[sh29]

my name is shannon, i just got my 3rd betta 2 weeks ago. the first one i shocked but i have upgraded to a 5 gallon tank.the next one was very healthy and i was away and my mom said when she went to shut off the light his belly was whitish and looked like his throat was thin,like see through but i wasnt home. he was red,awesome and had his gil flap on one side detached when i got him.i tried some other types but then i didnt like them so i bought nuge.he is swimming around well ,i'm not over feeding him but not as energetic as the other one but is active. he looks like he is putting on wieght fast.i attached pics and i hope its not dropsy. take a look and give me opinions but he is very mobile and staying all over the place and not the bottom.i have a apple snail and albino placo as well. thanks

 

[Mo]

It just looks like slight bloating to me, as long as he isn't struggling to swim, there s hood be no problems. You should ideally cut down on feeding, don't feed for 2 days, and you could feed daphnia, also you should ideally rehome the albio Pleco as its most likely an albino Bristlenose.

In My Opinion Bristlenose Plecos (Ancistrus temminckii) aren't suitable for any tank under 20 gallons long term for a few reasons. They get to be 6 inches long which is very large, they have a very high bio load when fully grown and would have a major impact on all fish within the habitat due to ammonia, males might harras other fish during breeding season that enter his territory, and fully grown adults are known to eat smaller tank mates such as the ones the sizes of neons

 

[sh29]

thanks,it looks abit worse side on but no,he is just sauntering all over the place. i feed him twice a day mostly flakes then i just got pellets so i give him a pellet and some flakes

 

[sh29]

also he sticks close to turbo,the snail lol

 

[Mo]

Giving 4-6 pellets due to the size of the pellets themselves should suffice for one Betta along with fasting him weekly

 

[sh29]

4-6 a day? then go a day with no food?

 

[sh29]

what about the color enhancing flakes Mo?

 

[Mo]

What type of pellets a you feeding? This will determine the amount that you should be feeding daily. And yes. Not feeding a day weekly will help prevent bloating, and swim bladder disease. Color enhancing flakes have little differences between the other types of flakes. While on a trip I examined the given ingredients and noticed little differences between the tetra flakes, color enhancing, and the other type that was avalible

 

[sh29]

Nutrafin max pellets and flakes,i was told 1 pellet a day plus he does sometime spit out the flakes then eat them again.i was told the flakes are important to maintain color.i think i'll fast him for 2 days and then see maybe

 

[Mo]

Color mainly comes from a varied diet, optimal habitat, optimal temperature, little stress, etc. not just fr the food. While it is a factor, it is has a very little percentage and most of the color comes from a varied diet with nutritional foods such as the ones you are using. With nutrafin max pellets, I would go with 4 a day, you can feed 2 in the morning, along with 2 at night, or you an feed all in one time period. Good luck!

 

[sh29]

thanks Mo but you seem iffy on the flakes and there are others who never really bring them up. thank you and happy Easter

 

[Mo]

Your welcome, I'm glad to help. And thank you. Happy Easter to you too.

And yes, I do not like feeding a primary diet of flakes to bettas as they are known to not fully consume them, it is a challenge to control the amount you feed, there is no specified feeding amount, and bettas are known to let some flakes drop to the bottom and decay, meaning that the organic matter woul lead to an ammonia spike.

 

[Twilight Storm]

I am not an expert, but here is my opinion from personal experience.

With his other tank mates it will probably be difficult to tell, but make sure your Betta is going to the bathroom. My first Betta is prone to bloating and constipation. He bloated up like that when he was constipated. I would fast him for a day or two, if it's constipation you should notice his chest will go back to normal fairly quickly. (This won't hurt him but he will probably make you feel terrible since they are greedy little beggars at feeding time. )

I don't know if it's like this for everyone or not, but I found if I feed two kinds of commercial food brands per day, I personally had more problems with bloat then I do sticking with one kind of pellet.

I agree with Mo and would stay away from flakes, if for no other reason they do make a mess. (one brand even turns your water a nasty shade of red! - lesson learned! lol)

Good luck with your pretty little blue guy

 

[lilyth88]

Remember, his stomach is about the size of his eye. Feed accordingly.

 

[Bombalurina]

I agree with everyone else. Stop the flakes, just feed a couple of pellets twice a day, fast him for a few days to encourage the bloating to go down. Most importantly, do lots of water changes and get that pleco out of there ASAP.

 

[sh29]

The bloating going down great today. My pleco has been in with him from the get go and no troubles. He is just a tiny albino pleco and my buddy breeds them. They stay very tiny and he hides most of the time. The Betta sticks to the apple snail like they are best friends lol,kinda cool. All is ok tonight and I'm doing a complete water change with gravel and tank cleanin tomorrow. A lot of poop in the bottom when I moved the plant today,tons of it. Filled the end of the filter and cartridges

 

[Mo]

you should ideally rehome the albio Pleco as its most likely an albino Bristlenose.

In My Opinion Bristlenose Plecos (Ancistrus temminckii) aren't suitable for any tank under 20 gallons long term for a few reasons. They get to be 6 inches long which is very large, they have a very high bio load when fully grown and would have a major impact on all fish within the habitat due to ammonia, males might harras other fish during breeding season that enter his territory, and fully grown adults are known to eat smaller tank mates such as the ones the sizes of neons

 

[sh29]

Month I go to Shawns a lot,the mom is only maybe 3 inches long and that's the biggest of all them. The normal plecos are big at pets unlimited. I'll keep a eye on his growth but as of now he keeps to him self and cleans the tank like I got him for and highly recomended by pets unlimited. If he gets 6 inches I'll give him to shawn

 

[Mo]

He shouldn't get to 6 inches in an aquarium of that size due to stunting, which is unnatural, and affects the fish greatly. I would advise that you find a better Home for the Pleco while he still isn't stunted, and greatly affected by the aquarium size

 

[sh29]

Will it kill him? The pet store and Shawn also told me to put a slice of zuchinni or cucumber in for him and the betta would pick at it for they eat greens,plants in their home habbitat so I did. Shawns plecos are 2 yrs old in a 40 gallon tank Month and still are very tiny as well. I'll keep a eye on him. My daughter sorta picked it so it will be tough