Betta bloated PLEASE HELP

[ashley33]

I've had my first betta for a little over 2 months now. I've never had any issues with him until recently when I noticed one eye was cloudy and bulging and after researching figured out it was pop eye he was also very bloated. I decided to start giving him salt baths for 15 minutes and cleaning his tank everyday. I've been doing that for almost 4 days and while his eye looks a little better it's still cloudy and bulging. I started noticing white stringy stuff when I was cleaning his tank and I'm not sure if it has to do with the bloating or pop eye and what I can do to help him.

 

[bettamum]

what is the size and dimensions of your tank?
normally, how often do you do a water change and how much water do you take out? do you use water conditioner?
do you heat the water before you add it?
is your local water hard or soft? you can usually find this out by checking the website of your water provider
what are your water parameters (PH, ammonia, nitrates, nitrites)?
what temperature is your heater at? how many watts is it?
what kind of filter do you have?
did you cycle the tank before getting a fish?
do you have any plants in there? any ornaments?
if you have ornaments or fake plants, did you sterilise them before putting them in?
do you have a light over the tank? do you have floating plants?
what kind of substrate do you have? do you vacuum it?
are there any tankmates?
where did you get the betta from? (some places, eg. pet stores and walmart, have bettas with poor genetics that will get sick easier, or bettas carrying diseases or parasites)

the sickness of your fish is very likely caused by poor water quality. it is very important you answer all these questions so we can identify the problem and work to fix it.

 

[bettamum]

about the white stringy stuff: where is it in the tank? can you post a photo?

 

[NickAu]

I decided to start giving him salt baths

What type of salt?

Stop feeding him for a few days.
I may have more input once I know the answers to bettamums questions.

Be warned it dont look good. Normally by the time fish get to that stage the damage is done.

 

[ashley33]

what is the size and dimensions of your tank?
normally, how often do you do a water change and how much water do you take out? do you use water conditioner?
do you heat the water before you add it?
is your local water hard or soft? you can usually find this out by checking the website of your water provider
what are your water parameters (PH, ammonia, nitrates, nitrites)?
what temperature is your heater at? how many watts is it?
what kind of filter do you have?
did you cycle the tank before getting a fish?
do you have any plants in there? any ornaments?
if you have ornaments or fake plants, did you sterilise them before putting them in?
do you have a light over the tank? do you have floating plants?
what kind of substrate do you have? do you vacuum it?
are there any tankmates?
where did you get the betta from? (some places, eg. pet stores and walmart, have bettas with poor genetics that will get sick easier, or bettas carrying diseases or parasites)

the sickness of your fish is very likely caused by poor water quality. it is very important you answer all these questions so we can identify the problem and work to fix it.

The tank is a .7 gallon tank it's a marina betta EZ Care tank it's a self cleaning tank so I didn't think I needed a filter but I did buy a separate heater for it. I used to use spring water every three days and probably do a 25-50% water change but it didn't seem like it was cleaning it so I started doing 100% water changes every few days when I noticed his eye becoming bad. I also started using tap water about two weeks ago and using tetra betta fizz tabs to condition the water also our tap water here is hard . To be honest I never even knew about the water parameters until he got sick and I started researching and seeing that a lot. I don't have any live plants I just have one fake plant like ornament and I did clean it before putting it in. I purchased the tank and conditioned the water and waited 24 hours to put him in. There's no other fish with him and I got him at a pet supplies plus

 

[ashley33]

What type of salt?

Stop feeding him for a few days.
I may have more input once I know the answers to bettamums questions.

Be warned it dont look good. Normally by the time fish get to that stage the damage is done.

I used plain epsom salt with no fragrance or anything like that. Yeah I was worried about that but he still swims around a lot and hasn't become lathargic or lost his appetite so I was hoping maybe I could save him

 

[ashley33]

about the white stringy stuff: where is it in the tank? can you post a photo?

I'll try to take a picture of it it's kind of hard to see

 

[Essjay]

I'm sorry to say that the cause of the betta's problems is probably the tank. It is far too small, and in my opinion these tanks should not be on sale.

