Help with Sick Betta

[Essjay]

Bloodworms are full of fat and very little nutrition but fish go mad for them. They shouldn't be used as the main food but fed sparingly once a week at most as a treat. There are plenty of good quality betta foods out there as the main food. The fruit flies are also good as a treat.

 

[EllRog]

I agree with @essjay Would be worth finding him a decent pellet as his main food source and switch it up with some live foods from time to time. I feed my betta's either daphina or blood worm once a week after a water change as a treat and mainly a Sorry for destroying your nests, moving your plants and generally annoying you

 

[hansgruber7]

Your betta seems to have fin rot, and possibly a swim bladder disorder. (As you said..)

Fin rot is caused by poor water quality. I would preform 50% water changes every day for a week, or until things get better.

Are you bloodworms you feed him freeze dried or fresh? (I have never heard of feeding bettas fruit flies - look into a quality food such as Bug bites, New Life Spectrum, or Omega One) For now, you can try to feed him a cut-up pea. This will help with the bloating. My best guess is that you are feeding to much, or, the blood worms aren't fresh.

The bloodworms are freeze-dried. Thank you. I will look into the other foods you mentioned. I tried to feed him a cut pea several times and he always refused. You are probably correct that I am overfeeding and the worms are definitely not fresh. I will see what I can do to address that. Thanks,

 

[Essjay]

Freeze dried bloodworms should always be rehydrated before putting them in a tank - you may already be doing that but it's worth mentioning.

 

[hansgruber7]

What would you all say is the best food to feed a betta then as far as specific brand and item to buy?

 

[hansgruber7]

Freeze dried bloodworms should always be rehydrated before putting them in a tank - you may already be doing that but it's worth mentioning.

Thanks. I have not been doing that. So you leave them in a cup of water for a while and then pour them in? Sorry for what may be an obvious question.

 

[Essjay]

Yes, that's right. Freeze dried bloodworms take up water and expand. If they are eaten quickly they don't have chance to expend before being eaten so they swell up inside the fish and this can cause damage if they eat a lot.


There are several brands of betta food available. Hikari betta gold and ocean nutrition (atisons) are quite easy to come by. Other American members will be able to suggest foods available as well.

 

[FishFinatic77]

Thanks. I have not been doing that. So you leave them in a cup of water for a while and then pour them in? Sorry for what may be an obvious question.

As @essjay said, you have to soak the bloodworms. I soak them for 20 minutes before putting them in the tank.

What would you all say is the best food to feed a betta then as far as specific brand and item to buy?

I feed my betta Hikari betta pellets, Hikari micro pellets, and Bug Bites Tropical formula (bug bites also has betta pellets if you would rather use those.) He likes all of them, but I think the bug bites are his favorite.

 

[hansgruber7]

Thanks Everyone. I will try to apply this advice and I hope he gets better!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I already mentioned what brands you could get: Omega One, Bug Bites, New Life Spectrum, etc.

 

[Circus]

My betta get fed Bug Bites Betta Flake, Omega One Betta Balls, fresh hatched brine shrimp, and blanched and shelled peas. They also get fasted once a week

 

[hansgruber7]

Update: I tried to implement everyone's helpful advice and he's doing much better now (thanks!), but his fins still haven't grown back much and I noticed he has a mark on his head (pictured). Any idea if that's a problem? Any other suggestions? Or should I just continue to focus on maintaining water quality and feeding him properly and hope his fins grow back over time?

 

[PheonixKingZ]

The photo isn’t clear enough for me to tell for sure, but I’m pretty sure those are just scratches. The water changes will help with that as well.

 

[hansgruber7]

I got some better shots. He seems more active and happier and looks better since I implemented all of your helpful advice, but I'm still concerned for what appear to be red marks on his head and his fins aren't growing back yet. Any sense from anyone for what these marks could be? Also, should I just accept that his fins might not grow back?

 

[FishFinatic77]

I'm not sure what the marks could be. Maybe he's missing some scales there? If that's the case, then they'll grow back in time.