Sir Lancelot, our beloved betta fish, has not been well. He developed swim bladder disorder about three weeks ago. After his occasional gulps of air, all he can do is sink to the bottom of the tank and crash, ending up on his side. He just sits there, helpless, until it is time to struggle to the surface for another gasp. Sometimes he vainly thrashes.
We gave him antibiotics. He has aquarium salt to make his systems more efficient. He has Stress Coat to buffer his immune system and aid healing. His water is an optimum 78-80 degrees. He has been isolated in a small hanging compartment in the larger aquarium. We haven't seen him eat in three weeks.
Today, when feeding the other fish, Rhian noticed he has developed Dropsy; he is bloated, and all his scales stick out like a pinecone. Very little is known about dropsy. It it a symptom, with debatable causes. Swelling up with fluid. There is no proven cure. There have been extremely few known cases of recovery. He will most likely die in 5-15 days.
I wish I knew whether he's in any pain.
I know he's only a fish, who cost $3.95 at a pet store. I know that many don't survive the pet store, and those who do often go on to be slowly tortured to death by people who don't know how to care for them. He's had a happy life - we have taken far better care of him than the vast majority of betta owners - or fish owners, for that matter.But Lancelot has been a friend. Our first pet. Unlike other fish - idiots, swimming idly and waiting for the next meal - Lancelot was always keen and interested in his surroundings. He was happy as a puppy to see us when we came home from class. We taught him tricks. We love this $3.95 fish.
At a time when I feel little faith, hope, or joy in anything, I really hope our fish doesn't die. If he does, I hope it happens peacefully.
- Out
You said you were using antibiotics. What kind were they? I've
You said you were using antibiotics. What kind were they? I've spoken with our fish department staff, and they said that one non-meds thing you could try is either an aquarium with no salt in it to see if his bloating goes down, or switch to a lighter concentration of epsom salt (magnesium sulphate). This may help reduce the internal pressure caused by the swelling. Epsom Salt is made with magnesium, not sodium. It doesn't pass through the walls of the stomach or gills and will extract water out of the surrounding tissue, into the stomach, where it may be excreted, depending on the level of internal damage that may have already occurred. The trick there is that you'd have to be sure the other stuff you are using does not say that it's incompatible with something that has sulpha in it. If you wish to try it, dosage is 1 teaspoon of Epsom Salt per five gallons of water (or 1/8 per 5 galons depending on what website you look at). If you are working with a smaller tank, measure your amount, divide it up into five equal parts. Add one part per gallon of water that you are working with.
Please keep me posted to let me know how things go.