Possible Gill Disease in my Betta!?

Question

Hi everyone, my baby is staying at the surface in a corner constantly. When he goes to the bottom of his tank he quickly comes up for a breath.

I lowered his water level so that he can rest on his house and reach the surface.

It appears his right gill opens more than the left, he's burping bubbles quite a bit as well.

Does this sound like Gill Disease to any of you? If so, what can I treat him with? I have Tetracycline, Maracyn 1 & 2, and Triple Sulfa in my fish medicine cabinet.

Please help!

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

This actually sounds more like a problem with his swim bladder. Lowering the water level was a good idea.

You might try doing a partial water change - if there is a buildup of ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate. this can also be the result of his diet - if you give him dry pellets (or flakes), soak them in some tank water a little before you feed him. They also seem to get this if they're fed a lot of brine shrimp. It would be better to reduce this in the diet (if you use them) in favor of bloodworms or daphnia.

I would recommend just a water change to start (and keep the water level low), followed by a day of fasting (or give him a piece of a cooked pea about the size of his regular food - the fiber may help him pass any food in his digestive tract if there's air or gasses trapped in there as well).

If it doesn't resolve on 2-3 days, assume the cause is a bacterial infection of the swim bladder and treat with the Maracyn 2.

Answer 2

at the starting up, a a million/2 gallon tank isn't adequate for any type of fish. Bettas choose a minimum of a 5 gallon tank with a heater set to seventy 8 degrees fahrenheit and a comfortable clear out. Did you regulate 50% or more effective of the water? in case you probably did, there you pass. EDIT: also, you pick betta water conditioner to position in the water, which makes the water safer for bettas and helps them to augment their slime coats.