URGENT : Long term sick Betta looks like he's about to die. PLEASE HELP!

[morganville]

I've posted on here a few times. My betta, Tarnish, has been sick close to a month.

I've treated him for everything I could think of and he's only gotten worse and worse. All of his color left him and he was lethargic and not eating before.

Now he's not eating and laying on the bottom barely breathing. PLEASE HELP!


What size is your tank? hes currently in a 1 gallon hospital tank
What temperature is your tank? heated up to 86+
Does your tank have a filter? no
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no
Is your tank heated? yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? regular pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? been trying a normal once a day schedule

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? been performing very frequent water changes since he got sick moving from once a week to twice then more then my dad did twice a day for a day or so cause of gunk in the tank

What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 25%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? tap water conditioner / stress relief

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? no

If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? lost all of his black spots (he was white and black like a cow before) he has also lost all of his weight and became thin and frail looking
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? very very lethargic, not eating, now not swimming / swimming horribly strangely for short bursts
When did you start noticing the symptoms? one month ago +
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? been treating since he got sick, treated for parasites + used Lifeguard with no results
Does your fish have any history of being ill? has really only ever been sick in my care unfortunately...
How old is your fish (approximately)? ive had him a couple of months from a petstore


I own 2 other bettas and both have had no problems what so ever. I'm not sure what to do and I don't want to lose Tarnish. PLEASE HELP!


THE PICTURE IS HIM RIGHT NOW! HE IS BARELY BREATHING BUT HE IS STILL ALIVE CURRENTLY.

[Olympia]

Ohhh, I'm really sorry.
Seems to me like you've tried everything. He really does look too far gone, if his other treatments did not work..

[ChoclateBetta]

Sick fish need air stone. Aquarium salt helps.

[morganville]

He's had aquarium salt before with no results I'm afraid of adding any now

[lelei]

The best thing to do is keep the water level low, so he can reach the surface to breathe, and if you have stress coat, altho changing water too often, 2x a day, maybe a little stressful, really with a salt treatment once a day is fine..I would try the salt again..how long have you used it for previously..and why is the temp at 86? that is too high in a one gal

[lelei]

He may be overheating..you may need to take out some of the water and add cooler, but do so very carefully, and slowly keep around 80d- after he is readjusted to the water let him be for now..and try some salt treatment tommorow..and then do daily water changes at full 100% for 3-5 days, by then hopefully you will see improvement.

[morganville]

Originally Posted by lelei

The best thing to do is keep the water level low, so he can reach the surface to breathe, and if you have stress coat, altho changing water too often, 2x a day, maybe a little stressful, really with a salt treatment once a day is fine..I would try the salt again..how long have you used it for previously..and why is the temp at 86? that is too high in a one gal

hospital tank

its not usually that high nor is he usually in a 1 gallon

his normal tank temperature is rather cold right now due to my house temp so i went for warm rather than freezing...

[Olympia]

Maybe if you could get your hands on some kanamycin there'd be some hope. Not sure salt does anything other than make it hard to breathe for them.

[lelei]

It may be better to bring it down a little, 78-80 is fine, are you using an adjustable heater?

[morganville]

Originally Posted by lelei

It may be better to bring it down a little, 78-80 is fine, are you using an adjustable heater?

no unfortunately a small circular betta heater