Swollen Belly, Eating algea tabs?

[kylor]

Housing
What size is your tank? 5g
What temperature is your tank? 80*
Does your tank have a filter? Yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? Yes, very low aeration though
Is your tank heated? Yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? Small Pleco, ghost shrimp, and live plants

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Betta Pellets, Blood worms, Brine Shrimp
How often do you feed your betta fish? 6 days a week, once a day


Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? weekly
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Conditioner, Aquarium Salt, plant fertilizer (very small dose)


Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: <20ppm
pH: 7.6
Hardness: 150
Alkalinity: 200

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Swollen Stomach
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Hasn't really
When did you start noticing the symptoms? When i got the pleco, 4 days ago, I think he may be eating the algae tabs at night, is this common?If anyone else has experienced this, what should I do?
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I haven't yet
Does your fish have any history of being ill? Had fin rot shortly after i got him, occasional tail biting, but minor and it's uncommon.
How old is your fish (approximately)? had him for a few months

Im not positive that he is eating the algae but it seems pretty likely since he started looking bloated right after i got the pleco and I started feeding it the algae. The betta and the pleco seem to get along fine, the pleco is more nocturnal so I feed him at night. During the day he stays out of my bettas way it seems. Any advice would be appreciated, I am sure being bloated like this can't be healthy.

[coolcucumber]

I had plecos in my 25gal tank, and id drop algae tablets in there and all the fish would eat it. I think its fine, mine all seemed alright, but i was just going on what i thought. you could try using zuccini instead, take a slice of zuccini and put it in hot water for 5 mins and drop it in the tank (it should be a little bit soft)

then stick part of it under a decoration or something, and try and hold it down.
Not sure about the bloated stomach though, but maybe he'll leave the zuccini alone?

[Oldfishlady]

Hate to tell you this...but 5gal is not big enough for the pleco-regardless of the species...the smallest pleco needs at least 20gal....I would re-home it or take it back to the pet shop...you will have nothing but problems if you try and keep the pleco...not to mention that it is cruel to house a pleco even a small baby in a 5gal tank.......

The 5gal is not big enough for any other fish species along with the Betta...shrimp and snails are great however-especially with the added live plants

Also, long term salt is not recommended or needed with Betta and can be harmful to both plants and the pleco-not to mention long term use and the effect it can have on the kidneys and creation of resistant pathogen/parasites
Great for short term treatments for the right reason, duration and dosage....

Right now I would start making some 50% daily water only changes for several days to perk up the water quality and get the aquarium salt out and hold all food for at least 4 days and if no improvement you may need to QT and do a Epsom salt treatment.....but I would try the water changes and fast first.....