Please help, my betta is breathing hard after a water change what is wrong?

[FishGuest5123]

On Wednesday my mom cleaned my bettas 5 and a half gallon tank while I was at school. When I got home from school he was breathing really hard and hiding at the bottom of the tank. Yesterday he didnt move from his hiding spot in this tree cave thing and was breathing really hard still. I didnt see him come to the surface. Today his face is red and it looks like he might have a cut but I'm not sure, I included a picture below. I fed him yesterday and the day before but he didnt zoom up to the surface like he usually does to get his food, I'm not sure if he ate any because it all sunk and he didnt pay attention to it He is still panting but not as bad as yesterday, he is barely moving around but not himself. I tested the water a little bit ago and it was mostly normal. I just dont know what to do I feel so bad! I've included a summary down below
-100%water change on Wednesday.
-my mom claimed to not have done anything differently, we've been doing this before and hes been fine
-im wondering if this might be temperature shock because my mom just puts him in this little 3 gallon tank while she is cleaning with 2 inches of water. We made sure the temperature was normal before putting him back in his normal tank, but he might have been cold in the 3 gallon one. Does temperature shock last this long?
-he is in a 5 1/2 gallon tank
-water change about every 2weeks
-nitrate (No3) 0
-nitrite (no2)
-pH 7
-KH 80
-GH 120 that's a little high how would I fix it?
-the tester strips I used dont have an ammonia test on them should I get some that have that?
-we boil our tap water and let it cool down and put it in the fish tank until it is a normal temp, is that wrong? We dont add anything to it
-tank has a heater set to 78degrees the temperature is 80 right now
-tank also has a filter, the filter was changed when the tank was cleaned
-He is panting and breathing hard at the bottom of the tank.

View attachment 128908
He is not usually that pink, but he was a little bit.
View attachment 128909View attachment 128911
I have some of this will it help him? Please help me!I need your advice

That won’t help.

 

[FishGuest5123]

Do you think he has ammonia burns, I dont completely understand what they are or what cycling is, but someone said he might. Also do you think moving him would be too stressful right now
View attachment 128931

@Tutlehorse After seeing pics, I think your fish is suffering amminia and nitrite poisoning due to uncycled tank. If you don’t know about cycling a tank then there’s your problem. Please read this and treat with the methylene blue BATH only once. Then do daily water changes until you get the tank cycled. https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/. I apologize for not being on earlier but bad weather coming our way and trying to prepare.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I agree with the ammonia burns. After looking at the pictures from before and after, they are evident.

I apologize for not being on earlier but bad weather coming our way and trying to prepare.

Hope you guys stay safe. This storm is crazy...

 

[Fishiemang]

SLOW DOWN!

You're overdoing it.

Get a bottle of API Quick Start. Dose accordingly.

Stop changing the water so much. Just give that a rest for a while, and.let the tank do what it needs to do. 100% water changes are too much. You're taking everything good out and destroying your BB colonies in the process. A 5.5 gallon tank should only need a small,.weekly water change at MOST. Maybe 25% tops. You only have 1 fish in there right? Not a very large bio load.

Sounds like you are an inexperienced fish keeper. Learn about cycling a tank. It is very important. I cannot stress that enough. The habit you have will ultimately kill the fish. It is reacting to a lot of things happening. If the temp of the water was not perfect, it could be a part. Even a 5 degree difference will not only stress a fish, it will kill a fish. Especially a sudden change.

Why are you boiling the water you use? There is usually no need for this.

I read so many mistakes in just your first few posts, it was alarming. You need to do some study on fish keeping for your particular fish. You're clearly overdoing it as it is. The fish is super stressed. Turn the lights off for a while.

Do not feed the fish for a couple days. It will be fine. This will keep detritus down, and levels as well.

Just slow down, do some reading, and leave the tank alone. With any luck, the fish will recover. I seriously doubt ammonia poisoning or burns. There shouldn't be any ammonia in that tank after all that water changing.

 

[Tutlehorse]

SLOW DOWN!

You're overdoing it.

Get a bottle of API Quick Start. Dose accordingly.

Stop changing the water so much. Just give that a rest for a while, and.let the tank do what it needs to do. 100% water changes are too much. You're taking everything good out and destroying your BB colonies in the process. A 5.5 gallon tank should only need a small,.weekly water change at MOST. Maybe 25% tops. You only have 1 fish in there right? Not a very large bio load.

Sounds like you are an inexperienced fish keeper. Learn about cycling a tank. It is very important. I cannot stress that enough. The habit you have will ultimately kill the fish. It is reacting to a lot of things happening. If the temp of the water was not perfect, it could be a part. Even a 5 degree difference will not only stress a fish, it will kill a fish. Especially a sudden change.

Why are you boiling the water you use? There is usually no need for this.

