post-bloat but still floating on his side

[PadawanGirl]

Hello. I was very grateful for the help I got from my last post, so I guess I will ask one more question. About two weeks ago, I found one of my bettas (the one in my picture actually) very bloated. I researched causes and how to treat it, and I did the fasting/shelled pea method. He has been bloat-free for a little over a week now. But he is still floating on his side. He is probably a quite elderly, I've had him since last spring and he was from wal-mart. His breathing is a little faster than my other bettas, but not in an alarming way. He will still swim around, sometimes he can right himself as he swims. He is eating again, I've been extra careful to not overfeed him and he hasn't bloated back up. I'm wondering if I'm just expecting him to recover too soon, or if he might not be able to swim correctly again, or if I have completely mis-diagnosed him? I don't want to put him down if he can recover, but I also don't want to just sit around waiting if he is suffering. I thank you in advance for your help.

Oh, one thing I did think of: my mom was watching my bettas for me for about a month before I found him bloated, and I highly suspect she did not change the water at all during that time. If that might help you.

Again, thank you.

[whatsupyall]

Careful with the feedings. As usual, if the disease is not severe, your fish will usually recover with PWC. There isn't much you can do. High temp, salt, and PWC usually do the trick for ill bettas. In my opinion, if it doesn't do the trick, the damage or disease is probably too severe to treat anyway. I can never stress PWC enough... as that is one of the main factors from my personal experience that causes illnesses upon bettas if not carried out weekly. Depending on how big his home is, and if it includes a filter, a month of unchanged water can kill a betta.