My Betta Fish Is Leaning Sideways And Not Looking Well

[Iiraka]

HELP!

I was just sitting in my room today and I noticed that my Betta fish, Tylin, was just hanging out at the top of the tank in the same corner, not moving, and leaning slighlty to the side. I never saw him do that before and freaked out a bit, so I shook the tank gently for like 2 seconds and then he starting swimming around a bit and I relaxed.

But now he's doing it again!! In the same top corner, leaning sideways-ish on the same plant just below the surface. I tried feeding him to entice him to move but he just ignored it.

I'm really worried. He my first fish and I've tried to do everything right. He's been fine these first 4 months I've had him, I got him in a 1.75 gallon tank. He doesn't have a filter but I change his water at least once a week, sometimes more.

Should I be worried? What do I do?

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum Iiraka.
My own guess is that he is bored. My bettas always go into a tank with other calm fish so that they will have something to watch and interact with.

 

[Iiraka]

But what if he just kills them?

 

[ParadiseGuerrero]

Welcome,

you could try adding in a ping pong ball or more decorations and changing around the things you have. If he is just bored then this can entertain them- adding fish to keep him entertained would not work in a tank of your size. You could also try changing his food (eg the brand of flake) for a bit or try feeding him something new like a de-shelled pea as jsut like us fish do tend to get bored eating the samething all the time. If he is really just bored you could try teaching him some tricks.
You may also find that you need to change his water more than once a week as in such a small tank with no filter i can image a fair amount of ammonia builds up which is toxic for fish. Have you tried doing a big water change to see if he perks up?

 

[Iiraka]

His water was changed just three days ago... Do you think changing it again so soon could really make difference? I can definitely get some toys in there or something, I never thought of using a ping pong ball, that's a great idea...

 

[iBall]

I had the same problem with my buddy Maximus. Could be Swim bladder disorder(SBD). If your betta has trouble swimming down to the bottom of the tank than there's no doubt he has SBD. Now before you freak out its not so bad. It happens with over feeding; basically he's constipated and needs a few days to pass the food. So try to fast him for a few days, say 3 days, and if he doesn't come around give him a pea. Yes a pea. Cook a frozen pea, open it up and feed him a little pellet size portion of the soft inside of the pea, discard the outer shell. Then fast him for another 3 days. Afterwards, He should be ok. Just keep a look out for any other strange things. I read some bettas get parasites or bacteria that produce the SBD but if you've been keeping his tank clean, I don't think that's the case.

Good luck and keep us posted, and remember it could take several days so be patient. My Maximus didn't come around for 3 weeks, and some old fart at the local aquarium shop told me it was fatal, Wrong Buster!