I read so many mistakes in just your first few posts, it was alarming. You need to do some study on fish keeping for your particular fish. You're clearly overdoing it as it is. The fish is super stressed. Turn the lights off for a while.

Do not feed the fish for a couple days. It will be fine. This will keep detritus down, and levels as well.

Just slow down, do some reading, and leave the tank alone. With any luck, the fish will recover. I seriously doubt ammonia poisoning or burns. There shouldn't be any ammonia in that tank after all that water changing.

Yeah, I only have one fish in there. I keep trying to tell my mom that we cant keep doing what we are doing with the cleaning and its hurting him more than helping, but she says he'll be fine and she says she's not going to go through all that trouble for it. It's really frustrating so I'm going to start doing it myself since she doesn't understand. So do you really think he will go back to normal if I just leave him alone? I did put in some quick start. You seem like the person who would know so, it replacing the filter cartridge bad? That's were all the good bacteria live right?

 

[Fishiemang]

The filter cartridge right now is your best bet for bacteria proliferation. Don't.change that for at least a month. With only one fish, that should be a monthly change at a minimum.

You can dose that quick start daily. This will help provide bacteria to kick it off.

I'm not sure what trouble there is. If anything, I have outlined a far easier care method for the fish. Very low maint. With one fish, I would just add water as it evaporated, plant some live plants in there, feed every 3 days and let it roll. I been doin this a while tho, as have plenty of others here.

Once that tank gets cycled and established, most of your beneficial bacteria will be on the surfaces in the tank. The substrate will become the most populated. The filter will then play a minor role. There will be bacteria in the water column as well. But your bulk will be in the substrate on the bottom of the tank. Even at that, don't bother changing that filter element for at a minimum a month.

 

[Tutlehorse]

The filter cartridge right now is your best bet for bacteria proliferation. Don't.change that for at least a month. With only one fish, that should be a monthly change at a minimum.

You can dose that quick start daily. This will help provide bacteria to kick it off.

I'm not sure what trouble there is. If anything, I have outlined a far easier care method for the fish. Very low maint. With one fish, I would just add water as it evaporated, plant some live plants in there, feed every 3 days and let it roll. I been doin this a while tho, as have plenty of others here.

Once that tank gets cycled and established, most of your beneficial bacteria will be on the surfaces in the tank. The substrate will become the most populated. The filter will then play a minor role. There will be bacteria in the water column as well. But your bulk will be in the substrate on the bottom of the tank. Even at that, don't bother changing that filter element for at a minimum a month.

Ok thank you so much

 

[Tutlehorse]

Frost (my betta's name, I guess I haven't used his name before) seems to be a little more active, I've seen him swim around more he still seems pretty tired but he seems a little more active. He actually came to the front of the tank to see me. I turned off his light earlier than I normally would last night to give him some rest and I'm going to leave it off today too, like you guys have said. I'm also going to put in more quick start, like Fishiemang said. He is still not breathing normally tho. Also something caught my attention, on the left side of his face there is a little flap hanging off, I think it might be scales, do you think he cut him self of burned it somehow or is this a side effect of being sick. It's really hard to get pictures but it is probably a 3mm piece hanging there.

 

[Tutlehorse]

I also got an ammonia testing kit so I will test the water when I get home, because I'm out right now

 

[Naughts]

Perhaps the flap is damaged tissue. Keep checking every couple of hours for signs of infection (further redness or black).

Keep the water and gravel ultra clean, you will need to clean every day and change 75% of the water. Add a tablespoon of dissolved aquarium salt to the tank. When you change the water add back the salt that you have taken out, So if you remove 75% of the water you will need to add back 3/4 tablespoon of salt.

Aquarium salt aids gill function in cases of nitrite poisoning and is antibacterial for wounds.

Keep adding the bottled bacteria, fast growing live plants too if you can.

He needs to be kept warm and calm - reducing lighting is a good move.

 

[cascades4vrbo]

On Wednesday my mom cleaned my bettas 5 and a half gallon tank while I was at school. When I got home from school he was breathing really hard and hiding at the bottom of the tank. Yesterday he didnt move from his hiding spot in this tree cave thing and was breathing really hard still. I didnt see him come to the surface. Today his face is red and it looks like he might have a cut but I'm not sure, I included a picture below. I fed him yesterday and the day before but he didnt zoom up to the surface like he usually does to get his food, I'm not sure if he ate any because it all sunk and he didnt pay attention to it He is still panting but not as bad as yesterday, he is barely moving around but not himself. I tested the water a little bit ago and it was mostly normal. I just dont know what to do I feel so bad! I've included a summary down below
-100%water change on Wednesday.
-my mom claimed to not have done anything differently, we've been doing this before and hes been fine
-im wondering if this might be temperature shock because my mom just puts him in this little 3 gallon tank while she is cleaning with 2 inches of water. We made sure the temperature was normal before putting him back in his normal tank, but he might have been cold in the 3 gallon one. Does temperature shock last this long?
-he is in a 5 1/2 gallon tank
-water change about every 2weeks
-nitrate (No3) 0
-nitrite (no2)
-pH 7
-KH 80
-GH 120 that's a little high how would I fix it?
-the tester strips I used dont have an ammonia test on them should I get some that have that?
-we boil our tap water and let it cool down and put it in the fish tank until it is a normal temp, is that wrong? We dont add anything to it
-tank has a heater set to 78degrees the temperature is 80 right now
-tank also has a filter, the filter was changed when the tank was cleaned
-He is panting and breathing hard at the bottom of the tank.

