What Does My Betta Have?

[krista522]

He has lost is his red color in the front exchanged for a pale brown, his scales are raised, his belly has gotten big and he's rest a lot. He also has a white spot that has diminished a little bit. I have lowered his food to only a couple of flakes every other day to keep down his belly, and I have been doing 40% water changes everyday since I have noticed his illness. He used to share a tank with a female, split of course in half and she died of an unknown cause. She just got very large and died, no loss of color or any white spot she just wouldm't swim. But little Joshua still swims to the top and he also greets me, so his fins are fine.

Water stats are spot on, so is the temp ( i raised it a degree to help him be more comfortable )

What does he have?

 

[Azaeil]

Ok the first symptoms you've described is a clear sign of dropsy - I've lost a betta that I had for four years that way. I call the raised scales a pinecone effect, whether he'll pull out of it really depends, I've heard a couple bettas pull out from this, but most cases don't make it sadly :C

What location is the white spot in?

 

[dipsydoodlenoodle]

I'd say dropsy too.

If he is swolen/bloated and is pineconed (scales sticking out) then it's not looking great.

Dropsy is (don't quote me exactly but it roughly is) organ failure of the kidneys; so they store water in the fishes body (hence he's bloated).

Don't feed him for 3-4 days and in the mean time give him salt baths (use epsom salt) twice a day for no more than 30mins.

Normally once the fish is pineconed then it's not looking good.

I lost a girl to dropsy a few weeks ago; she was fine, no signs of anything and then the following day she was swolen and pineconed slightly. I separated her; a few days later she was swimming around like a new fish (I thought she was going to make it), then 2 days later she was more pineconed than ever and I knew she wouldn't survive the night

 

[keithp]

My betta had those symptoms, but also has red color by her anus and fins, turns out it was a bacterial infection. If it's bacterial there is a good chance the betta can recover with time, mine made a full recovery, I treated her with maracyn 2, a strict diet, and epson salt to draw excess fluids out. It took a month for the swelling to go down, but she looks 100% normal now.

I would try feeding him some frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp, flakes are ok (I use hikari pellets though my betta prefer those) but some variety is needed. If the female was sick like you said he probably got it from her.

Can you post a picture? Perhaps if we see him we can better diagnose his problem.

 

[krista522]

Thanks everyone but sadly when I got home from school today he had passed away He was fine until I switched him over into the side my female had before she died (she got very fat and just died) but I figured that since I have a screen divider whatever she had hadn't got to him or he would have already been sick (she was sick for almost a week before passing) but apparently it hadn't. He was one of my original Betta's and survived the times that I had him with three females in a one gallon bowl without a filter or heater ( I quickly learned the proper way and changed this) He was a trooper, and I am sadly going to have to take a long break from Betta's

R.I.P. Little Joshua, I will never be as close to another fish as I was you.

 

[Azaeil]

:C I'm sorry he passed while you were away, sounds like he was quite a pet and will be remembered for a very long time.

 

[james_fish]

I lost a Honey Gourami to dropsy recently, a deadly and almost incurable disease.

Sorry for your loss, hope you find a good replacement

James.