Listless, heavy breathing?

[klarka331]

Little 2.71 has been sick for about two weeks. First he got fin rot, so I moved him from his 5 gal to a 2.5 gal so I could do water changes every couple days. I put aquarium salt in his tank. I can't really tell if he is getting better or not. He is still missing some of his tail. Then shortly after that he started breathing heavily, not rapid, but I can see him breathing from the other side of the room and I never could before.

He hardly moves at all, he sits at the top of the tank with his mouth just below the surface. He is taking big gulps of air. He has only been eating about 1 pellet of food every two days.

I don't know what to do for him.

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

Is the smaller tank heated?

How often are your water changes?

Water stats?

How much salt are you putting in as too much can be too dangerous?

[roadrunner]

I was treating my betta and he had allergic reaction to medication. So heavy breathing may be a result of stuff added to the water besides water conditioner. I would put him back to 5 gal without any gravel (so you can clean the tank easy), do partial water changes every day for the next few days without any salt or treatment in it. I think it will be easier on your betta instead of doing larger water changes in smaller tank every few days. My experience is that clean water in larger tank with steady temperature and filtration system is the best way to treat fish. I should not be overwhelmed since you had him in larger tank before.

[klarka331]

The smaller tank is not heated right now because it's summer and the room is a constant 78-80 degrees. His pH is the normal 6.4 and his ammonia is 0. I'm putting in a little less than 1 teaspoon of salt. I'm changing the water every 2-4 days, depending on how busy I am.

I think he is missing his big tank, I will move him over today.

If it is allergies will that go away? I haven't been putting anything different in his water.

[roadrunner]

My betta stopped heavy breathing after I've made couple water changes. It's really hard to tell if it allergies what causes it. Each fish is different and some are stronger than others.
As for salt, everybody has a different idea and some people swear by it, some don't recommend it for longterm use. 1 teaspoon or less per 5 gal is ok and if it made your fish happy before, keep using it for the time being. Do not change your water routine if fish is already stressed.
I've read somewhere that bettas can even get depressed, so it may be just he is missing his big home.
As for his fin rot - clean water, clean water and more clean water :o)