View attachment 128908
He is not usually that pink, but he was a little bit.
View attachment 128909View attachment 128911
I have some of this will it help him? Please help me!I need your advice

Sounds like Ammonia or Nitrite double dose with Seachems Prime every other day. Ammonia will Spike After a Water Change. Seachems Prime helps with Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrates. I would stay away from meds.

 

[FishGuest5123]

SLOW DOWN!

You're overdoing it.

Get a bottle of API Quick Start. Dose accordingly.

Stop changing the water so much. Just give that a rest for a while, and.let the tank do what it needs to do. 100% water changes are too much. You're taking everything good out and destroying your BB colonies in the process. A 5.5 gallon tank should only need a small,.weekly water change at MOST. Maybe 25% tops. You only have 1 fish in there right? Not a very large bio load.

Sounds like you are an inexperienced fish keeper. Learn about cycling a tank. It is very important. I cannot stress that enough. The habit you have will ultimately kill the fish. It is reacting to a lot of things happening. If the temp of the water was not perfect, it could be a part. Even a 5 degree difference will not only stress a fish, it will kill a fish. Especially a sudden change.

Why are you boiling the water you use? There is usually no need for this.

I read so many mistakes in just your first few posts, it was alarming. You need to do some study on fish keeping for your particular fish. You're clearly overdoing it as it is. The fish is super stressed. Turn the lights off for a while.

Do not feed the fish for a couple days. It will be fine. This will keep detritus down, and levels as well.

Just slow down, do some reading, and leave the tank alone. With any luck, the fish will recover. I seriously doubt ammonia poisoning or burns. There shouldn't be any ammonia in that tank after all that water changing.

@Fishiemang this fish is very sick and can not be exposed to anymore nitrite or ammonia. I mean no offense, but your information is dangerous to this fish. Daily water changes are an absolute must in order to save this betta. If OP would prefer to place his betta in another container then yes, he can allow the tank to cycle in the fishless method. He can then continue to treat fish and allow him to heal while the tank cycles. Otherwise, under no circumstances should that fish be exposed to anymore toxicity. Prime is only a band aid.

 

[FishGuest5123]

SLOW DOWN!

You're overdoing it.

Get a bottle of API Quick Start. Dose accordingly.

Stop changing the water so much. Just give that a rest for a while, and.let the tank do what it needs to do. 100% water changes are too much. You're taking everything good out and destroying your BB colonies in the process. A 5.5 gallon tank should only need a small,.weekly water change at MOST. Maybe 25% tops. You only have 1 fish in there right? Not a very large bio load.

Sounds like you are an inexperienced fish keeper. Learn about cycling a tank. It is very important. I cannot stress that enough. The habit you have will ultimately kill the fish. It is reacting to a lot of things happening. If the temp of the water was not perfect, it could be a part. Even a 5 degree difference will not only stress a fish, it will kill a fish. Especially a sudden change.

Why are you boiling the water you use? There is usually no need for this.

I read so many mistakes in just your first few posts, it was alarming. You need to do some study on fish keeping for your particular fish. You're clearly overdoing it as it is. The fish is super stressed. Turn the lights off for a while.

Do not feed the fish for a couple days. It will be fine. This will keep detritus down, and levels as well.

Just slow down, do some reading, and leave the tank alone. With any luck, the fish will recover. I seriously doubt ammonia poisoning or burns. There shouldn't be any ammonia in that tank after all that water changing

 

[FishGuest5123]

@Fishiemang if you read from the beginning, he wasn’t doing a “lot” of water changes to begin with. The tank was not cycled. Thus, ammonia and nitrite poisoning. We are working to help the OP out so may I ask you to please “Slow down.” Let OP READ EVERYONE’s responses and decide which approach they’d like to take. There’s a lot of experience in this forum. Thank you in advance.

 

[FishGuest5123]

I agree with the ammonia burns. After looking at the pictures from before and after, they are evident.



Hope you guys stay safe. This storm is crazy...

Weather is crazy for Southeast Texas! 100% chance of snow most of the night. High 28F, low 18F. You know that most of us fools in boots can’t walk or drive in snow and ice! By the way...where is that guy named Al Gore? I have a bone to pick with him about his global warming theory.