My Betta Died.

[Devynn]

I just had my first Betta fish, Olivier, die on Friday. He had been "sick" for about a month, but I was completely clueless on what to do. I assumed that he was sick because he was just old. Little did I know it was normal for a Betta fish to live 2 years.

I already know of several reasons he could have gotten sick, all my fault for not taking good enough care of him.

Here are the conditions Olivier lived in

I had him in a bowl, I think it is a three gallon. It had rocks on the bottom and a treasure chest with two hiding places in it. He was the only fish in it, and I did a full water change once a week. I did not have a heater, and after getting a thermometer after he died I realized the water was a bit cold for a betta fish. It was 19°C. =\ I fed him once a day, if I fed him more than that he would spend all day in the treasure chest not moving. Feeding him 4 - 5 pellets a day seemed like the perfect amount for him because he was happy.

When he got sick his belly started to bloat some. It started out small but got progressively big for about a month until he died. When it first popped up, it didn't seem to bother him. He was as active as ever. As it got bigger he got less and less active, just hanging out on the rocks up against the glass in a very specific spot. He would only move when I put food in the bowl or to go up and get air. He usually ate when I fed him. Right before he died, I noticed he would struggle to get to the top.

When I found him dead on Friday, his whole body, which was usually a dark blue, was brown from the inside out, and his stomach was huge and a light brown colour. There wasn't any blue left on the his stomach. And his eyes were kind of...shiny? They were white, when usually they are black and seemed to shine when I took his dead body out of the water.

I want to know why he died so I can prevent killing the new Betta fish, Rousel, I have. (I have Rousel in a heated tank[26° - 28°] and do daily 25% water changes. I take better care of him already.)

Was this perhaps "dropsy" that I've read about. It kind of fits Olivier, but he didn't have the loss of appetite and his stomach didn't swell that big. Also, I haven't read anywhere that a fish with dropsy turned brown from the inside-out.

Thanks for help in advance, and sorry if my post seems like rambling non-sense. =]

 

[azulfire24]

no idea post in emergency section and ask for wilder, shed know.

 

[LauraFrog]

Yes, this was dropsy. The brown colour sometimes happens in serious cases if the liver bursts. This is why he died. The white eyes just mean he was dead for a few hours before you found him.

How big is the new tank? The length of time between water changes on an unfiltered tank depends on how big it is. With mine, which are 1.8 gallon, I do complete water changes twice a week and that's using ammo-lock to remove all of the ammonia from the water. Without the ammo-lock I would need to change all the water every second or third day.

 

[Athena]

Sorry to hear about Olivier. At least you realise your mistakes and are trying to improve on the way you keep your next Betta.

Is Rousel in a filtered tank? If not, then, yes, continue with small water changes regularly.

Also, it helps keep them in tip-top condition if you give them a varied diet. They love live foods now and then (I usually treat mine once a week if I can get hold of any live baby brine shrimp from my LFS). Or try some frozen foods - bloodworm, daphnia etc. They are not expensive to buy. Don't feed bloodworm every day, though, as it makes the fish constipated. Just a couple of times a week, a little pinch of bloodworms or some daphnia will go down a treat. Once a week I give my Bettas a little bit of squashed pea to help their digestion.

Also, to avoid stressing Rousel every time you do a water change, try to get the clean water at the same temp as the tank water before adding it to the tank. Sudden changes in water temp can stress a fish and lower their immune system.

Good luck!

Athena

 

[Devynn]

Yes, this was dropsy. The brown colour sometimes happens in serious cases if the liver bursts. This is why he died. The white eyes just mean he was dead for a few hours before you found him.

That makes sense. Thanks!

How big is the new tank? The length of time between water changes on an unfiltered tank depends on how big it is. With mine, which are 1.8 gallon, I do complete water changes twice a week and that's using ammo-lock to remove all of the ammonia from the water. Without the ammo-lock I would need to change all the water every second or third day.

I think it's a 3-gallon. But I'm not entirely sure, and I just kept the old tank but cleaned it out really well. I only replaced the rocks and hiding place.
I'll keep up with my daily water changes. The heater I got to go under the rocks can break if I move it too much, so often full water changes are kind of out.

Is Rousel in a filtered tank? If not, then, yes, continue with small water changes regularly.

Also, it helps keep them in tip-top condition if you give them a varied diet. They love live foods now and then (I usually treat mine once a week if I can get hold of any live baby brine shrimp from my LFS). Or try some frozen foods - bloodworm, daphnia etc. They are not expensive to buy. Don't feed bloodworm every day, though, as it makes the fish constipated. Just a couple of times a week, a little pinch of bloodworms or some daphnia will go down a treat. Once a week I give my Bettas a little bit of squashed pea to help their digestion.

Also, to avoid stressing Rousel every time you do a water change, try to get the clean water at the same temp as the tank water before adding it to the tank. Sudden changes in water temp can stress a fish and lower their immune system.

Nope. he's not in a filtered tank. Thanks for the advice, I had no idea changing the water temp could hurt him.