Betta Fish lethargic

[FishOwner213]

He comes up and breathes bubbles onto tank or sleeps on respirator or ground.
He has a hard time moving about against respirator current and moves in short bursts.
When I touch him he spurts away fast , so he has a lot of fighting spirit left.
We feed him 2 times a day .
I use boiled water instead of unclean tank water and use blue medicine.
I recently did full water change but still a problem.
Betta age : about 8 months or so
Tank: 3-4 ish gallon with respirator , no heater (maybe the problem)

Due to corona quarentine it is likely I wont be able to purchase any new products , any home remedies?
I have a smaller 1 gallon tank I bought the betta in , and an 8 gallon tank for my goldfish.

 

[FishOwner213]

Currnt Picture

OLD PICTURES

NOTE: he has 0 sunlight and dim conditions where he is currently

 

[FishGuest5123]

They will become lethargic in cold water. He needs to be in 78-80F temp. I just ordered a new heater Thursday on Amazon and got it Friday.

 

[Naughts]

Order a heater online. Also baffle the filter outlet so it doesn't push him around.

 

[FishOwner213]

Do you guys think he is sick , I've noticed a tiny white spot on his fin , but I gave white spot medicine

 

[Colin_T]

Bettas don't normally get white spot because they are kept on their own.

If the fish does get white spot, heat treatment is the safest method. You raise the water temperature to 30C (86F) and keep it there for 2 weeks.

The following link has information about white spot and different ways to treat it. The first post on page 1 and second post on page 2 are worth a read.

What is ICH?

This is a common question that is often asked, what is ich and how is it recognisable and what causes it? The real term is ICHTHYOPHTHIRIASIS. OR commonly known as white spot. It is an extremely comon parasite that affects aquarium fish. It is highly infectious and potentially lethal and...

www.fishforums.net

 

[FishOwner213]

just talked on the phone with a fish caretaker , suggested it was fungal infection , told me to give non-iodized salt and dr.aqua non - white spot(what I have)

 

[FishOwner213]

He is more lethargic and stopped eating much. Havn't seen him poop so may be constipation

 

[Colin_T]

If he isn't eating much, he won't poop much.
If he stops eating and does stringy white poop, he has an internal infection and will probably die.

Do regular partial water changes and gravel clean the substrate and try to keep him eating.

 

[FishOwner213]

The tetracycline turned the entire aquarium red, I am keeping my betta in a 1 gallon tank with low water level so he can breathe without respirator.
He is still fighting but not eating or pooping. Turns out due to corona our water supply had been injected with high amount of peroxide ( 13 or 30% I think), I am keeping him in Aquafina drinking water ( has a little bit chloride (15 mg/L and 6.4-7 pH) but I don't have conditioner). My water heater isn't working properly but I am in tropical country so temperature should be okay ( I microwave some hot water if it gets too cold).
Other than that betta fish has damaged fin that stays away from body.
I'll try to get some medicine before corona lock down.
I have heard betta fish can live for a 2 weeks without food , so hopefully he lives long enough to get hungry again.
Should I move him backinto main tank that is colder, has peroxide and is red with tetracycline or keep him in quarentine tank without tetracycline but Aquafina water.
I should mention I dont use any conditioner mainly because all fish stores said I can use tap water

 

[Valkyrie_Lips]

I should mention I dont use any conditioner mainly because all fish stores said I can use tap water

You need a water conditioner.

 

[Essjay]

Never believe anything a shop tells you until you have researched it for yourself.

The only time you you don't need to use a conditioner(dechlorinator) is if the water you use does not contain chlorine or chloramine - for example if your water comes from a well. But as most water conditioners also bind metals, using one is still a good idea.

 

[FishOwner213]

1 month later...
I have anti-chlorine
I used oxytetracycline that fish caretaker prescribed, it didn't work, his fin rot got worse
I kept him in the tank with the low water level so that he can breathe easily.
But I did put in aquarium salt (a pinch) with water, looking back I don't think to put in salt was wisely for an extended amount of time
There seems to be no noticeable difference in behavior
He is eating, heavy breathing, and still can't float
I'm currently keeping him in a small tank with daily water changes and using generic anti-bacterial / anti-fungus and methyl blue (that seems to work)
I fear his swim bladder damage and fin damage may be permanent(been like this for over a month).
Hopefully, I can beat the fin rot.
Poop is normal with occasional white poop only seen via flashlight
He has gotten longer and bigger in size.
I don't want to euthanize him since he is eating and fighting for his life.
(It is summer here so water temp is 78 + )

 

[JuiceBox52]

Do a 75% water change every day for two weeks. I would Move him to the 8 gallon you mentioned, move the filter over with him, this will move beneficial bacteria over.

 

[FishGuest5123]

As long as he says eating, don’t give up.