Swim Bladder or something else?

[Sakura8]

If you can put a little plant in the cup, that would be good. Frozen brine shrimp can also be used to encourage the digestive system and is often more readily available than frozen daphnia.

If you want to put him in the 3 gal, just make sure he can easily get up to the surface to breathe. You may need to lower the water level some.

[Withered]

He seems to be able to swim okay right now. He's been swimming pretty good in his cup today...he just still has trouble not turning on his side when he's trying to rest...and I think that is one reason why he sits on his tail...but he doesn't look comfortable and it seems like he can't get into a comfortable spot to rest. I do have a small part of a leaf in there, but it's not heavy enough for him to rest on comfortably because it keeps tipping over when he tries to rest on it. I want to put him back in the three gallon but I don't know if i'll have time to do water changes every single day. I just feel bad for him because it seems like he can't rest the way he is and I don't know what I can put into the small cup that he can lean against so that he can rest. When he's under the bridge he can use the top and the sides to support himself. I don't have access to brine shrimp either unfortunetly unless I drive about an hour and a half to the petco two towns away. The only thing I have here is a petsense which is sort of like a very small version of petsmart but most of the store is dog stuff. There is a tiny section for fish and there are some bettas there but all they sell is small half gallon tanks and like one or two water conditioners and some flakes. I was surprised they had AQ salt there and was lucky to grab some when they did because they don't have it anymore.

[Withered]

I was able to take a video, but I think the light on my cameraphone was stressing him out. It shows the way he just sits there. Hopefully this will give you an idea of what he's doing.

http://s163.photobucket.com/albums/t...004_215737.mp4

[Sakura8]

You wouldn't need to change the water every day if he's in his 3 gallon. He can swim better than I expected and his fins aren't too tightly clamped but his breathing is a little harder, possibly because it takes more effort to swim now. Definitely some swim bladder problems. If he's been constipated then that could explain why he might be having trouble.

If you can find frozen NO SALT ADDED peas, you can try one of those to encourage him to go. Blanch the pea by microwaving it for 20-30 seconds and then put it in a bowl of ice water for 1 minute to cool it. Peel it and cut out a piece that is hardly bigger than the tip of a toothpick and see if he'll eat that.

[Withered]

I think I may have some frozen veggie rice with peas in it. I'll make sure it doesn't have any salt added and take a pea out of there and try that tomorrow. His fins only seem to clamp up bad when he is laying down...but when he's swimming they aren't as stiff or badly clamped. His fins are pretty warped on the edges though...i'm thinking that might have something to do with the hardness of my water, but I have no idea. I wish I could get a better quality video. I'm hoping the IAL you sent will be here tomorrow or Saturday. I have a feeling if I can add that to his water...maybe it'll help him out as well.

[Sakura8]

Yeah, sometimes hard water can ripple fins although it happens more often with crowntails. I hope the IAL gets there soon too. He looks better than I feared, though.

[Withered]

You think so?? I think his tummy looks pretty bloated. Can you tell if he might have any other issues going on there? I hate trying to diagnose because every symptom i'm thinking...oh my god..it kind of seems like he has that...but then again, maybe i'm just overreacting. I worry too much about him because I don't want him to die. The fact that he has a bit of a deformity only makes me want to help him to thrive more. It relieves a bit of my stress though for you to say that he looks better then you'd thought he would. Thanks so much for your help...seriously, I don't know what I would be doing without your advice and the advice of other experts here on this forum. He probably would have died a long time ago if I didn't have the help here. I'm sure Twilight would thank you too if he could.

[Sakura8]

He looks a bit pudgy, yes, and his belly is gray, but he doesn't look grossly bloated. Most likely his pudginess is related to his possible constipation. But honestly, he looks much better than I expected. His color is strong, his fins are much more open than I thought. They don't look too ratty. He looks very good and I think you're right, the IAL should really help him a lot. :)

[Withered]

Great! That gives me hope that he may survive this. I was almost sure that when I woke up Weds morning he would be a gonner...but you saying that gives me the hope that he might have a really good chance of pulling through. I'll keep you updated on his progress and i'll let you know when the IAL comes in. Thanks so much Sakura!

[Sakura8]

No problem. :)