Is he going to die?!

[Raechal]

Okay so I have my male betta a 20 minute salt bath lastnight and I just finished another one with him a few minutes ago. He is in his main tank now and as soon as I put him in, he sank to the bottom and now he is not moving. He will quickly dart up for air and sink back down to the bottom once in awhile.

Have I killed him? I am freaking out and don't know what to do!

 

[wuvmybetta]

It doesn't sound like he took to kindly to it. I wouldn't do it anymore. This is the male with the blown caudal,right? Clean water should heal it up soon enough.

But honestly,he shouldn't DIE, he's probably just shocked. Try offering him some food to snap him out of it.

 

[Raechal]

It doesn't sound like he took to kindly to it. I wouldn't do it anymore. This is the male with the blown caudal,right? Clean water should heal it up soon enough.

Well I gave him a salt bath yesterday and he did perfectly fine right after when I put him in his main tank. I am doing 80% water changes everyday as he doesn't have a filter in his tank.

 

[BettaMomma]

Don't panic Take some deep breaths - he's probably really pissed because he was just dunked into some water that was kind of harsh for him to tolerate.

Anything else look wrong with him at the moment?
How's his tail anyway, is it improving???

How's his color?

 

[3fsh]

I think it might be better to have him in shallow water so that he doesn't have to expend so much energy to get to the top to breath. He's probably so exhausted that he has to launch himself in order to get to the surface... and when he's done he just lets himself sink to the bottom to preserve his energy.

 

[Raechal]

Don't panic Take some deep breaths - he's probably really pissed because he was just dunked into some water that was kind of harsh for him to tolerate.

Anything else look wrong with him at the moment?
How's his tail anyway, is it improving???

How's his color?

He got stress bars when I put him in the salth bath but as soon as I put him back into the main tank he colored up nicely. His colors have been getting darker and I can no longer see the bright purple he once had in his tail. His tail is also very black at the end and looks worse. I don't know what to do for the poor guy.

 

[Raechal]

I think it might be better to have him in shallow water so that he doesn't have to expend so much energy to get to the top to breath. He's probably so exhausted that he has to launch himself in order to get to the surface... and when he's done he just lets himself sink to the bottom to preserve his energy.

Well he is in a 10 gallon that is about 3/4 filled up since it doesn't have a lid. He is in about 7 inches of water, is that too much? Should I lower it for him?

 

[BettaMomma]

Do you have a plant in there for him to rest on up near the top?
That will help him conserve his energy to get back to health if he doesn't have to make a mad dash to the top of the tank.

I am convinced it helped Jasper conserve his energy when he could perch himself right up by the top, and he's perfectly healthy right now!!

He's probably exhausted and stressed right now. Let him be and keep the lights low.
What do you have for meds in his tank? Any?

 

[3fsh]

I would lower it to about half of the tank's height, maybe less. It would also help him a lot if you could put some floating plants in with him (anarchis, hornwort, etc.) for him to "sit" on so he doesn't have to constantly swim to the surface to get air.

 

[Raechal]

Do you have a plant in there for him to rest on up near the top?
That will help him conserve his energy to get back to health if he doesn't have to make a mad dash to the top of the tank.

I am convinced it helped Jasper conserve his energy when he could perch himself right up by the top, and he's perfectly healthy right now!!

He's probably exhausted and stressed right now. Let him be and keep the lights low.
What do you have for meds in his tank? Any?

He has a clump of moneywort in his tank next to his cave, some microsword grass and some java fern as well. He is on melafix and a little salt in his water.

 

[Raechal]

I have a fake plant that floats at the top but it is planted in the gravel right now. Should I let it float or will it get in the way of him getting air? It is pretty big and takes up about half of the tank when floating.

 

[BettaMomma]

Hmm.
I think I'd maybe consider at this point getting him on some stronger meds.
The problem is then that you will have to get the melafix out of the tank, I believe.

Maracyn-Two is very good for fin & tail rot, and it also is supposed to snap fish out of not wanting to eat. Are his fins clamped?? It will also ward off some secondary and internal infections.

3fsh, whattya think??

 

[3fsh]

Defnitely let the plastic plant float! Even if it takes up most of the tank, he can still get up on it to breath easier. I agree, Bettamomma, Melafix is not going to be strong enough in this case. I would do a Maracyn/Maracyn-2 combo or Tetracycline. In order to remove the Melafix just add some activated carbon in a little pouch. (Make sure to rinse it in dechlorinated water first.)

 

[Raechal]

Hmm.
I think I'd maybe consider at this point getting him on some stronger meds.
The problem is then that you will have to get the melafix out of the tank, I believe.

Maracyn-Two is very good for fin & tail rot, and it also is supposed to snap fish out of not wanting to eat. Are his fins clamped?? It will also ward off some secondary and internal infections.

3fsh, whattya think??

Well his dorsal fin is looking amazingly better, but his tail is just looking horrible. He has been on the melafix for 4 days so I think I will treat him for the next 3 days and finish up his dosage and if he doesn't get better, I'll try to pick up some maracyn 2 if I can find some. What about silver?

He is eating, but considerably less. His fins are not clamped. How would I get all the meds out? 100% water change and rinse his tank, gravel and all decor really good with warm water?

 

[BettaMomma]

Completely bail on the MelaFix - you can stop it at any time pretty safely. It's not technically a medication, it's more of an herbal remedy - sorta like aloe for us.

Put that carbon pouch in, let your plant float and get ahold of some meds.
Make sure you crush the meds up and put them in a tiny bit of water, swoosh them around and away you go!

Just make sure to keep him aerated. I've found that they tend to panic a lot less if there's aeration in their tank.

EDIT: Was your tank cycled, or do you do 100% changes all the time?