Help help help! Emergency with betta!!

[Sena1]

Housing
What size is your tank? Its a bowl.
What temperature is your tank?
Does your tank have a filter? No
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no
Is your tank heated? no
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Betta Min tropical medley flakes with color enhancers.
How often do you feed your betta fish? Every 3 days

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Every month
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? All of it
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Nothing I just use spring water.

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

Ammonia: N/A
Nitrite: N/A
Nitrate: N/A
pH: N/A
Hardness: N/A
Alkalinity: N/A
Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? He has a very crooked body and its sideways.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? He just sits at the bottom of the bowl :/
When did you start noticing the symptoms? About a year ago but I couldn't find anything to cure it and i didnt know what was wrong.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I thought he had swim bladder so i fed him a pea a few times but nothing happended he just pooped all over :(
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No.
How old is your fish (approximately)? 1 year and 6 months (around there)

[Pataflafla]

Definitely change the water a lot more. Ina 1 gallon bowl, it's recommended at 1 50% and 1 100% weekly. Warmer water too. Bettas are tropical and prefer 78-80.

Could you post a picture of how he's bent?

[rejectedbo]

I agree with Pataflafla. Changing your fish's water is VERY important. He excretes ammonia which is toxic to him, and if he's in a bowl it's much more concentrated than it would be in a bigger tank. So definitely start doing water changes.

I also want to add that you might want to get a conditioner to you can start using tap water instead of spring water. Tap water has minerals that spring water lack and can help your fishy stay healthy. :)

Good luck!

[Myates]

Agreed- there are a few things going on that will help him return to normal, simple, easy fixes that you will need to do.

As mentioned above, anything under 5 gallons unfiltered you will want to be doing 1 50% and 1 100% water changes per week-
Spring water is not idea, bottled and distilled, any filtered type of water isn't idea to use as the filtration process removes the nutrients and minerals within the water that the fish need. Tap water with water conditioner (any brand that removes chlorine, nitrate/ites and binds metals) is what you are wanting to do- you do that with all fresh water fish.
As mentioned above, 76-82*F is the temp they should be at, as they are tropical fish. The smaller the tank, the tougher it can be to heat- so in the bowl (I'm assuming it's a one gallon, anything smaller I don't recommend getting a heater for) I would look for a 10-15 watt heater. Being in cooler water in time will lower their immune system, cause them to become lethargic and slows down their metabolism.

Peas is a treatment for goldfish who are constipated, and it can work with bettas (as you have seen with him pooing all over), but not idea as they cannot digest the vegetable matter and all it does is push everything out because the body is trying to eject the foreign object (the pea). SBD you would do a different treatment.

I would first get a thermometer at least to know the temp of the water, and then would do a 100% water change with tap water and conditioner- that is a must do.
Then in a few days, do a 50%, and then a week from the 100% do another 100%, etc. Upping the water changes, using the conditioner (would need it even if you used spring water) and keeping the water temp warm will help in reversing the damage being done.

As well as feeding regularly. You are pretty much just keeping him alive barely with the food- they should be fed daily, a couple times a day.
Betta pellets are the best staple in their diet, frozen blood worms/brine shrimp are great too. Betta specific flakes are fine for a couple of meals a week, freeze dried are treats. A variety of food is the best recommendation, as well as feeding small amounts 2+ times a day. So 2-3 pellets per meal, once in the morning, once in the evening is highly recommended. Or a very small pinch of flakes each meal- but removing any uneaten flakes right after feeding or they will foul up the water quickly. You can feed all 7 days, or some fast their betta one day a week. But they need to eat a lot more than every 3 days- he isn't getting proper nutrition to keep up his systems to keep him healthy and avoid illnesses.

Bettas can live a long time in unfavorable conditions, they are hardy- but regardless those conditions will always catch up to them. And he's been battling it for a year from what you said (laying on the bottom of the bowl for a year).. so he's a tough little guy.

So a few things to just remember: The most dangerous water condition is one that is invisible, so doing regular water changes is a must.
They get hungry and need food just as us, a good breakfast and dinner will make them happy, even a lunch if you are able to (just cut the other 2 meals smaller).
Tap water and conditioner gives them the best conditions.
No one likes to be cold, and since they can't throw on a coat, it's up to us to keep them warm.
They don't like a lot of empty spaces, they like places to hide among silk plants, and a cave would be welcomed by him greatly.

I hope that you take all our recommendations into consideration, that these simple fixes will work. Not here to judge you, but to help teach. Good luck, and keep us updated.

[Sena1]

Thanks, and would it be a good idea to put him in a larger tank now or should i wait because he can barely make it to the top of this one and i didnt fill it up all the way?

[Sena1]

I think hes so weak he cant get to the top to eat! Hes not eating :O

[flowerslegacy]

Hi Sena1 - Welcome to the forum. Sorry your little guy isn't doing well. Unfortunatly it sounds like he has been experiencing nitrite poisoning and it's caught up with him. It creates an oxygen deficiency in the blood which then creates their bodies to bend. Your best bet to possibly save him is to do a salt treatment. You can purchase Aquarium Salt at any local petstore. You'll want to add 1tsp of salt per gallon of dechlorinated water. If your bowl is under a gallon then you can mix up the salt water in a gallon jug and just use that for your treatment water. Please note that you'll need to dissolve the salt in a small cup before you add it to your tank. Also, you'll need to acclimate him slowly to the salt treatment. Don't just pour it in. You'll need to do 100% water changes every day for 10 days. This is your only remedy for nitrite poisoning. I hope he pulls through. You've received a lot of good advice on how to care for your betta from the other members so you're on the right track. Good luck and keep us posted!

[Sena1]

Thanks!