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Hello all. I really need your help. My male crown tail, Finley, suffered from Temp. Shock around August. He's still suffering from what I believe is a sensitive immune system. Today, he's easily prone to constipation, bloating, and swim bladder. The thing I'm worried about is his discoloration under his belly as well as hiccups and yawns. I have attached photos of the discoloration.
During his episode of temperature shock in August, he was in such terrible condition that I considered euthanizing him. His belly would discolor to a dusty gray and had little black specs. He got better, though. I have learned to be more careful with him and I'm learning to keep the mistake from repeating.
After he recovered from the shock, I started treating him for fin rot. (btw, his fin rot at this time had fuzzy tips)
He still has digestive problems
He still "hiccups" (not blowing bubbles for a bubble nest. Like actual hiccups.)
Sometimes he darts and spasms.
Still very active!
Recently, I changed his water. 50% water change while he was in a plastic cup in the tank. I vacuumed the poop and made sure the temperature of the original and new water was the same 78º F. He usually does fine. After I finished changing the water, I tilted the cup and let him back into the rest of the tank. He seemed a bit jittery, which worried me since I thought I was taking all the right measures: same temperature water, acclimation, not taking him out of the tank, etc. I then fed him a pellet. He developed swim bladder. But this time, he showed the same discoloration that occurred during August's temp shock. His symptoms of swim bladder got better the next morning (I gave him an epsom salt bath overnight). He seems to be hiccuping now. As if he has some sort of gag-reflex. His belly is blackish and dusty looking. It's scaring me, and I'm suspecting parasites or an infection. Please help me figure out what I can do to help Finley.
One thing about my tank is that I have had problems with nematodes after introducing a live amazon sword plant to my tank. It's really annoying because I don't want them there. I've replaced the substrate and taken out the amazonian sword, but they're still everywhere! They're super tiny. I'm afraid they could be invading his belly or something of the sort. Around the site, a lot of people say they are harmless. But some people say that there are parasitic ones. This being said, I'm not completely adamant on a parasitic infection because Finley's poop is not white. It's the regular orange color.
If not parasitic, could it be bacterial? Or fungal? I have a medication called "Focus" by seachem for bacterial infections that I have tried to pair with daphnia.
Housing: 5 gallon fluval spec
How many gallons is your tank? 5 Gallon
Does it have a filter? Yes with a modified flow output
Does it have a heater? Yes
What temperature is your tank? 78º
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Does your Betta have tank mates? What kind? He used to have a snail which left a lot of poop
Food: Pellets and occasional daphnia when he needs it
What food brand do you use? Tetra betta pellets (they're pretty big) and Hikari Daphnia when he was sick.
Do you feed flakes or pellets? Pellets
Freeze-dried? I used to feed him freeze dried bloodworms but I stopped
How often do you feed your Betta? How much? 4 pellets a day. The tetra pellets are pretty big so I have to break it into pieces for him to eat. I would give him more but he's easily prone to constipation, bloating, and swim bladder.
Maintenance:
Before your Betta became ill how often did you perform a water change? 50% each week with acclimation.
What percentage of water did you change? 50%
Do you vacuum the substrate or just dip out water? Vacuum the poop
What additives do you use? Tetra safeguard
Water Parameters:
What are your water parameters? Please give exact numbers. If tested by pet store please get exact numbers. "Fine" or "Safe" won't help us help you.
Ammonia: 0.25ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate:0ppm
pH: 7.8
Symptoms: blackening belly with some white patches. Occasional swim bladder. Easily constipated. Some fin rot (currently getting better).
When did you first notice the symptoms? When he was in temperature shock, he lost a lot of his fin length as well as color. Particularly under his belly and around his beard.
How has your Betta’s appearance changed? Black and white blotches under belly and beard area. Looks like it's decomposing.
How has your Betta’s behavior changed? Not as active after the recent water change, and hiccups a lot. As if he's having some sort of gag reflex. He isn't building a bubble nest either. It's just like hiccuping. Usually happens after he eats.
Is your Betta still eating? Yes
Have you started treating your Betta? If so, how? Furan-2 for fin rot. Works great. Epsom salt for the occasional swim bladder, which usually lasts 4 or 5 hours.
Does your Betta have any history of being ill? Yes. A few months ago, he suffered from temperature shock. Which I believe weakened his immune system. Recently, I tried to change his water (50%) while he was still in the tank. I put him in a transparent cup. The temperature was the same in both the new water and the original water. After I acclimated him to the new water, which took an hour, I gave him a pellet. He started showing symptoms of swim bladder, which surprised me since he wasn't previously bloated or anything. He also grew patches of white and black under his belly.
