Betta with dropsy - changing medication?

[mimi9000]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to care for my daughter's betta who I believe has dropsy (very swollen stomach, pinecone scales). Symptoms started about a week ago. At first I thought it was constipation but after fasting for 2 days, the fish's stomach got even larger.

I tried API General Cure for 1 day but then the owner of a LFS suggested Betta Revive. I ran a carbon filter for 24 hrs to remove the General Cure, then made the switch. I have used 4 doses of Betta Revive (over 5 days) but haven't seen any improvement.

I also bought some Kanaplex in case the Revive didn't work and I'm thinking about switching medications.

Should I make the switch now or continue with the Betta Revive a bit longer? (Package says discontinue if no improvement after 7 days).

If I do make the switch, what is the procedure -- should I do a 100% water change first? Do I need to wait X number of days to give the fish a rest before adding new meds?

I put the Revive in the main tank which perhaps wasn't the best idea, but I didn't want to stress the fish out even more by using a hospital tank.

More info:

- 5 gallon tank, heated to 79-80 degrees
- Cycled since Mar 2013 (betta was purchased from Petsmart then)
- Haven't checked water since the Revive went in, but when betta became symptomatic it was ammonia 0 to .25. Nitrites 0, Nitrates 20. PH 7.6.
- Fluval 20 HOB filter
- 1 betta in tank, 1 moss ball, 1 anubias plant, Indian almond leaf
- I usually change water 2x/week. 1-2 gallons at a time. Seachem Prime conditioner. LFS owner suggested Hikari Ultimate which I've also tried.

- Before getting sick, betta would eat 2-4 Omega One betta buffet pellets per day. Now he spits them out and will eat only frozen brine shrimp.

- A week ago I also started adding epsom salt to the tank. 1 tsp/gallon. Am now bumping that up gradually to 3 tsp/gallon.

I know that dropsy is always fatal but this is my daughter's first pet and I want to do anything I can to help him.

Any advice is appreciated -- thank you!

 

[Fishfur]

The sad fact is that you are only prolonging this fish's suffering. Dropsy is incurable and he will at some point stop eating and just fade away. He might also pop his eyes, as the internal pressure builds, the eyes may pop as well as the fins sticking out. Fish, like most animals, try to hide it when they are sick. Being sick means being vulnerable, so hiding it is a simple survival instinct. This is why some sick creatures continue to eat and behave nearly normally until not long before they die.

If it were my fish, [having had four fish, all danios, with dropsy,] I would euthanize it. Clove oil is very humane and not very costly, most drug stores and health food stores have pure clove oil. Instructions are here, and on line. It's just an overdose of anesthetic and I think it's the least painful and distressing method available for fish.

It's sad and upsetting, but children need to learn about death sometime too. I recall when our first cat vanished, my parents lied to my sister and myself, telling us he had run away. In fact, they'd found the poor guy trying to crawl home after being hit by a car, and he died. They buried him in the garden and didn't tell us, thinking it would be too upsetting.

It would have been upsetting, but less so, I think, than all the wondering we did about where he went and why he went. My sister was about five at the time and we both spent days calling for the cat, walking all over the neighbourhood searching for him. I really wish they'd told us the truth. But I guess parents can only do as they think best at the time.

Sorry you are having to deal with this, I know it's not easy.