URGENT! Betta Fish With Negative Buoyancy

[savannahsuch]

(This is a more advanced topic, so novice fish keepers, please don't respond with information that is readily available on the internet) Hi all, recently, my betta fish has been having some problems with buoyancy which I believe is being caused by an issue with his swim bladder (though if you think it's something else, please let me know). He sinks to the bottom and has a hard time swimming towards the top. Right now, I have some water wisteria on the surface and he often sits in those plants, off of the substrate. This wasn't a sudden thing, I gradually noticed him swimming funnier and funnier but it got more pronounced recently and I realized that it wasn't normal and he was having difficulty. I think it could've been caused by one or both things. About 4 months ago, he jumped out of his tank while I was feeding him. He wasn't out for long at all, but he could've damaged his swim bladder? Although I don't remember him displaying symptoms right after the fall. The other thing is I also found out recently that too many plants with low light affect oxygen levels, and hypoxia can cause a loss of equilibrium/buoyancy, which is probably the actual cause. When I found that out, I removed a lot of the live plants, added an air pump, and treated the water with a little bit of h202. I also order a new better light which is arriving today. I've done so much research in the past few days and I'm worried about him. He seems happy (he's interactive with me, his colors are bright, his fins are up, he explores his tank, and he still loves to eat) but I feel bad because he can't swim around a lot. I can't find anything on google about treating negative buoyancy in fish, only treating swim bladder disorder with positive buoyancy, which he does not have. If anyone has information on treating this condition, PLEASE let me know. I don't want it to get worse, or to have to put him down, because he seems happy and he's a sweet fish.
(This is a more advanced issue, so novice fish keepers, please don't respond with information that is readily available on the internet, because I've all read about well-known topics)

 

[Natabettas]

(This is a more advanced topic, so novice fish keepers, please don't respond with information that is readily available on the internet) Hi all, recently, my betta fish has been having some problems with buoyancy which I believe is being caused by an issue with his swim bladder (though if you think it's something else, please let me know). He sinks to the bottom and has a hard time swimming towards the top. Right now, I have some water wisteria on the surface and he often sits in those plants, off of the substrate. This wasn't a sudden thing, I gradually noticed him swimming funnier and funnier but it got more pronounced recently and I realized that it wasn't normal and he was having difficulty. I think it could've been caused by one or both things. About 4 months ago, he jumped out of his tank while I was feeding him. He wasn't out for long at all, but he could've damaged his swim bladder? Although I don't remember him displaying symptoms right after the fall. The other thing is I also found out recently that too many plants with low light affect oxygen levels, and hypoxia can cause a loss of equilibrium/buoyancy, which is probably the actual cause. When I found that out, I removed a lot of the live plants, added an air pump, and treated the water with a little bit of h202. I also order a new better light which is arriving today. I've done so much research in the past few days and I'm worried about him. He seems happy (he's interactive with me, his colors are bright, his fins are up, he explores his tank, and he still loves to eat) but I feel bad because he can't swim around a lot. I can't find anything on google about treating negative buoyancy in fish, only treating swim bladder disorder with positive buoyancy, which he does not have. If anyone has information on treating this condition, PLEASE let me know. I don't want it to get worse, or to have to put him down, because he seems happy and he's a sweet fish.
(This is a more advanced issue, so novice fish keepers, please don't respond with information that is readily available on the internet, because I've all read about well-known topics)

Hey. I don’t have a fix but I do have a similar experience. I had a female who developed dropsy. She ended up recovering snd is doing well. She’s about 2 years old now. But. Once she recovered from dropsy she now. Almost sinks. She’s healthy far as I can tell. No signs of illness. Eats regularly and is very interactive. Sometimes they just. Don’t recover from it ?‍ It doesn’t seem to affect her in any other way she swims around with the bottom feeders. So. Maybe he’s like her. Maybe he has permanent problems. I don’t see a reason to put him down unless he takes a bad turn. My girls been recovered from dropsy since march and has been like this since. Sorry I don’t have an answer

 

[Barry Tetra]

From the experiences, this is dropsy which caused by internal bacterial infections or parasite infections.