How long have you owned your Betta? Was he or she a rescue? 2 years, and no.
During his episode of temperature shock in August, he was in such terrible condition that I considered euthanizing him. His belly would discolor to a dusty gray and had little black specs. He got better, though. I have learned to be more careful with him and I'm learning to keep the mistake from repeating.
After he recovered from the shock, I started treating him for fin rot. (btw, his fin rot at this time had fuzzy tips)
He still has digestive problems
He still "hiccups" (not blowing bubbles for a bubble nest. Like actual hiccups.)
Sometimes he darts and spasms.
Still very active!
Recently, I changed his water. 50% water change while he was in a plastic cup in the tank. I vacuumed the poop and made sure the temperature of the original and new water was the same 78º F. He usually does fine. After I finished changing the water, I tilted the cup and let him back into the rest of the tank. He seemed a bit jittery, which worried me since I thought I was taking all the right measures: same temperature water, acclimation, not taking him out of the tank, etc. I then fed him a pellet. He developed swim bladder. But this time, he showed the same discoloration that occurred during August's temp shock. His symptoms of swim bladder got better the next morning (I gave him an epsom salt bath overnight). He seems to be hiccuping now. As if he has some sort of gag-reflex. His belly is blackish and dusty looking. It's scaring me, and I'm suspecting parasites or an infection. Please help me figure out what I can do to help Finley.
One thing about my tank is that I have had problems with nematodes after introducing a live amazon sword plant to my tank. It's really annoying because I don't want them there. I've replaced the substrate and taken out the amazonian sword, but they're still everywhere! They're super tiny. I'm afraid they could be invading his belly or something of the sort. Around the site, a lot of people say they are harmless. But some people say that there are parasitic ones. This being said, I'm not completely adamant on a parasitic infection because Finley's poop is not white. It's the regular orange color.
If not parasitic, could it be bacterial? Or fungal? I have a medication called "Focus" by seachem for bacterial infections that I have tried to pair with daphnia.
Housing: 5 gallon fluval spec
How many gallons is your tank? 5 Gallon
Does it have a filter? Yes with a modified flow output
Does it have a heater? Yes
What temperature is your tank? 78º
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Does your Betta have tank mates? What kind? He used to have a snail which left a lot of poop
Food: Pellets and occasional daphnia when he needs it
What food brand do you use? Tetra betta pellets (they're pretty big) and Hikari Daphnia when he was sick.
Do you feed flakes or pellets? Pellets
Freeze-dried? I used to feed him freeze dried bloodworms but I stopped
How often do you feed your Betta? How much? 4 pellets a day. The tetra pellets are pretty big so I have to break it into pieces for him to eat. I would give him more but he's easily prone to constipation, bloating, and swim bladder.
Maintenance:
Before your Betta became ill how often did you perform a water change? 50% each week with acclimation.
What percentage of water did you change? 50%
Do you vacuum the substrate or just dip out water? Vacuum the poop
What additives do you use? Tetra safeguard
Water Parameters:
What are your water parameters? Please give exact numbers. If tested by pet store please get exact numbers. "Fine" or "Safe" won't help us help you.
Ammonia: 0.25ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate:0ppm
pH: 7.8
Symptoms: blackening belly with some white patches. Occasional swim bladder. Easily constipated. Some fin rot (currently getting better).
When did you first notice the symptoms? When he was in temperature shock, he lost a lot of his fin length as well as color. Particularly under his belly and around his beard.
How has your Betta’s appearance changed? Black and white blotches under belly and beard area. Looks like it's decomposing.
How has your Betta’s behavior changed? Not as active after the recent water change, and hiccups a lot. As if he's having some sort of gag reflex. He isn't building a bubble nest either. It's just like hiccuping. Usually happens after he eats.
Is your Betta still eating? Yes
Have you started treating your Betta? If so, how? Furan-2 for fin rot. Works great. Epsom salt for the occasional swim bladder, which usually lasts 4 or 5 hours.
Does your Betta have any history of being ill? Yes. A few months ago, he suffered from temperature shock. Which I believe weakened his immune system. Recently, I tried to change his water (50%) while he was still in the tank. I put him in a transparent cup. The temperature was the same in both the new water and the original water. After I acclimated him to the new water, which took an hour, I gave him a pellet. He started showing symptoms of swim bladder, which surprised me since he wasn't previously bloated or anything. He also grew patches of white and black under his belly.
How long have you owned your Betta? Was he or she a rescue? 2 years, and no.
It's hard to watch. He would be still for a couple of seconds and randomly spasm. Kind of like a very fast seizure kind of spasm... These are more frequent when he gets air from the surface. 
