Lethargic Betta

[Amaray]

Hi! My betta was acting weird when I came home Thursday night. He was hiding and laying on the bottom, which is fairly normal for him, but it didn’t seem right. So I fed him and then kept the lights off. Yesterday, he was breathing hard and had clamped fins so I moved him to a plastic container to float in his tank until I could figure out what was wrong and treat him.Today (Saturday) I woke up and checked on him. There are what seems like a million tiny white bugs in his tank, not the container he’s in. They don’t look like like worms or anything else I have found online. He has a white spot in his head I don’t recall noticing before and is swimming erratically like he’s itchy. They’re moving on the glass and in the water kind of like fleas would. I read that you can’t see free swimming ick, but I feel like that’s what it is. Does anyone else have an answer to what it might be if that’s not the case?


He has been treated for fin rot and has some nice regrowth, please don’t focus on his fins. They look so much worse since he is clamped up.

 

[FishGuest5123]

How often do you do water changes? What are the water parameters? How large is his tank? I would do a 80% water change and gravel vac his substrate really well. Add aquarium salt at 1 tablespoon per every 5 gallons. Raise his temp just a little and see if the bugs die off. Change his water very day for next 10 days. Do at least 50% change. With each 50% change add 1/2 tablespoon of the aquarium salt back in. I think this will help. Be sure to dissolve the salt before adding to tank or it can burn your fish. Also dechlorinate the water. Keep us posted.

 

[Amaray]

How often do you do water changes? What are the water parameters? How large is his tank? I would do a 80% water change and gravel vac his substrate really well. Add aquarium salt at 1 tablespoon per every 5 gallons. Raise his temp just a little and see if the bugs die off. Change his water very day for next 10 days. Do at least 50% change. With each 50% change add 1/2 tablespoon of the aquarium salt back in. I think this will help. Be sure to dissolve the salt before adding to tank or it can burn your fish. Also dechlorinate the water. Keep us posted.

I do 50-70% every Sunday. He’s in a 9ish gallon. I have video that may be helpful in identifying, but I’m not sure how to share those. In my panic I added an ick treatment since my fish is not currently in that tank, I didn’t think it would be harmful. I raised the temp from 82 to 86. I have plenty of back up cycled filter material so I wasn’t worried about that either. He has had issues with other things before so I’m wary about giving him medication, but he’s acting so weird.

 

[Amaray]

How often do you do water changes? What are the water parameters? How large is his tank? I would do a 80% water change and gravel vac his substrate really well. Add aquarium salt at 1 tablespoon per every 5 gallons. Raise his temp just a little and see if the bugs die off. Change his water very day for next 10 days. Do at least 50% change. With each 50% change add 1/2 tablespoon of the aquarium salt back in. I think this will help. Be sure to dissolve the salt before adding to tank or it can burn your fish. Also dechlorinate the water. Keep us posted.

just tested the parameters. Ph is 7.8 ammonia is 0 nitrite is 0 and nitrate is 5.

 

[Amaray]

He passed away while I was at work this afternoon.

 

[FishGuest5123]

He passed away while I was at work this afternoon.

I’m so sorry.