Any advice?

[Jlbfish]

Any ideas? Treating for bacterial swim bladder or parasites? Water parameters are fine and he has been fasted for 3 days then 1 week and then another week. No help.

I am thinking this is systemic and he is dying. There is probably nothing I can do but wanted to double check for ideas. Thanks!

All information answered below:

Housing
What size is your tank? 5 gallons
What temperature is your tank? 80 degrees
Does your tank have a filter? yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration?
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? betta pellets with occasional flake food, frozen blood worms or brine shrimp

How often do you feed your betta fish?
2 x per day

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? 1 x per week
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Stress Coat or Prime

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

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite:0
Nitrate: 0-5
pH: 8.2
Hardness: GH 17.9
Alkalinity: KH 8
(water softener)

Symptoms and Treatment

How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Fin Rot, Swim Bladder
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Under cave more when not in a social mood. Otherwise he bobs to the top and hangs out there. Is laying on his side more.

When did you start noticing the symptoms? November

Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?

Around 1-6 After many water changes I decided to start 1 tsp salt per gallon (he is in a 5 gallon tank) and Maracyn/Maracyn II combo. My pH was on the high end for MaracynII but I thought I would try anyway.

Then on 1-13 because my water parameters aren't great for Maracyn and it didn't help I started Kanaplex and Furan 2 and Methelyne blue baths.

The rotted part of his tail fin eventually fell away. He had some fungal growth but with water changes that faded. I stopped the salt then he started up with swim bladder issues. I have fasted and tried peas to no avail.

Does your fish have any history of being ill? Not until now
How old is your fish (approximately)? he has been with us for 14 mos.

[Jlbfish]

First pic is 2 mos after we got him.

[Jlbfish]

I'm having issues posting multiple pics.

[Jlbfish]

Last pic

[osromatra]

Have you tried Epsom salt? I've seen that mentioned as better for sbd and that aq salt can worsen it. How long did you do the aq salt?

[Jlbfish]

I used the Aquarium Salt for 1-2 weeks. It was a while ago so I am not positive how long it was.

I was hesitant to use the Epsom Salts due to stress and the use of Aquarium Salts.

Used some flake food the other night after a week of fasting and he looks like he is pooping quite a bit. Hope that helps. :/

[callistra]

Since you already started treatment, you should finish out the antibioitics for a week so you don't breed anything resistant.

Meds are MUCH more stressful than salts.. actually salts don't cause fish stress, but help reduce it.

Since your meds toasted your cycle you will need to increase your water changes and recycle the tank once you're done treating.

[Jlbfish]

He has been off Meds since late January. I didn't do anything after the antibiotics because of the possible stress and organ damage.

[LittleBlueFishlets]

The general rule is Epsom salt for internal issues (bloating, constipation, etc), and Aquarium salt for external issues.

As a few people have suggested, you may want to try Epsom salt. It won't hurt him, and could help the buoyancy issues. It's a laxative (in people as well as fish), so it should help reduce any fluid retention or constipation issues.

It's available at most grocery and drug stores. Get 100% pure magnesium sulfate. (No dyes, additives or perfumes.)

You can predissolve it in warm water (not hot), and add it directly to his tank. Add it slowly, so that you don't shock him (or raise the water temp.) I would start with 1 teaspoon per gallon, but I've seen recommendations as high as 3 teaspoons per gallon.

It won't harm plants. (In fact, it's used as fertilizer.) And it won't harm him, as long as you allow time to acclimate by adding it slowly to the tank.