Hey everyone, I recently got a betta in January. This is my 2nd time getting a betta and my first one lived 3 years and was always super healthy and happy. I got him from petco. This new betta I decided to get from a breeder. I always performed weekly water changes removing 1.5 to 2 gals of water since he’s in 5.5 gallon tank. I also would siphon the gunk in the substrate. He was doing really well up until March. I broke one of his tank decors while doing a cleaning, it was a huge log like decor that he liked hiding in. And it took me a couple weeks to replace it with new decor so I figured he was just sad. Because he would still come up for food and still swim around. Today however I went to go check on him and he couldn’t swim he would just swim and sink. And he would kind of just float upside down. My water was always at 0 nitrates and 0 chlorine and 0 ammonia. I’m not sure what to do. I really don’t think he’s going to make it and it’s sad to see him suffering. He still tries to swim but he can’t and he doesn’t eat.
What should I do?
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1smgs1i
Posted by AdDramatic1861
2 Comments
Looks like some pineconing. Usually at that stage humane euthanasia is recommended, because it indicates organ failure. It is possible in some cases to help them recover from the pineconing, but they usually don’t live long after because the organs are generally too damaged to recover. If he is still eating it might be worth a try.
If you opt to euthanize: Some people recommend clove oil, but keep in mind the wrong dosage will cause a painful death. I also don’t know the dosage information. Wrapping the fish in paper towel and a delivering a decisive blow with a rock is humane and accessible for most people, but hard emotionally for many.
In the last picture, I can see that he’s pineconing a bit (where his scales stick up a tad). This is indicative of dropsy, which is more of a symptom than a sickness. His body is retaining fluid for some reason and causing swelling.
The outlook is unfortunately not great for fish with dropsy once they start pineconing, especially if they stop eating. If you are in the US, you can try using kanaplex to deal with a potential infection but it is really tough because in most cases, we have no idea what the root cause of the swelling is. We just know that something is backed up pretty bad.
If it keeps getting worse and he still doesn’t eat for a few days, you might have to consider euthanasia. You know your fish better than anyone, so I would say to go with your gut based on his behavior. I’m so sorry that this is happening, and it is almost certainly not your fault. Betta genetics are not great as it stands, and sickness can kind of just show up. His fins look super healthy and I can tell he is well cared for. Don’t be too hard on yourself.