The minimum tank size for a betta is 2.5 gals, and I would not keep a betta in less than 5 gals. My betta's tank is 7 gals, which he shares with a nerite snail. I would buy him a new tank as soon as you can and move him into it. Even though it won't be cycled it would still be better than keeping him in his current tank. Once he's been moved you will need to do daily water changes until the tank is cycled.
However it is quite likely that the fish won't make it. Once a fish gets dropsy the damage has been done. If he doesn't make it, you could do a fishless cycle link before getting another betta.

 

[bettamum]

The tank is a .7 gallon tank

this is much too small for a betta

I didn't think I needed a filter

i havent heard of self-cleaning tanks before, i read up on them though and they sound a bit dodgy. the two types are either one that uses a gravity-based pump to filter the water (basically a built-in filter of sorts) and theres a garden one where supposedly plants grown in the tank roof filter the water. i think your lack of filter likely screwed you over as well, especially in such a small tank.

I used to use spring water every three days and probably do a 25-50% water change but it didn't seem like it was cleaning it so I started doing 100% water changes every few days when I noticed his eye becoming bad.

using spring water, if it was unconditioned, was not a good idea since you dont know whats in the water and there could be all sorts of chemicals or heavy metals that would poison your fish. 100% water changes are very extreme since they kill off the bacteria cultures in the tank, its basically like if you put your betta into an uncycled tank every few days. this likely wouldve caused him a lot of stress, which wouldve weakened his immune system. id say thats why he got infected then.

our tap water here is hard .

bettas are softwater fish, so if you werent adjusting your water hardness chemically this wouldve made him sick too. in the future, you should avoid getting bettas because your water is unsuited to them. a good hardwater alternative is guppies. i strongly recommend you research the needs of any fish before buying them though. and remember that fishkeeping is an expensive hobby, and if you cant afford to get all the equipment you probably shouldnt get the fish.

To be honest I never even knew about the water parameters until he got sick

it is super duper important to test your parameters weekly at least! if you are going to continue keeping fish, make sure to buy a water testing kit and test your water regularly. also, your local fish shop might test your water for you if you bring in a sample. you should call them and see if they offer this service. if they do, bring in some of your tank water (at least 20mL) and get it tested.

I don't have any live plants I just have one fake plant like ornament and I did clean it before putting it in.

live plants are great because, while theyre more pricy, they oxygenate your water (so your fish can breathe) and get rid of the CO2 and ammonia your fish produces with their poo. if your plant is plastic or has sharp edges, your fish may have cut or snagged his fins and got infected. if you want fake plants, be sure that theyre silk.

I purchased the tank and conditioned the water and waited 24 hours to put him in.

its generally recommended to cycle your tank for a week before adding fish.

There's no other fish with him and I got him at a pet supplies plus

pet stores are generally dodgy and i would strongly advise you never buy any animal from one ever. they buy them cheap from breeding farms, meaning the animals usually have poor genetics and grow up in filthy environments. bettas are usually kept in tanks the size of drinking cups, lined up on a shelf next to other bettas. constantly being around enemies stresses them out, and their poor life quality means they can be sick before you even buy them.
most pet store workers dont know much about the actual care needed for animals, so theyll often tell you false information just to sell things. you should do a search and see if you can find any fish stores close by. the owners there will be much more knowledgable about fishkeeping and can give you sound advice.

im very sorry to say that there isnt much hope of your fish making it. if you want to euthanise him, you can take him out of the tank and put him into a plastic bag and into the freezer. he'll pass out quickly and die a peaceful death.
i dont like to euthanise fish until they wont swim up to eat anymore, and since you said your fish is active i know you wont want to put him down. if you need to though, at least now you know how,

to save him, youll need to take drastic measures and possibly spend a lot of money. first off, definitely get a bigger tank. treat the water and everything like you usually do. id also recommend adding some substrate (gravel is good) and planting a few plants to keep your ammonia down and make your fish feel safer. also, definitely buy a testing kit and test your water very often. ammonia, nitrates and nitrites should be at 0, and PH should be 7 or a little lower than that. because your water is hard, you should see what you can do to make it soft. balancing GH is very tricky and requires a lot of work, and youll need to buy a GH testing kit, but if youre willing to do that then make sure youre very meticulous. if your tank doesnt have a built in filter, then get one. make sure your temperature on your heater is in the high 20s (celsius). after everythings set up and youve made sure your parameters are good, move your betta in. continue the salt baths for your popeye, if it isnt going down then you can buy antibiotics (theyre expensive though). the swollen stomach is either constipation (which can be cured with fasting and then feeding peas) or dropsy (not much you can do afaik).
at the end of the day, you have to accept that your fish might die anyway. if you dont want to or cant put in all the money and time to try and fix him, you might want to consider putting him down.
good luck with everything. bettas are hardy little buggers, hopefully your little guy will pull through.

