What's wrong with my Betta fish?

Question

I have 3 bettas in a 10 gallon tank with dividers. One day I decided to take the filter from the middle divider and put it in one of the other side. My betta was fine before but since i put the filter in his side, he's been depressed, not moving and his face is getting white. Should I put the filter back in his side? What's wrong with him. This happened before and the previous betta died. What should I do?

Need help asap.

Can I do anything to save him?

And his belly is bigger than before.

He also likes to lay at the bottom of rocks and is sometimes sideways. And where can I get this anti-bacteria medicine?

Answer 1

Betta diseases
http://www.bettatalk.com/betta_diseases.htm
Betta sanitation
http://www.bettatalk.com/sanitization.htm
General
http://www.bettatalk.com

Answer 2

First off, dividers are horrible for bettas, as it keeps them constantly flaring and they never get rest. It stresses them out alot and can kill them. That may be the problem. Put the filter back the way you had it too, if you had no problems before. It also may be losing oxygen, since filters drop air bubbles into the tank. Get some oxygen to those fish! And get separate filtered tanks for them ASAP!

As for the big belly, it is either dropsy (a disease) or constipation. If the scales are sticking out on his belly, it's dropsy and you need meds fast! Just tell someone at the pet store and they'll help you. If it is constipation, feed the fish a few peas, chopped in half. leave them in there and he will nibble on it and the belly will get smaller. Good luck!

Answer 3

Well, if the face is turning white than the betta is extremely stressed. Test out the water and see if there is something in that section of the tank that is causing all of these problems. If nothing else, move the filter back to its original location. Perhaps the filter was like a hiding place for the betta and now without it, it feels alone in the "open".

Answer 4

I agree that dividers are not the best for bettas. It's probably best to keep them in separate tanks where you can let them flare at each other for short periods (so they don't get lonely or depressed) but then can keep them separate the rest of the time so they aren't overly stressed. Moving the filter may have been the once extra stress to your fish that made him susceptible to some sort of infection. I would move your fish into a separate "sick tank" while he is ill. That way you lower his level of stimuli and prevent the infection from spreading to your other fish. I would leave out decorations and gravel in the sick tank to make it easier to keep clean. A two gallon tank is good, as most meds can be dosed to this volume; it is also a good size to manage as you probably will have to do more frequent water changes (or at least partial changes) during your fish's treatment.

Most meds can be found at your local pet store. Melafix is NOT strong enough for a serious infection. Tetracycline is a good broad spectrum antibiotic that may be helpful. Someone recommended using bettatalk.com as a reference; this is good site. I'll list some others that may be helpful, too. Use the websites as a guide. They have pictures and descriptions to help you determine your fish's illness and tell you what medications to try. I personally have not found the pet store people very helpful (especially at big chains like Petco or PetSmart), but maybe they would be more knowledgeable at a local fish store. Also, if you find Maroxy or Maroxy 2 in your pet store, the manufacturer has a great guide in the package that may help you pick a medicine. Whatever medicine you use, be sure to follow instructions and complete any course of medicine. Stopping too soon may make your fish susceptible to bacterial resistance and relapse.

Go ahead and try the constipation treatments in addition to researching about meds. It can't hurt, and maybe it's the problem, as constipation can cause your fish's belly to swell and affect his swimming. Feeding your betta the inside of a pea is supposed to be helpful or letting him fast for one day so that he can clean himself out. Be sure never to overfeed your fish. Some breeders recommend one day of fasting every week to prevent constipation from happening.

Good luck!

Answer 5

Before doing these things, quarantine your sick betta in his own tank/bowl using water and gravel from the tank with the dividers.

Do three things:
1. Get medicine drops from petco/petsmart/any fish store/any pet store in the fish aisle. Get a product called Malefix. It comes in a blueish-purple bottle and is a general antibiotic cure all for fish.

2. Add aquarium salt to the water. Even though bettas are freshwater fish, salt helps sick fish, especially tropical fish like bettas. Add 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt per 5 gallons of water. Buy this where you buy the malefix. NOT TABLE SALT

3. Give him warm water. Like salt, it helps sick tropical fish. Just add luke warm tap water around 85 degrees (Conditioned/dechlorinated as always)

Hope your betta gets better!

PS. Dividers are sooo bad for bettas. Causes so much stress and sickness. D=

Answer 6

Before doing these things, quarantine your sick betta in his own tank/bowl using water and gravel from the tank with the dividers.

Do three things:
1. Get medicine drops from petco/petsmart/any fish store/any pet store in the fish aisle. Get a product called Malefix. It comes in a blueish-purple bottle and is a general antibiotic cure all for fish.

2. Add aquarium salt to the water. Even though bettas are freshwater fish, salt helps sick fish, especially tropical fish like bettas. Add 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt per 5 gallons of water. Buy this where you buy the malefix. NOT TABLE SALT

3. Give him warm water. Like salt, it helps sick tropical fish. Just add luke warm tap water around 85 degrees (Conditioned/dechlorinated as always)

Hope your betta gets better!

Answer 7

If your fish has difficulty rising to the surface ("sinker"), difficulty swimming to the bottom ("floater"), swims on its’ side or swims in the nose down vertical position it might have SBD. Try giving it Anti- Bacterial food or an antibiotic like KanaPlex or Maracyn-Two in the water, in a hospital tank.