Male Betta Fish Swollen Abdomen-Need Help!

[kyasarin5]

Thanks for reassuring me about feeding him Sakura. He still has a pretty good appetite, doesn't go after it as quickly but still seems hungry. He likes his betta pellets better. He really likes dethawed frozen bloodworms too. Is it okay to give him a few of those or just stick with the brine shrimp for now? I also have some frozen mosquito larvae. He won't even look at the daphnia, lol.

[Sakura8]

Brine shrimp is best because of its fiber but if he doesn't like them, it's best to give him waht he wants. Stick with frozen foods for now and save the pellets for when he's better.

Could the clearish pieces he threw up be bits of brine shrimp? That's what all my bettas do when I try to feed them brine shrimp (they hate them). They just spit them up.

[kyasarin5]

Not sure. Usually when he doesn't like something he spits it out immediately so i don't think so. not sure though. i will give him 3 brine shrimp and 1 bloodworm as a treat tomorrow! :) thank you for helping my betta fish!!!

[kyasarin5]

Alpha is still very bloated. He is pooping more though. Today is day 3 of 4 of his api general cure treatment. I have also noticed a white spot on the bottom of his dorsal fin but it doesn't look like ich. I am wondering if one of the particles of the medicine powder is just stuck there.

[Sakura8]

It could also just be a bit of slime coat that came loose. If he is still bloated by tomorrow, we can continue the General Cure for another few days until he shrinks a little more.

[kyasarin5]

Thanks Sakura! I will keep an eye on the spot for now and will post another video of Alpha today. :)

[kyasarin5]

Here is a video I took of Alpha just a while ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R-Hl...ature=youtu.be

I am extremely worried about him. His abdomen keeps on swelling instead of going down. It looks like it is filled with fluid and will burst! Should I try draining off some of the fluid? I am afraid too but I was a vet tech for 3 years and I feel fairly certain that I could do it if instructed. I have clove oil to put him under anesthesia and I could use a sterile insulin needle syringe from the pharmacy. Please help ASAP! Thank you very much for your help!!!

[Sakura8]

I honestly don't know about draining off the fluid. You would have a much higher chance of success than most people because of your experience, but at the same time, bettas are so small. The procedure would have to be pretty precise to avoid puncturing an organ and the trauma might be too much for him.

I did see what looked like stringy poo coming from him. Does he still have that? Have you seen any evidence of white parasites coming from him? Otherwise . . . one thing I'm worried about is the possibility of tumors or a tumor-like growth. These can happen in the abdomen and while a fish can live comfortable for a time with them, the fish does eventually succumb. In fact, one of my girls just passed two days ago from a tumor that was in her abdomen.

For now, I would advise continuing with the General Cure for another few days as well as continuing with 3 tsps of epsom salt per gallon. If you have any Indian Almond Leaf or naturally dried oak leaves, you can use those for beneficial tannins.

[kyasarin5]

Sadly, we made the difficult decision to put Alpha to sleep. He was a sweet fish and a happy fish but he had begun to suffer. I am afraid he must have had kidney failure because so much fluid was building up.

[GawfFish]

So sorry for your loss. :(