help!!

[swoozie13579]

my fish keeps going on his side and i have no idea why!!! i know hes about to die but why?? can i do anything to save him?

[swoozie13579]

he is in a small tank with no filter and i feed him flakes.
also he always used to lay at the bottom of the tank all the time and now he is at the top.

[swoozie13579]

now he is breathing really slowly

[LolaQuigs]

Is his tank heated? What temperature is his water? How often do you do water changes?

[swoozie13579]

my fish it breathing really slowly then laying on his side at the top of the tank. then he'll act all fine and swim for a few seconds then go back to laying at the top of the tank. he has mabie a 0.5 gallon tank and no filter i clean his tank out 1 a week but have only cleaned it out once because i got him 1 1/2 weeks ago. i do 75% water changes.i feed him flakes and some times pellets. is there anything i can do to save him?

[LolaQuigs]

How often do you do 75 percent water changes? 1/2 gallon is really small and ammonia will build up very quickly in that size container. You should be doing water changes every day with such a small tank, but really he needs a bigger container. It could be all of the ammonia that is making him sick.

What temperature is his tank? Is it heated? Bettas are tropical fish and need temperatures around 78-82; if their water is too cold they will become lethargic; this may also be the problem.

[swoozie13579]

his tank is not heated and i dont know what the temp is.

[swoozie13579]

i do water changes 1 a week.

[swoozie13579]

his spine looks all bent up like its bendaible

[LolaQuigs]

Ammonia builds up very fast in small tanks, you should do water changes much more frequently than a week, and you should get a heater as soon as possible, hopefully that will help with his problem. For now I would do a one hundred percent water change (always using conditioner) and try to find the warmest part of your house to put his tank until you can get a heater.

Is he eating normally? Do you see any signs of parasites?