Do a daily water changes (I would do 100% because betta are labyrinth fish)
Add Metronidazole (7mg/litre) to the tank.


Can we have a picture of the fishes? so we could identify the disease better.

 

[savannahsuch]

Hey. I don’t have a fix but I do have a similar experience. I had a female who developed dropsy. She ended up recovering snd is doing well. She’s about 2 years old now. But. Once she recovered from dropsy she now. Almost sinks. She’s healthy far as I can tell. No signs of illness. Eats regularly and is very interactive. Sometimes they just. Don’t recover from it ?‍ It doesn’t seem to affect her in any other way she swims around with the bottom feeders. So. Maybe he’s like her. Maybe he has permanent problems. I don’t see a reason to put him down unless he takes a bad turn. My girls been recovered from dropsy since march and has been like this since. Sorry I don’t have an answer

Thank you for responding! I think I finally pinpointed it as a ruptured swim bladder. He jumped out of his tank when I was cleaning it. Before I knew you could just keep them in the water, I removed him with the cup he came in and now I realize he probably felt in danger. I’ve decided not to put him down, just because he’s still happy and swimming around as much as he can. Thank you tho!

 

[Colin_T]

The other thing is I also found out recently that too many plants with low light affect oxygen levels, and hypoxia can cause a loss of equilibrium/buoyancy, which is probably the actual cause. When I found that out, I removed a lot of the live plants, added an air pump, and treated the water with a little bit of h202. I also order a new better light which is arriving today.

Plants don't cause problems. If you have low oxygen levels, increasing aeration/ surface turbulence will fix it without the need to add things like hydrogen peroxide.

Bettas are labyrinth fishes that naturally occur in areas with low oxygen levels. They can breathe air from the atmosphere if the oxygen level in the water is too low.

If your Betta is having trouble getting to the surface, increasing the surface turbulence will help and you can also reduce the water level so the fish doesn't have to swim up as much to get to the surface.

-------------------
If the fish has problems staying buoyant in the water, and it sinks when it stops swimming, then it has a swim bladder problem. There is no cure for this and most people just euthanise the fish or reduce the water level and let it live out its life.

 

[savannahsuch]

Plants don't cause problems. If you have low oxygen levels, increasing aeration/ surface turbulence will fix it without the need to add things like hydrogen peroxide.

Bettas are labyrinth fishes that naturally occur in areas with low oxygen levels. They can breathe air from the atmosphere if the oxygen level in the water is too low.

If your Betta is having trouble getting to the surface, increasing the surface turbulence will help and you can also reduce the water level so the fish doesn't have to swim up as much to get to the surface.

-------------------
If the fish has problems staying buoyant in the water, and it sinks when it stops swimming, then it has a swim bladder problem. There is no cure for this and most people just euthanise the fish or reduce the water level and let it live out its life.

Actually, plants definitely affect the oxygen levels in the water. I’ve done lots of research on this. Low light levels cause plants to use up the oxygen in the water and can cause hypoxia. I used hydrogen peroxide as a quick fix, until I could get an air pump because it was the responsible thing to do. Obviously I didn’t use it long term? Like I said in my last comment, I already determined the actual cause and I have decided not to euthanize. Please read all my comments before you reply!

 

[savannahsuch]

From the experiences, this is dropsy which caused by internal bacterial infections or parasite infections.


Do a daily water changes (I would do 100% because betta are labyrinth fish)
Add Metronidazole (7mg/litre) to the tank.


Can we have a picture of the fishes? so we could identify the disease better.

No this definitely is not dropsy. He doesn’t have any other symptoms lol. Negative buoyancy can be caused by numerous things. I’ve determined it is a ruptured swim bladder. He’s had this for a couple months so I’m not going to treat him for a disease because he doesn’t have one. I asked for experienced fish keepers to respond lol.

 

[EllRog]

Nice to see your gratitude for getting any replies at all. You can take your snotty, aggressive attitude elsewhere.

 

[mark4785]

No this definitely is not dropsy. He doesn’t have any other symptoms lol. Negative buoyancy can be caused by numerous things. I’ve determined it is a ruptured swim bladder. He’s had this for a couple months so I’m not going to treat him for a disease because he doesn’t have one. I asked for experienced fish keepers to respond lol.

