Tales of a blind betta

[Bluewind]

Just wanted to say that I have been really enjoying reading your thread hun
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[AyalaCookiejar]

Thanks! :) I've really enjoyed caring for my blind guy. I never thought I would have a "special needs" fish, haha :p he can be challenging to read, though. I still worry a lot about him. He's lethargic often, like he is bored and understimulated... But I'm afraid that someday he might be lethargic for a different reason and I won't be able to tell the difference.

[Bluewind]

How big is his tank? Do you have decor of different textures (smooth glass, rough fo-coral, soft plants...)? Maybe substrates of different textures seporated with a divider so they wont mix? Tankmates like shrimp that can give him something new to explore as well as clean up his messes? Live plants with tall grasslike qualities? Decor at different levels (betta hamock, floating thingy that that woman made, plants...)? Something that appeals to other senses he still has (floating ball that jingles, air stone, a sinking toy coated in something that smells yummy to encourage him to bump it and a cleared "lane" on the substrate so he can go Betta Bowling)? Certain enrichments would have to be removed after an hour of play to keep them from loosing their novility, but you get the idea. I think something from my list will spark an idea for you
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[Bluewind]

Also, if you upgrade him to a larger tank, take note of where everything is in his old one and put it in relatively the same place in the new one. Like if you have him in a 5 and upgrade him to a 10, decorate half the tank like his old tank and new decor in the "new" area. Keep corner items in corners (unless you have something in all 4 corners now and then just have 2 corner items in corners and 2 mid wall in the new tank) and wall items on walls. Like I said, "relatively" the same. It will help him feel less stressed and lost that way.

If you want to go all out, go crazy! Find a good sand and buy yourself some Cory Cats! They are a very active little fish that wizz all over the place and 4 (maybe 5 if they are smaller ones like False Juliis and you stay on top of pwc) could live just fine in a 10 gallon with him and some shrimp. Gus and Todo use to play all over my tank before I lost poor Todo (Tetra I bought for friend's Christmas present killed him)
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[AyalaCookiejar]

I was thinking about adding a shrimp but the tank isnt cycled yet and I'm almost positive he would kill it if he found it... He's pretty aggressive. And I don't have a good enough hood for live plants but he has two caves of different textures and silk plants. I might try maybe a ping-pong ball. He likes to follow drops of water at the surface and when I blow on the surface..
I also have a plastic cup I could float in their on its side as a cave or a place to rest near the surface... At first I was sort of against mixing decor around and adding decor, but I do think it may be good for him..

Edit: its a 5 gallon tank.

[Bluewind]

Originally Posted by AyalaCookiejar

I was thinking about adding a shrimp but the tank isnt cycled yet and I'm almost positive he would kill it if he found it... He's pretty aggressive. And I don't have a good enough hood for live plants but he has two caves of different textures and silk plants. I might try maybe a ping-pong ball. He likes to follow drops of water at the surface and when I blow on the surface..
I also have a plastic cup I could float in their on its side as a cave or a place to rest near the surface... At first I was sort of against mixing decor around and adding decor, but I do think it may be good for him..

Edit: its a 5 gallon tank.

That's a good size! And he has to be agressive. I would be too if I were in his shoes. A little blind fish that could get eaten. Wouldn't you be scared too!?! And if he eats the shrimp, then yea protien!

So what kind of lights do you have? Built in or can you change them? And does it get sunlight?
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[AyalaCookiejar]

Originally Posted by Bluewind

That's a good size! And he has to be agressive. I would be too if I were in his shoes. A little blind fish that could get eaten. Wouldn't you be scared too!?! And if he eats the shrimp, then yea protien!

So what kind of lights do you have? Built in or can you change them? And does it get sunlight?
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Well he was really aggressive before he went blind... When I first got him, he flared at anything and everything. The tank lights are these tiny LED things and the hood is cheap. It doesn't have anywhere to screw in bulbs... Its just a little plastic attachment on the hood where the light thing attaches to.

I have my tank lights all set on the same timer and they went out before I got home tonight but I went around and checked on everyone.. Noticed that Bahari was floating at a 45 degree angle at the top of his tank.. So I checked him out with this tiny flashlight I have because I didn't want to wake up the others by turning all the lights on and he is super bloated and has some buoyancy issues. I'm thinking he found some of the pellets that sank onto his plants... I usually don't attempt to feed him again if the pellets sink because he usually finds them in the gravel but I've never seen him find any on the plants, but the few pellets that were on the plants have disappeared.. I need to start siphoning right after feedings >_< but sometimes I don't have the time and I really like being able to see him get the pellets rather than seeing them sink and giving up.

I added a small amount of pre-dissolved epsoms. I also haven't noticed any poo at the bottom of the tank lately, so hopefully the bloat is just constipation. I also checked for raised scales.

His poo has always been curled up balls that kind of look like snails. It's normal colored, though, but I haven't seen any in awhile. I probably should have fasted him since I haven't seen any poo but he is just a joy to feed. He also gets slightly bloated at times but it's never been this bad. I know CTs have more bloat issues. Hopefully the epsoms will help and he'll be able to swim normally by morning, but I'm going to fast him for a few days and siphon the gravel to make sure there isn't any more sunken food.

:/ I had the same bloating a buoyancy issues with my VT when he had internal parasites but the bloating wasn't this severe, so I am hoping it is just constipation. I'll wait and check on him in the morning, since everyone else has gone to bed.

[AyalaCookiejar]

The bloating did go down by morning, and I found poo floating at the top of the tank, but haven't seen more since... Two nights ago he got bloated again and I added Epsoms again, and it went down by morning again but this time I am not finding poo anywhere. Ugh.

I need to get him a ping pong ball or something interactive. He always seems so bored and depressed (or maybe just sleeping) when I'm not playing with him. I also think I need to feed him a lot less (like, one pellet a day with a fast day a week) because of his activity level. I really wish there was something I could do to bring back his eyesight... I just think he would be happier.

[AyalaCookiejar]

Oh my god. Bahari looks like he's going to EXPLODE. His gills are moving rapidly and are wide open and he is swimming around strangely and rapidly. I added more Epsom salt but I can't stand to watch him. He's floating and can't stay upright! :(

This bloating issue has been ongoing... I fast him often and only feed him one pellet a day when I do feed him. I'm afraid he's going to blow up!

[dramaqueen]

OMG. I hope he gets better.