[syncmr]

Hi,

My female betta is really bloated (see attached photo). She is active though. She does not have any pine cones. I am maintaining the water temperate at 80F. I replace 75% of the water every week.

I give her one pellet every day. I didn't feed her for the past two days. I do have Epsum salt.

Any advice on how to cure her ? Thanks a lot for your help.

 

[VivianKJean]

your female isn't bloated. She has dropsy - which is a sign of organ failure. Dropsy does not always appear with pineconing scales. Another form is a super "bloated" stomach.

I would add Epsom Salt at one teaspoon per gallon of water. Dissolve it in a cup of tank water first, then over the course of any hour slowly add it to the tank.

If you can also get Seachem Kanaplex. It cannot be found at petsmart/or any other chain store. You have to get it at a local fish store.
http://aqua.seachem.com/SDLocator/DealerLocatorStart.php
use the above link to find out which stores have Seachem Products near you and then call around and see if they have Kanaplex in stock.

As you might know, dropsy is not curable. But that doesn't mean that you don't try.

 

[syncmr]

Thanks a lot VivianKJean.

So unfortunate that she is having dropsy Could you kindly clarify few questions for me.

1. Is dropsy contagious ? I have a male betta in the same tank (separated by a divider). Should I isolate my female betta ? How to make sure that my male betta doesn't get affected by the same.
2. My female betta is very active. Is there some way to cure her ? Should I continue feeding one pellet every two days ?
3. Is there something else that I should try to cure dropsy ?
4. What is the reason for dropsy ?

 

[VivianKJean]

Dropsy is not an illness. It is symptom of organ failure.

1) I would separate her to be safe.
2) I said above that dropsy is incurable because it is a sign of organ failure. You cannot cure organ failure. If she is eating then I would continue feeding her normally.
3) I said in my first post to get Seachem Kanaplex. That is the medicine you want. There is no guarantee but its the best med to get.
4) Dropsy means organ failure - this can be caused by a bunch of different things. The most common is usually bacterial infection.

 

[lilnaugrim]

I'm not so sure that's Dropsy. Looks more like she's egg-bound and is holding all her eggs there. That would be a reason her front part there is yellow since that's the color of the eggs.

Do you have a male that you can show her to? That might help pass eggs, you can still use the Epsom Salt to help draw out some stuff. Try fasting her around a week as well, she may reabsorb her eggs.

If it were Dropsy, she'd be feeling a lot worse and so if she's still up and swimming around and wanting to eat, then it's likely not Dropsy.