If you already know the answers, and your attitude demonstrates this, please don’t create a thread asking for help as it is contradictory.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Actually, plants definitely affect the oxygen levels in the water. I’ve done lots of research on this. Low light levels cause plants to use up the oxygen in the water and can cause hypoxia. I used hydrogen peroxide as a quick fix, until I could get an air pump because it was the responsible thing to do. Obviously I didn’t use it long term? Like I said in my last comment, I already determined the actual cause and I have decided not to euthanize. Please read all my comments before you reply!

If you had any idea of Colin's years of experience and knowledge, that he gives up some of his free time to share at no cost, you'd be embarrassed and ashamed about the way you just spoke to him.

@mark4785 nd @EllRog nailed it. Sounds like you're a beginner yourself since you're on your first betta and only just learned about water changing, so being snotty as if you know more than someone with decades of experience like Colin... wow.

For future reference, should you ever decide you do wish to seek advice or conversation on a public forum again, you don't get to dictate who replies and how. It's exceedingly rude, and it's not how posting in public in a place designed for discussion works.

Good luck with your betta.

 

[savannahsuch]

If you had any idea of Colin's years of experience and knowledge, that he gives up some of his free time to share at no cost, you'd be embarrassed and ashamed about the way you just spoke to him.

@mark4785 nd @EllRog nailed it. Sounds like you're a beginner yourself since you're on your first betta and only just learned about water changing, so being snotty as if you know more than someone with decades of experience like Colin... wow.

For future reference, should you ever decide you do wish to seek advice or conversation on a public forum again, you don't get to dictate who replies and how. It's exceedingly rude, and it's not how posting in public in a place designed for discussion works.

Good luck with your betta.

Nope I didn’t just learn about water changes. I just learned that it’s okay to LEAVE THEM IN THERE. And considering all of this “experience” that they have, you’d think that they would definitely know that this is NOT dropsy, as he has none of the most common symptoms. I don’t care HOW much experience anyone has, I will still call them out on their lack of knowledge about a specific subject. Experience does not mean you are shielded from criticism. I was never rude. I never said that I knew more than him either, I was asking for experienced fish keepers to answer because it was a far more complicated issue than just dropsy or swim bladder disease. For future reference, read the context lol. I can ask for experienced fish keepers to answer my questions if it helps me filter unnecessary answers, and that is not rude. You just perceived it that way because your knowledge was questioned

 

[savannahsuch]

If you already know the answers, and your attitude demonstrates this, please don’t create a thread asking for help as it is contradictory.

But I did not know the answer, please read the context before you reply.

 

[savannahsuch]

Nice to see your gratitude for getting any replies at all. You can take your snotty, aggressive attitude elsewhere.

I am not being snotty nor do I have an “attitude”. It’s not my fault that people who are replying don’t have the knowledge level necessary to address the question. And why would I be thankful for an unhelpful answer? Nobody would. You are the only one throwing insults and accusations here. YOU can take that elsewhere

 

[savannahsuch]

If you had any idea of Colin's years of experience and knowledge, that he gives up some of his free time to share at no cost, you'd be embarrassed and ashamed about the way you just spoke to him.

@mark4785 nd @EllRog nailed it. Sounds like you're a beginner yourself since you're on your first betta and only just learned about water changing, so being snotty as if you know more than someone with decades of experience like Colin... wow.

For future reference, should you ever decide you do wish to seek advice or conversation on a public forum again, you don't get to dictate who replies and how. It's exceedingly rude, and it's not how posting in public in a place designed for discussion works.

Good luck with your betta.

I was also never rude to colin ? I replied to barry about the dropsy. I never questioned colins years of experience ? lol. I just told him that plants CAN affect oxygen levels in the water. Which is true, why would I not correct someone if they made a mistake? It doesn’t matter HOW many years of experience someone has. If they’re wrong, you can correct them, and this is not rude nor is it wrong. I hope you have a nice day though.

 

[mark4785]

But I did not know the answer, please read the context before you reply.

Phrases like ‘I have determined the cause’ and ‘I am not doing that because I think..’ are tantamount to knowing something in my book. All the best with whatever you determine the problem to be.