg.91700/

Colin_T said:

The fish doesn't have white spot but its left eye looks a big swollen.

There looks like hydra on the glass in one picture. Hydra are nothing to worry about and won't harm adult fish.
https://www.fishforums.net/attachments/5-30-15-jpg.91700/

Click to expand...

Hello Colin, thank you for your reply.
I circled in blue for the spot. He didnt have this. I wonder if its the beginning of ich.
Also the bug, hydra, look like is over his eyes isnt it?
The very small spots in his fin, is it also hydra?

the spot on his fin is not white spot, it is just colouration.

the hydra are the specks on the glass and are not on the fish.

Colin_T said:

the spot on his fin is not white spot, it is just colouration.

the hydra are the specks on the glass and are not on the fish.

Click to expand...

Thank you for your reply. Isn't hydra big enough to be seen with naked eyes? These are so small /light coloured that can be only seen with zoom in camera lens /dark background. They are swimming constantly.
I can't see the leg. It has a dot like head (swims with its head) looking like a micro version of tadpoles? Or are this the offspring of hydra?
Could it be some sort of parasite? Whatever it is its growing and its on the betta's eye too.
Several days ago I scooped up some sort of soil with slimy cover, something like small sea anemone. I thought it was some dirt from the new plant from lfs so I just threw it away without taking a close look, and didn't see something like that afterwards.
Will heat or aquarium salt help? My heater can go up to 88F.

hydra look like small brown sea anemones. If the specks on the glass are moving around, they are probably copepods (cyclops).

the stuff on the fish's eye is excess mucous. If there were hydra or cyclops on the fish's body or eye, the fish would be rubbing it to remove it.

if they are cyclops or hydra they won't harm the fish. temperature won't make any difference to them either. salt will but it will stress the Betta if he is already sick.

Colin_T said:

hydra look like small brown sea anemones. If the specks on the glass are moving around, they are probably copepods (cyclops).

the stuff on the fish's eye is excess mucous. If there were hydra or cyclops on the fish's body or eye, the fish would be rubbing it to remove it.

if they are cyclops or hydra they won't harm the fish. temperature won't make any difference to them either. salt will but it will stress the Betta if he is already sick.

Click to expand...

Yes, you are right. I think they after are copepods. I think there are rotifers as well. Copepods are described to live mainly in saltwater, and I wonder how they got into my tank. Its says its nort harmful but they are so many! Especially around the sponge filter.
Recently my betta started to rub on the gravel, could this be the reason? How do I minimize them?
Small fish like tetras eat them, but i dont want to stress my betta, would zebra snail help?

copepods (cyclops) live in fresh, brackish and salt water and so do rotifers.

they are going thru a breeding cycle and their numbers will drop in a few months. If you want to get rid of them sooner, you can add some copper and it will kill all the invertebrates (copepods, rotifers, snails, shrimp, etc) in the tank.

the other way to treat them is by doing big water changes and gravel cleans and trying to suck them out.

snails don't touch copepods or rotifers.

Colin_T said:

copepods (cyclops) live in fresh, brackish and salt water and so do rotifers.

they are going thru a breeding cycle and their numbers will drop in a few months. If you want to get rid of them sooner, you can add some copper and it will kill all the invertebrates (copepods, rotifers, snails, shrimp, etc) in the tank.

the other way to treat them is by doing big water changes and gravel cleans and trying to suck them out.

snails don't touch copepods or rotifers.

Click to expand...

Ok thanks for your help and information.
Thank you as always.