Stiiiiill sick little man...

[lp4eva1]

Hi all,

I posted here month or so ago regarding my sick little buddy.... Well two months on and he's still sick

My thoughts are now is he's severely constipated.

He's been moved a week ago into a small hospital tank (15lt half full so he doesn't haveto work so hard to breathe), tank is heated and stable at 22°c, no substrate (so I can monitor his poop) and only two fake small plants for him to rest on/in.

He's a crown tail blue, approximately 1.5yrs old (roughly).
I usually feed him marine master betta food, twice daily.
Since he's been hospitalised I've stopped feeding him.

In his natural tank, I do 100% water changes once /week.

In the hospital tank I have been doing 75-100% changes daily.
Hospital tank has been treated with epsom salts and betta conditioner every day.

So... He's not well, and I'm after advice as to what to try next!

He hasn't pooped for the entire time he's been hospitalised, gets bursts of energy, then just sinks to the bottom and either sits upright or lays down.
When he swims, it's like he's tail heavy.. Working very hard to stay afloat. My first thought was swim bladder, but the lack of poop is worrying.

So..... Now what do I do?????

cheers, lisa

[lp4eva1]

This is my little man... No bloat.. Just life less and sad

[MattsBettas]

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Housing
What size is your tank?
What temperature is your tank?
Does your tank have a filter?
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration?
Is your tank heated?
What tank mates does your betta fish live with?

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish?
How often do you feed your betta fish?

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change?
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change?
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change?

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

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

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed?
How has your betta fish's behavior changed?
When did you start noticing the symptoms?
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?
Does your fish have any history of being ill?
How old is your fish (approximately)?



It sounds like a fairly good setup, but you need to get it warmer then 22 degrees. It should be at least 26 degrees, 27 would be great while he is sick. Treating with Epsom salts every day is a very bad idea, it is super stressful on his liver and kidney. A picture would help tons.

[MattsBettas]

Whoops I missed that. A side view please?

[lp4eva1]

Already answered those questions.....

15lt, heated, 22°c base, no tank mates, only has a betta neighbour usually. No filter, water parameters are perfect. symptoms, see abide.

can't take side view atm until he us up (and I'm at work lol).

Water treatment with epsom isn't a regular thing, only since he's been hospitalised.

[MattsBettas]

Epsom salts should not be given for a week. They are a last resort treatment that can easily become stressful and dangerous. The biggest issue you need to address is his temperature, read the lower part of my first response.

[lp4eva1]

I'm well aware of the consequences of epsom, this has been a last resort as I, said above, he's been sick for quite a while and i am aware of the temperature, but there is a valid reason, I'm not silly!

[Sena Hansler]

Actually epsom salt is not as bad as you think. For some chronic bettas, the low doses is needed to fend off whatever (commonly SBD).

I wouldn't use it more than 14 days in a row, however, as with any medication too much can be too much. Is he bloated? Does he float?

Try finding frozen daphnia. That works as a cleanser for the digestive track. Don't use peas. All else fails, you need to bring that epsom salt up to about 3 teaspoons, with 100% daily water change keeping the temperature at 78-82 degrees. Colder temperatures cause the fish to have constipation problems, as does a poor diet. How much is he fed?

[lp4eva1]

My first thought was SBD, hence the epsom. It's only been the last two days I've noticed he hasn't pooped. I've tried the peas before, he doesn't eat them anyway (clever boy, I don't like peas either lol). Will stop off at my LFS on way home from work..
He's kept at a minimum 22°c because we have 40°c daily temp, I don't want to boil him! Will try adjusting it, he is happiest at 25°c.
He's feed twice daily, about 5-6 pellets in total.

[lp4eva1]

Okay just did a ring around my LFS's and no one has daphnia... Anything else I can try???