[SierraDL]

Hi! I’m wondering if anyone knows why my fish might be hanging out by the filter area where the water is sucked into the filter?
Maui’s always been a chill fish (had him for about a year now), likes to chill on his leaf hammock, barrel decoration, live plant, etc. I’ve noticed a few times he lays against the filter though. He’s not stuck, he seems to be chilling but I’ve seen some articles say that this means he’s not getting enough oxygen. Is there anything I can do to make sure he can breathe well or is he just chilling? I’m currently in the process of upgrading his tank to a 37 gallon with some friends (will be getting corydoras)

Thank you for the help!

Housing:
How many gallons is your tank? 3
Does it have a filter? Yes
Does it have a heater? Yes
What temperature is your tank? 77.7
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? The water from the filter disturbs the surface
Does your Betta have tank mates? What kind? No

Food:
What food brand do you use? Hikari Bio-Gold
Do you feed flakes or pellets? Pellets and dried blood worms for snacks
Freeze-dried? No
How often do you feed your Betta? How much? A few times a day, 5-8 pellets each time. 2-5 worms/worm bits once a week

Maintenance:
Before your Betta became ill how often did you perform a water change? About once a week
What percentage of water did you change? ~50%
What is the source of your water? Treated tap water
Do you vacuum the substrate or just dip out water? Vacuum
What additives do you use other than conditioner? What brand of conditioner? Top Fin water conditioner and plant food. Recently started a plant food (two weeks, two doses total)

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. Important: Test your water before the regular water change; not after one.

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness (GH):
Alkalinity (KH):

Symptoms and Treatment:
When did you first notice the symptoms?
How has your Betta’s appearance changed? No
How has your Betta’s behavior changed? He hangs by the filter more often (most of the day)
Is your Betta still eating? Yes
Have you started treating your Betta? If so, how? No
Does your Betta have any history of being ill? No
How long have you owned your Betta? About a year
Was he or she ill or suffering some sort of damage when purchased? No

 

[SierraDL]

This is him hanging out

 

[betta4ever!]

Welcome to the forum! He is just getting a massage! One of my boys used to do that too! BTW, he's so cute!

 

[RussellTheShihTzu]

Behavioral changes usually are an indication there's an issue. If he was active and swam around the tank for the past year and has now started hanging at the filter that could be a sign. Hanging out around the filter a majority of the time is not normal.

Try to get a clear photo of him away from the filter. A full-on side view would be best. I'm worried because in this photo he looks to be bloated. It could be giving him some frozen Daphnia and a better food with fewer fillers is all you need to do.

 

[BettaloverSara]

I agree that he looks bloated. Is the tank one that came as a package? Does it have an internal filter? Those filters are not great quality I have found so it is quite possible that he's not getting enough oxygen in the water. Would it be possible to add an air stone?

 

[SierraDL]

I agree that he looks bloated. Is the tank one that came as a package? Does it have an internal filter? Those filters are not great quality I have found so it is quite possible that he's not getting enough oxygen in the water. Would it be possible to add an air stone?

It was a kit tank, and there is a filter in a box in the tank. There’s also a little bag of filtering stones(? Idk the name of them, km sorry).
I don’t have room for an air stone in this tank but I do have one for the upgraded tank I’m currently setting up.

 

[SierraDL]

Behavioral changes usually are an indication there's an issue. If he was active and swam around the tank for the past year and has now started hanging at the filter that could be a sign. Hanging out around the filter a majority of the time is not normal.

Try to get a clear photo of him away from the filter. A full-on side view would be best. I'm worried because in this photo he looks to be bloated. It could be giving him some frozen Daphnia and a better food with fewer fillers is all you need to do.

I’ll do my best to get a better photo of him later today. I’ve tried to give him different foods in the past to give him more variety and he won’t touch them at all! All he wants are dried blood worms and his pellets lol

 

[RussellTheShihTzu]

Food such as the one he is getting now is mostly fillers and fillers cause constipation and bloat. As do freeze dried; even the manufacturers advise occasional treat-only. Daphnia acts as a natural laxative because their carapace cannot be digested so moves all in its path out.

Good foods are: NorthFin Betta Bits, Fluval Bug Bites, New Life Spectrum, Aqueon Betta or Color formulas (but not Betta Pro) and Omega One. I feed this but it can only be purchased online from the maker Grain Free Bug (Black Soldier Fly) Formula It is perfect for insectivores like Betta.

If it is constipation/bloating, you'll need to fast him until you can get him something better.

 

[SierraDL]

Here’s a picture of Maui

 

[SierraDL]

UPDATE: Maui has been extra active this morning! He’s still hanging out by his hammock/filter a lot but he’s got the fish ZOOMIES this morning 😂

I also notice a lot of air bubbles on his Java fern from time to time. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I know some of you have mentioned he might not be getting enough oxygen

 

[betta4ever!]

Thats great! The air bubbles are bubble nests- my betta makes them every day! Its completely normal!