PLEASE HELP! IS THIS DROPSY?!

I just got done witha water change and wanted to check on Ender, then I see his scales are poking a bit out!
Is this why he can't swim without sinking?!
You have to look closely at the middle of his body

Did he bloated? I'm sorry I can't help much, I'm sure some of the expert can help you. While waiting, you could post more photo, and give your water parameter

BoomerXIV said:

Did he bloated? I'm sorry I can't help much, I'm sure some of the expert can help you. While waiting, you could post more photo, and give your water parameter

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He is a bit bloated, pH: 7.6 Ammonia: 0 Nitrite: 0 Nitrate: 0

I think all I can do is either put him down or give him his best life, but I'll see if it can be cured

Kiwi_8 said:

I just got done witha water change and wanted to check on Ender, then I see his scales are poking a bit out!
Is this why he can't swim without sinking?!
You have to look closely at the middle of his body

Click to expand...

Here's some other pictures

It's pinecone and dropsy.
Use any fish broad spectrum that treat Bacterial Infection
Do 75% daily water changes and substrate clean (if there are) and add salt; aquarium salt, rock salt, swimming pool salt.

remember to keep water clean as most bacterial infection are cause by poor water quality

Barry Tetra said:

It's pinecone and dropsy.
Use any fish broad spectrum that treat Bacterial Infection
Do 75% daily water changes and substrate clean (if there are) and add salt; aquarium salt, rock salt, swimming pool salt.

remember to keep water clean as most bacterial infection are cause by poor water quality

Click to expand...

I don't know how that's possible, I've been cleaning his tank 50% every other day, I guess it snuck in.

I also keep hearing that salt will harm freshwater fish and got told some stories about the salt, is that true?
I'll do anything to keep him alive, thanks!

nope, just do 1 table spoon of salt per 20 liters.
dont use more than that as kidney damage could occur

I cured my precious Joan when she had dropsy, so it IS possible, just hard.
I used Maracyn-Two in combination with salt and Melafix (to stall bacterial progress). I'd also reccomend putting some Stress Coat+ (or equivalent) in to help replace slime coat and keep the fish calm.
*50% every other day is waay too much. That gets rid of the beneficial bacteria and forces the nitrite cycle to drop, essentially causing a buildup of fish waste the day after you clean the tank. If you have to clean every other day, do 25% or less.
EDIT: *Cleaning the tank as mentioned above is SPECIFICALLY when the fish is not sick.

Water changes do not remove bacteria as they live in the biofilm which is tightly bound to surfaces. As long as the new water is dechlorinated and at roughly the same temperature as the tank water, frequent water changes do no harm.

CrazyBettaLady said:

I cured my precious Joan when she had dropsy, so it IS possible, just hard.
I used Maracyn-Two in combination with salt and Melafix (to stall bacterial progress). I'd also reccomend putting some Stress Coat+ (or equivalent) in to help replace slime coat and keep the fish calm.
*50% every other day is waay too much. That gets rid of the beneficial bacteria and forces the nitrite cycle to drop, essentially causing a buildup of fish waste the day after you clean the tank. If you have to clean every other day, do 25% or less.
EDIT: *Cleaning the tank as mentioned above is SPECIFICALLY when the fish is not sick.

Click to expand...

Daily water changes does not get rid of beneficial bacteria, they doens't live in the water just in substrate
also Melafix are really dangerous for betta as melafix float on the surface and betta breath them in their Labyrinth organ.

Edit: whoops, haven’t seen your pose yet @essjay

There is debate in the fish community on if Melafix is safe for bettas and the general consensus is that if you really want to use it, use it in smaller doses and err on the side of caution.

In my experience, Melafix is not harmful to bettas in smaller doses. If you've ever bought Bettafix - it's the same thing just more expensive, in a smaller dosage, and smaller bottle. I'd say if you want to use Melafix, use Bettafix dosage or less to make sure no injury is incurred.

Melafix alongside water changes has cured my tropical fish in the past and helped my one betta's popeye go down, as well as helped to aid my other betta when she got dropsy. Whenever either of them starts developing anything that looks bacterial, I use Melafix. They're both almost two years old now and doing swell.
Disclaimer: My tank also has an air stone in it, so they don't go to the surface to breathe as often as, say, a betta in a tank without an air stone.

Moral of the story: Don't overdose with medicine - THAT'S what really hurts fish.