Betta with SBD - I think

[philscfc]

Hello All,
I have read through some of the discussions on here reference SBD for Betta's and have a couple of questions if you dont mind. Quick background
I've had a betta for about a year, the heater i had in the tank was pretty poor 25W heater in a 19L fluval chi tank (please dont slate me for the tank, i was very new to this and now know its not the best of tanks). I have changed the heater in the last week to a 50w heater and now the water is up to 78deg. My betta is still struggling to swim, he tends to stay at the top of the tank in the corner next to the heater. He will eat Hikari pellets and seems to love them. Last weekend i put him into a smaller tank and tried the Pea treatment after fasting for 3 days but he wasnt interested in them. I have seen his feces and they tend to be faily pale or whitish. I am now giving regular water changes (daily and about 10%)
My questions are how long does it take to recover from SBD and is there anything else i can do in the mean time to aid his recovery?
Thanks in advance
Phil

 

[absolutangel04]

First of all, lets make sure it is indeed a swim bladder issue and not something else.
What are your tank parameters? Can you describe the exact behavior?
If it is swim bladder troubles, the best solution is clean water and fasting/peas. Since you are on top of that, the next step that sometimes helps is a salt bath. However, since you said he is pooping, I don't know that constipation is the issue. White poop can also mean internal parasites.

 

[philscfc]

Hi, Thanks for replying.

OK, here goes, having only just found this site and after extensive reading, a test kit is now on its way so at the moment i dont have the results. (hangs head in shame for not finding this site and the vast amount of experience earlier, water test kit would have been purchased long ago). Lesson learned there.

He has a slight S type kink in his body, struggles to swim around corners or change direction. When still he will float on his side at varying angles, at his worst he is completely on his side or almost upside down. He will hide by the heater making a spit bubble nest, doesnt really come over to me when i approach the tank much. When doing the PWC's he then becomes more active. As i said last week he was fasted given a pea and he did poo over the next 2 days. I havent seen him pooh for the last 3 or 4 days and have started to fast him again. I haved changed his food from Betta flakes (yeah i know) to the Hikari betta pellets and he loves those, but like i said he has not improved so the fasting has begun again. I will monitor over the next few days and will try the pea treatment again & even try the salt bath.
Since putting the new heater in the tank the temp is now 78F but the water has gone slightly milky, I am doing PWC's every day to try and bring the water back to totally clear and clean. Hopefully that will happen soon. There is also a pitbull plec in the tank and lately he seems to have become less active and doesnt clean the algae from the sides of the tank. Im not sure if the less active part is me becoming paranoid due to the illness of the betta. The plec is eating though as he has eaten a plec pellet. He seems to be in the same area of the tank and isnt digging and moving the gravel as much as he used to.

Await your replies, Many thanks in advance for any advice. Im struggling to improve his condition.

 

[absolutangel04]

OK, thanks for the additional info. I agree that it definitely sounds like swim bladder troubles. Bettas are predisposed to swim bladder troubles because of their genetics and the conditions they are often kept in at stores (but of course, your betta is better off on that front because he is in a nice tank). Sometimes the swim bladder is physically too short. If that is the case, there really isn't anything you can do. You already know about dietary swim bladder problems and are working on that, so thats good. The other reason can be a bacterial infection that causes the swim bladder to swell, though that is a much rarer cause than the other 2.
I suggest continuing your current course of treatment and hoping for the best. Remember when feeding him, a betta's stomach is only about as big as his eye. Keep that in mind to avoid over feeding. Also, I have had issues with my bettas bloating after stealing algae wafers from my bottom feeders.
Do a big (at least 50% water change and see if it makes a difference in the behavior of the pitbull pleco. Sorry this is a bit off topic but a 19 liter tank isn't really a good home for a pitbull pleco. He would benefit from a bit more space.
Cloudy water is a common issue in new tanks and is often caused by little bacteria blooms. It isn't harmful, just ugly. It should clear up in time.

 

[philscfc]

Thanks very much for you advice and assistance. I know that now about the plec. Store said it would be ok. Of course to get my money. I wish I knew about this site earlier. I am planning on a bigger tank very soon so I'm hoping he won't be in there for too much longer.
Thanks again.
Fingers crossed the betta gets better quickly.

 

[absolutangel04]

Sounds good. Let me know how it goes and definitely tell me if it gets better or worse. If the peas don't work, I have also heard of epsom salt baths helping constipated bettas, but I have never tried it myself.

 

[philscfc]

Ok test results are in
Ph - 7.6
Ammonia - 0.25ppm
No2 - 2ppm
No3 - 10ppm

The betta is much perkier today swimming around the tank more. Still listing on one side occasionally. Not sure if to feed him yet or not. He's looking for food & very inquisitive. Much more himself. Done pwc's last 2 days. Water readings are from 15 mins ago. Are they good/bad/ok? Need a little help as I'm no scientist.

Thanks in advance.

Phil

 

[absolutangel04]

Ok, the ammonia and nitrite (NO2) should be 0 and the nitrate (NO3) should be kept under 20ppm. .25 ammo is fine, but the nitrite is a bit high. What kind of test kit are you using?

 

[philscfc]

Hi
The api master test kit that most people on here recommend.

 

[absolutangel04]

Ok, thats good. I like that kit.
How large of pwc are you doing? I am honestly a bit baffled as to how your nitrite is so high in a tank that is a year old so I am trying to help you figure that part out too.
Also, when was the last time he ate? I would hold off feeding him for now probably or just try another pea.

 

[philscfc]

I do about 2litres when I do a pwc. Equates to about 10%. I dont know either, but will check again next week to see units improved. Should I continue with daily pwc's to bring it down? I will research the issue later tonight to see what I'm doing wrong.

 

[absolutangel04]

I suggest you try doing a larger pwc, like 50% for a few days and see if you can get the nitrite down.

 

[philscfc]

Ok many thanks for your help. Will give it a try and see what happens.

 

[philscfc]

Ok there is an update. He is pooing, but its not a long stringy normal poo, it has come out in a ball & looks like a prisoners' ball & chain hanging from him. Is this just the result of constipation? Looks like it might have been painful.

 

[absolutangel04]

It does sound like the result of constipation to me. Poop checking is not an exact science, but that sounds like a good sign. Is the betta doing any better, or is it still the same?

 

[philscfc]

He's much better thank you. Swimming all over the tank. Very interactive. Happy to eat so giving small helpings only once a day. Only thing he's not doing again yet is reacting to the mirror. Water is very clean. Hopefully the readings will be better when I test it on Friday. Apart from that he's almost back to his old self.

 

[absolutangel04]

That is fantastic! I am very glad to hear its clearing up.