Water change/Popping out eye/Pelvic fin

[neekis]

Housing
What size is your tank? 10 gal (just changed from a 14 to a 10 due to break in glass)
What temperature is your tank? 79
Does your tank have a filter? Aqueon
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? Yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? 1 mystery snail

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Omega One pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? 2 in the am, 2 in the pm

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Weekly (2x wk lately)
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 25 - 30% (did a 40% change a wk ago)
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Prime

Water Change/Eyes popping
I just did a 25% water change and after I was done, noticed that Neekis's eyes looked like they were popping out. I don't think it's pop-eye. I was wondering if it could be due to me not letting the new water sit for awhile b4 adding it back in. Like maybe there's too much aeration in the new water from the tap. Has anyone else experienced this?

Pelvic Fins
At first I thought he had swim bladder because he started to rest on his tail about 1-1/2 wks ago. I held back his food for a day, then slowly increased his food back to 2 pellets in the am and 2 pellets in the pm. Also, I put a baffle on the filter, even though he really enjoys swimming back and forth in the current. I just thought he should mellow a bit. I also did extra water changes.

Since he's still sitting on his tail (but acts normal otherwise) I think he may have a problem with this pelvic fins. I noticed that they seem more floppy than b4. Not sure how he could have injured them. At the time he started doing this, it looked like he may had been tail biting, although I doubt that. Maybe he could have gotten sucked onto the side of the Aqueon filter suction tube?? His tail fin is already looking better, but his pelvic fins are still floppy. Anybody have any ideas??

Thanks much!

[Oldfishlady]

I am having some major computer problems.....so I may not be able to get back to you.....

If his eye look puffy after a water change it could be from supersaturation and an air bubble got behind his eye...some times its a wait ans see.....

If he is older and he has heavy fins it may be the weight alone causing his swimming problems or dragging tail look.....

I would try an Epsom salt treatment start with 1tsp/gal and increase to 2tsp/gal on day 3 along with 100% daily water changes for 5-10 days and see if that helps any if he start to get worse or symptoms change...

[neekis]

Thanks Oldfishlady!

Neekis is very young...still not full grown, so I don't think it's weight. I'll just keep an eye on him and see what happens. Then do the Epsom salt if I need to.

Good luck with the whole computer thing! Take care!

[neekis]

Alright....he's still not normal and it's been 1-1/2 wks. I just put 10 teaspoons of Epsom salts in his 10 gal tank.

His eyes are still a little bulged and he's still sitting on his tail. He's eating fine and still comes to the glass to say hi anytime you go near his tank. He acts normal in every way except for the tail sitting thing. I really don't think he has swim bladder...I'm convinced that there is something wrong with his pelvic fin. It just dangles there. I'm still thinking that he may have gotten one stuck in the filter intake. Are they able to heal?

Any other ideas out there, please let me know. Thanks!

[neekis]

Okay - after doing a 100% water change in a 10 gal I decided to put him in his 1.5 gal for his treatments. Unfortunately, the small under gravel heater doesn't heat up his tank enough, so I had to stick my bigger heater in this dorky little tank....I also took one of his live plants from the big tank and his floating betta log and put in the small tank.

I've been searching online throughout the day trying to determine what his problem could be. Now I'm thinking a bacteria or parasite....I just hate seeing him like this! I"m getting soooo frustrated!!!

[Thunderloon]

Set the big heater about 2° lower than desired temp when using it in smaller tanks.

So he's had no response to the epsom salt treatment?

Which kind of boy is he? All betta's eyes do stick out some, they rotate around and are ambulatory outside the skull, especially at the top.

Popeye I would assume the eyes were growing in size.

I've got one boy and three girls with pectoral damage that precludes them from using the fin.

Lets look at this as a probable digestive issue, it would affect swim bladder function. The tool for it is fairly simple. At most stores there will be a "furan 2" product of some sort. Jungle calls it "fungus clear" but it is actually a broad spectrum chemical that is exasperatingly safe (and sometimes too slow a treatment but is a good one). (Nitrofurazone Furazolidone)

To use it you're going to have to chip up a tablet and put some tank water in a teaspoon, disolve a tiny shard of the tablet in that water then soak his food in it. You can probably get six or eight days out of each tablet this way. Rinse the spoon and let it air dry then wash your hands.

What environment is around the tank, does air conditioning or perfume blow across it? Home deodorizers/room fresheners can cause lethargy.

Also, put a mirror up beside the tank for about a minute at most if you don't already exercise him. Make sure to watch that he doesn't get too violent.

Further info: Have you tested his water for Nitrate levels on a regular basis or used a test dip-strip which will show those levels?
: How hard is the water you use to top-off and do water changes with? Does the water line have white solids on the glass?

[neekis]

Thank you so much for the reply Thunderloon! I live in Wis so we aren't using air conditioning right now...although, I wish we could be! Spring is taking it's time this year to get here! :) But his tank is in a good location. We don't use any perfumes or deodorizers. His water temp is at ~82 degrees. Of course now I'm trying to keep two tanks heated with one main heater. Overnight, the large tank went all the way down to 60!! I just added warm water to speed up the heating process. I want to put him back in the big tank because I just think he's so much happier there. BTW, do you know if the epsom salt will effect the good bacteria in the tank?

I have been testing the water and everything is fine there. I have both the API Master test kit and the test strips. PH is high, but it always has been and heard that it's best not to mess with that. We have well water, but have a softener. Although, we were low on salt for a week, so he may have gotten some harder water one time. Sometimes there is a little bit of deposit at the water line, but not much.

I think I will continue with the Epsom Salt treatment and then try the fungus Clear. That sounds like a really good idea! Of course, I'm just getting impatient! I want him better now. But I know...it takes time!

Neekis loves to exercise - when we first got him, I had the baffle on the filter, but he really liked swimming in the current so I took the baffle off. Lately, I've kept in on because of his "sitting on his tail" issue.

Thanks again and I will try to be patient....

[neekis]

Oops - just looked it up....Epsom salt doesn't affect good bacteria in a tank! :)

[Thunderloon]

Epsom is actually a healthy additive when used at about 1/4 teaspoon per 10 gallons to support bacteria, plants and mulm consumption.

Even in my pure tanks like sherbert's I use a touch of epsom, touch of aquarium salt and dose the water with neutral regulator and a drop of permanganate.

Is the small tank able to sit IN the large tank without him getting out?

[neekis]

Unfortunatley the first tank I got (the 1.5 gal) was the one my son picked out....a Nemo tank. If you're not familier with them, they are like a one piece unit with lighting.

I know this is "off topic", but the whole reason we got a betta was because my husband was going ice fishing and my son Freddy wanted to keep one of the bait fish! So while my husband was out fishing, my 3 yr old at the time and I went to get a fish. I hadn't done much research and ended up with a Nemo tank and no heater. I just did what the Petco guy said. Silly me! After finding this site I got a heater right away....a couple months later got a larger tank with plants...and now I'm hooked!

Thanks again for your input!