T_T help !! what's wrong with yuki

[HatsuneMiku]

Housing
What size is your tank? 5 gal
What temperature is your tank? 78 deg F
Does your tank have a filter? yes .. he's been hiding behind it wedging himself between the filter and the aquarium wall.. and playing dead T_T
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no
Is your tank heated? no because i'm having trouble keeping the temp lower .. since it's like over 90 sometimes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? hikari bio-gold betta pelllets and hikari freeze dried blood worms
How often do you feed your betta fish? once a day .. 4 pellets and 1 worm

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? every monday
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 25%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? prime water de-clorine

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? no If so, what are the following parameters?

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

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? he looks like he has a swollen bump right behind the gills area
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? he started wedging himself behind the filter and playing dead .. he'll float on top sideways or vertically with his tail floating at the surface when i look at him he's like not moving at all T_T so i'll try to take a picture and then he will swim out from behind the filter .. swim around again and then go back to wedging himself behind the filter .. then when he swims around sometimes he'll float back to the top and just play dead
When did you start noticing the symptoms? 2 days ago
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? nope
Does your fish have any history of being ill? no?
How old is your fish (approximately)? i bought him 2 weeks ago

*additional information*
- i didn't feed him today
- yesterday i only fed him 2 pellets
- 2 days ago when i was feeding him (usually i wait for him to finish his 4 pellets of regular food before i give him his worm) he ate 2 pellets and i saw him do his *nom*nom* face .. then he ate the other 2 pellets at the same time so i thought he had finished eating so i gave him his worm .. and he spit out the 2 pellets and ate the worm .. then ate the 2 pellets again

[SmokeNLark]

Hmm, I would probably up the water changes to 50% every week.

And I think it may have to do with his feeding. 4 pellets and a worm is too much. I'd only feed him 2 pellets twice a day. If you feed worms, I'd feed 2 for a feeding- without pellets.

I'm not exactly sure about the bump though. If it were me, I'd do a big 80% change and fast him for a day or two. If there is no improvement, I'd give him some AQ salt. And I'd try as hard as I can to try and get your tank to a stable temp around 78 or 80.

[HatsuneMiku]

the once a day feeding schedule i've got my bettas on .. is just fine for my other 2 bettas .. and was fine for yuki .. it nursed him back to health when i took him out of his 1 inch water cup .. i don't think it's that ..

i gave him a extra 25% water change this week when i saw he was acting funny

my tank temp is stable now .. it was only a few days last weekend when it was like over 100 deg's outside .. it warmed up my tank .. and i needed ideas to cool it off .. but i fixed that thanks to pewpewpew for his advice ^_^

as of right now .. yuki is making soooooo many bubbles .. not a next .. but just bubbles everywhere .. he just floating at the top .. i don't know if that's a good sign or not .. or if he's having troubles .. cus he stopped swimming down at all .. he just stays on the surface ..

and i've been doing a lot of reading and research .. is it possible he has swim bladder problems ? how can i be sure that's what's wrong with him?

[Oldfishlady]

If he is having buoyancy problems-I would get him in QT and start Epsom salt (Not aquarium salt) 2tsp/gal, tannins along with 100% daily water changes for 10-14 days....

QT in something small and cover the top with plastic veggie wrap to help retain heat and humidity for the labyrinth organ

Premix some treatment water using a 1gal jug of dechlorinated water-Add Epsom salt 2tsp/gal and tannins-either IAL or dried Oak leaf....use this water for the 100% daily water changes for 10-14 days.....

Diet-hold food for 2 days-then offer small frequent good quality varied diet..

Good luck....and keep us posted.....

[HatsuneMiku]

so .. i haven't fed him for 2 days .. and today i fed him 2 pellets .. he swam over to me fast like he was starving .. my poor baby T_T

i finally bought epsom salt .. who knew it would be at cvs @_@ .. i'm preparing his hospital tank right now .. waiting for temperatures to even out ..

i'm still kinda new to bettas .. so i have no clue what tannins is .. how do i get it ?

[HatsuneMiku]

yuki update - he seems better now after being in his hospital tank with epsom salt for two days .. and he finally made a poopie ..

should i keep him in there still? he still looks a little swollen but the redness has went away .. and he seems to be able to hold his weight now .. doesn't really float as much .. but still stays near the surface .. should i put him back in his regular home ? @_@ i wonder if he gets homesick ..

[masshiimarro]

tannins are what is released from things like dried oak leaves or driftwood. its good becuase it has beneficial health properties, lowers ph, and usually makes the water more suitable for bettas.

[Oldfishlady]

Its best if you do at least a full 10 day treatment...in case it is bacterial related......

I get my tannins from Oak leaves...leaves that fall off my oak trees...naturally dried and fallen...about 10-12 per gallon of water....

[HatsuneMiku]

D= .. yuki's looking lethargic again .. just kinda floats on top .. but not as bad as before .. i fed him 2 pellets today .. and he hasn't went poopie yet .. is that normal .. do they go every day? .. just curious cus my goldfish go like 2-3 hrs after i feed them .. it's kinda driving me nuts .. it's like he's better a few days then sick again a few days T_T .. i don't know if i'm doing it right and i don't want to cause more stress on him since he's already sick >.<

i still have him in his 1g hospital tank and he loves to chase the bubbles that are in there from the epsom salt dissolving and making a lot of bubbles .. are those bubbles bad for him to be eating and spitting out ?

also my bf got these indian almond leaves (is that what you mean by IAL) and he puts it in his planted betta tank .. but i didn't put them in mine cus they make the water turn brown @_@ is that the same thing for tannins?

[Oldfishlady]

You need to pre-dissolve the Epsom salt or it can burn the fish....and yes, the IAL or Indian almond leaf is a good tannin source...the brown color is the tannins and very good for sick Bettas or even a Betta that isn't sick...

Premix the treatment water in a 1gal jug of dechlorinated water so the Epsom salt can dissolve...Add one IAL crushed up and let it steep for about 30min-1hr and use this water for the water changes....

The longer it steeps the more tannins released the darker the water the more the Betta likes it.....don't worry about the little bits of leaf in the water either...it won't hurt anything......