Is this normal?

[flautist]

I don't know if something is wrong with him, or if this is just a sign of him being healthy and active. He's swimming in circles. I even saw him do a flip. (In the water... he didn't come out.) He's just swimming around and around in little bitty circles. Not around the tank... he goes from the bottom of the tank up and back around... that's where the flip came from. Does this mean he's just healthy and active, or is something wrong?

 

[f250fisherman]

Sounds like parasites are bothering him. Sometimes they scrap up against the bottom, or sides of tank. They will dart around the tank turning fast and bumping things. They can act differently in this way. It's early for me to say ..yes it is parasites, but that could be the first stage. Look him over carefully, around the gills area. I use a penlight and a magnifying glass to check my Bettas. You can tell so much more about them.

 

[turbotiber]

My female Pinky was doing that when she had dropsy. She couldn't swim properly and everytime she'd go to get air, she'd be all over the place, doing flips, swimming upside down and on her side. Hope yours just had parasites. Is he eating properly? Does he seem to be isolating himself or does he greet you when you go near him??

 

[flautist]

My female Pinky was doing that when she had dropsy. She couldn't swim properly and everytime she'd go to get air, she'd be all over the place, doing flips, swimming upside down and on her side. Hope yours just had parasites. Is he eating properly? Does he seem to be isolating himself or does he greet you when you go near him??

It's not that he can't swim properly... other than swimming circles, he's fine. He greets me, he eats everything I throw at him... he just seems restless. Makes me mad, too... he was just sick, and I thought he was getting better, and now he does this. How do I know for sure that he has parasites? What do I give him to get rid of them if he does?

 

[flautist]

Could water that's too warm make him do that? It's been pretty hot in my room, so I looked at his thermometer, and his water is about 84-85. I turned off the light to his tank so the water would cool down a bit, but could that be what's causing it?

 

[flautist]

I got CopperSafe, and Sakana seems a little better. Of course, I just did his water change 10 minutes ago, too. but, as soon as I put him in, he started blowing bubbles. I see some white things floating in the tank now, too... could those be the parasites? One of them is stuck to the side of the tank. (Yes, I did just take it out. )

 

[wuvmybetta]

Parasites aren't usually that visible,you really, really have to look closely to see them. I'm still saying he sounds fine 85 is a bit warm, try leaving his light off today and see how he acts.

 

[flautist]

He's definitely got more white spots... mostly around his gills, and I know for a FACT that there's nothing he could be scraping himself on now. So, I added some CopperSafe and a bit of BettaFix to his water, that's all I have. He's still swimming in circles, though not as much as yesterday, and every once in a while, he rubs his face against the side of his tank. Is there anything else I can do for him?

 

[wuvmybetta]

I'm really sorry to hear that. Fisher was right all along about parasites if he's flashing like that.
Be sure and keep his water extra clean because dying parasites can foul the water. Can you get a picture of him?

 

[flautist]

I can try, if he'll sit still long enough.

 

[flautist]

He won't sit still... he moves every time I hit the button, so all my pictures are blurry. The best one I could get was this: You can see that his belly is white, and there are a couple of white spots there... but of course, my camera picked those white spots to reflect off of.