 

[NickAu]

I used to use spring water

Most bottled " spring" water is not fish safe.

 

[GobyMaster11276]

Between the other members, almost everything has been covered, so sorry in advance if I go over something already mentioned. As already said, this will have been caused most likely by stress and/or bad parameters. Regular water changes, monitoring, and live plants can help the latter, as well as having a larger volume of water (smaller amounts tend to swing more easily). Fish can get stressed by lack of areas to hide and other environmental necessities, so not having those (which is likely in .7 gallons) can also lead to sickness. This is why it is important to have retreats and such for the fish, but it also makes the tank look better as well. Can you please get a picture of the inbuilt filter, just for reference? Also, the betta's fins are pretty badly damaged. As mentioned by bettamum, do you have any plastic plants or sharp edged ornaments that he could have torn his fins on? Open wounds are an easy entry for pathogens, so at first signs should be treated. What do you feed, how much, and how often? This could be related to the bloating if constipation, or it may be bacterial.

 

[ashley33]

this is much too small for a betta

i havent heard of self-cleaning tanks before, i read up on them though and they sound a bit dodgy. the two types are either one that uses a gravity-based pump to filter the water (basically a built-in filter of sorts) and theres a garden one where supposedly plants grown in the tank roof filter the water. i think your lack of filter likely screwed you over as well, especially in such a small tank.

using spring water, if it was unconditioned, was not a good idea since you dont know whats in the water and there could be all sorts of chemicals or heavy metals that would poison your fish. 100% water changes are very extreme since they kill off the bacteria cultures in the tank, its basically like if you put your betta into an uncycled tank every few days. this likely wouldve caused him a lot of stress, which wouldve weakened his immune system. id say thats why he got infected then.

bettas are softwater fish, so if you werent adjusting your water hardness chemically this wouldve made him sick too. in the future, you should avoid getting bettas because your water is unsuited to them. a good hardwater alternative is guppies. i strongly recommend you research the needs of any fish before buying them though. and remember that fishkeeping is an expensive hobby, and if you cant afford to get all the equipment you probably shouldnt get the fish.

it is super duper important to test your parameters weekly at least! if you are going to continue keeping fish, make sure to buy a water testing kit and test your water regularly. also, your local fish shop might test your water for you if you bring in a sample. you should call them and see if they offer this service. if they do, bring in some of your tank water (at least 20mL) and get it tested.

live plants are great because, while theyre more pricy, they oxygenate your water (so your fish can breathe) and get rid of the CO2 and ammonia your fish produces with their poo. if your plant is plastic or has sharp edges, your fish may have cut or snagged his fins and got infected. if you want fake plants, be sure that theyre silk.

its generally recommended to cycle your tank for a week before adding fish.

pet stores are generally dodgy and i would strongly advise you never buy any animal from one ever. they buy them cheap from breeding farms, meaning the animals usually have poor genetics and grow up in filthy environments. bettas are usually kept in tanks the size of drinking cups, lined up on a shelf next to other bettas. constantly being around enemies stresses them out, and their poor life quality means they can be sick before you even buy them.
most pet store workers dont know much about the actual care needed for animals, so theyll often tell you false information just to sell things. you should do a search and see if you can find any fish stores close by. the owners there will be much more knowledgable about fishkeeping and can give you sound advice.

