Q: CF wrote,
Why is my betta’s stomach so bloated? Is he getting fat?
A: A few things can cause a bettas stomach to bloat. Overfeeding is the most common culprit. Most fish food containers advise you to feed your betta what they can eat in two minutes. Because bettas tend to bloat it’s better to offer him just a small amount of food at a time. A bettas stomach is about as big as one of his eyeballs so feeding about that amount twice per day is safe. For a grown male that equates to about 3 – 4 pellets, large flakes or blood worms or a couple of brine shrimp. Dry foods like Betta pellets, Bio-Gold or freeze-dried bloodworms (not to be confused with frozen) contain less then 10% moisture and swell when introduced to water. A bettas natural diet consists of live insects and insect larvae that contain nearly 90% water. Some bettas have difficulty with the dry foods and will constipate. after eating them. To avoid this potential issue, soak dry foods in a cup of tank water for about 10 minutes before feeding allowing them to swell with water before entering the betta’s digestive track.
Bloating may also be a symptom
Betta in final stages of Dropsy
View Comments (28)
oh my god! i had no idea it was so horrible. i want to cry just looking at this. is there any reaserch going on to prevent or treat this?
I just wanted to add in- whenever I feed our betta flakes he’s great, and when I switch to the pellets (even if soaked) he bloats up. Therefore, for those you having problems- try to switch to flakes only! Works for ours!
I’m not aware of any specific research for fish Dropsy going on at this time but I will certainly post anything new that comes along. It’s a difficult thing to treat because Dropsy itself isn’t a disease. The bloating you see is a symptom, most likely, of the organs failing. This can be caused by any number of things, bacterial, viral, etc. The best way to avoid it is to keep your water clean and your water parameters in their safe and ideal ranges. Check back in a couple of days. I had another reader write in with another severe dropsy case and they provided photos showing the bloating concentrated just in the abdomen, which is also quite common. I will post that story soon along with the photos.
~Christie
wow! we have same the same syptoms with our betta. I feel very bad since there is no cure for him. Is our betta feeling pain?
I recently got a new betta about two months ago. Since I got him, he has had a severe problem with bloating after every feeding. I have tried feeding him different types of betta flakes, soaking them first, and feeding only every couple days, but it still happens. Lately, I have been feeding him small bits of peas which he does not seem to have problems with but is this enough nutrition for him? If anyone has any ideas I would be really appreciative! Thanks!
thats what happens to mine!!
i read that only peas alone hasnt got enough nuutrition for a betta. my fish has been bloated for a couple of months or so. he still acts normal. im going to try feeding him less, soaking his food pellets and i was also told that giving him peas once a week is beneficial.
My betta also has bloated tummy. And I think it's due to feeding him with too dry pellets.
Planning to keep him without food for couple of days and see for any changes.
Do you know anything else which I can do in the meanwhile?
Pls advice.
Thank you.
you could try to soak his pellets before you give them to him. they get bigger in water so you might find you don"t have to feed him as much. he could also just be constipated and if he is, try peas.
I am sad to hear that my Fred will soon die. In light of that, I did aspirate his abdomen with a diabetic syringe which gave him much relief. I pulled 2.5cc out of him and it was yellowish and cloudy. He seemed to be much more comfy and is not gasping for air or aggitated. He is resting now. I love Fred and can not stand to see him suffer. I have also introduced the bettafix to comfort him. I put in a airstone so that he will not have to fight to breathe. He has been on my desk for a very long time now and sometimes I feel he is my only friend in a such a hard atmosphere! Silly, I know. I take care of strays and feed everything so this is not a surprise to anyone that I was willing to perform surgery to help him. When I die, I hope I come back to an owner like me. At least I know that I will not suffer, be afriad, or go hungry. This site helped me more than you will know. I thank you for this too. I am sure he will succumb to this again, if he makes it over this hurdle. I will be there with him every step of the way to do what I can for him. The WWW, knowledge is power. Thank you so much.
Kat
You are just like me .I'm crying reading your post. My "Hope "has this too and I have done all that you did but the aspiration. I have done it on cats but never a fish and I'm terrified too kill him .:( I'm treating with tetracycline and Ick cure and a little aquarium salt. I feel just miserable and devastated. MY home us full of rescues of all sorts too and I love them all.
I made the mastake of my fish having dropsy, but it was actually the fact that she was pregnant. She looked very fat and it looked like some pictures I saw, but there was a little white tube sticking out of where the poo would come out(sorry if that sounds a little gross)but it meant that she was spawning. So if you have a female beta that seems to have dropsy, make sure you check to see if she's pregnant first.
Question, so I bought a male beta, and he has that white tube sticking out. Is that normal???
A female betta cannot be pregnant. During the dance the female releases the eggs into the bubble nest and the male inseminates said eggs then gaurds them. It isnt like live bearing fish.
Please do your research.
So if she is like that what do you do?
how long does a fish with dropsy tend to live?
Hi everyone. I came after work today and saw that my fish is in the same condition, I thought he has that kind of stomach cause of I didnt feed him one day. But apparently its not… im going to take my pet to the pet store and ask if anyone knows what to do, I HATE THE FACT THAT IT COULD DIE. He is so beautiful…
Ani,
Try piercing your Betta’s belly with a sowing needle and gently squeeze its belly a bit. I did it to mine and by the next day he was back to normal and has been happy ever since! I can’t say what was officially wrong, but death seemed inevitable so I felt like I had nothing to lose. It also works on cows!
If my "Hope" gets worse I will be desperate enough too try that .He fought off Popeye months ago and is now sick again. I have 8 Beta's all in separate 1.5 too 3 gallon tanks with filters and bubbles and clean water everyweek 75 %change and once a month complete change. When I read that this was due too poor quality I felt sick and responsible andv still do. All the other 7 are fine.