im very sorry to say that there isnt much hope of your fish making it. if you want to euthanise him, you can take him out of the tank and put him into a plastic bag and into the freezer. he'll pass out quickly and die a peaceful death.
i dont like to euthanise fish until they wont swim up to eat anymore, and since you said your fish is active i know you wont want to put him down. if you need to though, at least now you know how,

to save him, youll need to take drastic measures and possibly spend a lot of money. first off, definitely get a bigger tank. treat the water and everything like you usually do. id also recommend adding some substrate (gravel is good) and planting a few plants to keep your ammonia down and make your fish feel safer. also, definitely buy a testing kit and test your water very often. ammonia, nitrates and nitrites should be at 0, and PH should be 7 or a little lower than that. because your water is hard, you should see what you can do to make it soft. balancing GH is very tricky and requires a lot of work, and youll need to buy a GH testing kit, but if youre willing to do that then make sure youre very meticulous. if your tank doesnt have a built in filter, then get one. make sure your temperature on your heater is in the high 20s (celsius). after everythings set up and youve made sure your parameters are good, move your betta in. continue the salt baths for your popeye, if it isnt going down then you can buy antibiotics (theyre expensive though). the swollen stomach is either constipation (which can be cured with fasting and then feeding peas) or dropsy (not much you can do afaik).
at the end of the day, you have to accept that your fish might die anyway. if you dont want to or cant put in all the money and time to try and fix him, you might want to consider putting him down.
good luck with everything. bettas are hardy little buggers, hopefully your little guy will pull through.

thank you so much I'm going to find a real fish store around I never realized what he needed. I had asked and the pet store just said a heater. I'll be going today to get everything you've told me and I pray I can save him it sounds weird but we've become attached to him so even if he doesn't make it I hope I can just make him comfortable for now. Now with his fins they've been like that since I bought him I just thought it was the type of fish if I ever get another fish is that something I should look out for as well? What types of plants would be best for him I've seen plants in cups before is there any that are better? Do you have an opinion on what type of antibiotics I should get him? Again thank you so much

 

[ashley33]

Between the other members, almost everything has been covered, so sorry in advance if I go over something already mentioned. As already said, this will have been caused most likely by stress and/or bad parameters. Regular water changes, monitoring, and live plants can help the latter, as well as having a larger volume of water (smaller amounts tend to swing more easily). Fish can get stressed by lack of areas to hide and other environmental necessities, so not having those (which is likely in .7 gallons) can also lead to sickness. This is why it is important to have retreats and such for the fish, but it also makes the tank look better as well. Can you please get a picture of the inbuilt filter, just for reference? Also, the betta's fins are pretty badly damaged. As mentioned by bettamum, do you have any plastic plants or sharp edged ornaments that he could have torn his fins on? Open wounds are an easy entry for pathogens, so at first signs should be treated. What do you feed, how much, and how often? This could be related to the bloating if constipation, or it may be bacterial.

It's hard to get a picture of the filter but I took a picture of the box that tank came in so you can kind of get an idea and I did have a little plant like ornanment in it I didn't realize it could hurt him and I feed him nutrafin max flakes it says they include freeze dried bloodworms and I feed him probably twice a day and not much probably a few little flakes

 

[bettamum]

thank you so much I'm going to find a real fish store around I never realized what he needed. I had asked and the pet store just said a heater. I'll be going today to get everything you've told me and I pray I can save him it sounds weird but we've become attached to him so even if he doesn't make it I hope I can just make him comfortable for now. Now with his fins they've been like that since I bought him I just thought it was the type of fish if I ever get another fish is that something I should look out for as well? What types of plants would be best for him I've seen plants in cups before is there any that are better? Do you have an opinion on what type of antibiotics I should get him? Again thank you so much

its no problem! we've all been novices once, what matters is that youre learning and doing your best.
bettas have different types of tails, some of them have the shredded look. id say thats just your bettas tail style. if he had torn it like that, theres no way he would be alive right now! its a good idea to look up common diseases and signs of sickness in whatever fish you want to buy, so when you look at them in the store you can check theyre healthy.
any plants would be fine, you should get some tall ones that he can hide behind because bettas usually swim near the surface.
you can get antibacterial fish food, this will fight his infection. if after several days that hasnt worked, you can treat the water with Maracyn Two.
i lost my last betta to dropsy, its incredibly painful. i sincerely hope your little guy pulls through. good luck! keep us updated

 

[bettamum]

It's hard to get a picture of the filter but I took a picture of the box that tank came in so you can kind of get an idea and I did have a little plant like ornanment in it I didn't realize it could hurt him and I feed him nutrafin max flakes it says they include freeze dried bloodworms and I feed him probably twice a day and not much probably a few little flakes

i think you mightve forgotten to attach your picture haha
the food you give him is really good, bettas love bloodworms!