Internal Parasites and Swim Bladder Disorder in Betta Fish

CM wrote

I have a one year old red VT betta, Baron. He was such an active guy, great personality, flared nearly all night long (would only flare at night with the room lights off and his tank light on), and ate like a champ.About six weeks ago, he began to have some grayish patches on his sides, like a saddle. I thought he had fungus and I treated him with Maracyn II first, along with Maracyn. No better. I then tried Fungus Clear and he seemed to clear up. Throughout all that, he never lost his spunk or his appetite.

Then I noticed that he was not pooping much. I have two bettas and religiously siphon out waste every morning with a turkey baster. He didn’t seem any worse for the wear and when he did poop, the poops were huge. I cut back on his food. (He eats Spectrum Thera A Color enhancing with Garlic, Betta Bites, an occasional blood worm) The routine was two pieces in the morning and two to three pieces at night, varying what I would feed.

About three weeks ago, when the lights went out, he did not flare. He seemed less active every day. He now definitely has Swim Bladder. It breaks my heart to see him like this!? He is nearly always on his side, at the top, looking very depressed. I can arouse him and he will swim a little bit, but I can definitely tell it’s a buoyancy issue. His swim bladder does look a little puffy to me, maybe more so on the right side. He seems very gassy and burps out big bubbles, usually after one of these “swim abouts”, which last about a minute. He is still eating, but not without me hand feeding him basically. I tried fasting, peas, everything! He is now pooping everyday but the poop looks a little mucousy. I drove an hour away to get him live brine shrimp but it’s hard for him to get them because they go right to the bottom and he cannot swim more than half way down his tank.

He lives in an Explorer II tank, with filtration and a heater. Temp is always 80-84ish. He has one live plant and a cave that he used to love sitting in with his little head poking out of the holes. I check his water parameters like a hawk and about two weeks after this started, found the

ammonia level suddenly high and did a complete water change. I have done two complete water changes since the ammonia issue, and several partials. I always use spring water for changes and aquarium salt with the complete water changes. I have lowered the water level for him so that he is now in about one gallon of water. His red color in the tails is still quite vibrant, but his body may look a little duller. His chin is a little pale.

He is more and more on his side, we have started to call him the flounder. Is there any hope that he will recover. He responds when we come to the tank and talk to him. He still eats and poops, but again not with the voracity he once had. I don’t have a problem hand feeding him. Is there anything else I can try? I just want my little flarin’ Baron back!

What are your thoughts on a product called Betta Revive, or epsom salt baths? Would a light massage along the swim bladder area help to move any gas that would be trapped in there? I am desperate to help my poor baby! I would think if the issue was bacterial or other, he would have been long gone by now. He’s such a little fighter, I can’t give up on him.

I have owned bettas for about eight years; my longest liver was six years old. (RIP Fish Pish). But Baron has certainly been the biggest entertainer I have ever had.Your thoughts and help are most appreciated.

A It sounds like it could be a swim bladder infection, possibly due to an internal parasitic or bacterial infection. There are a few things I should mention first before I get into my theory. A betta’s swim bladder is a gas filled sack located near the fish’s tail. It is normal for it to protrude to some degree. Swim bladders are usually visible in betta fish. I definitely DO NOT recommend attempting to massage gas from the swim bladder. Its reason for existing is to contain gases that help the fish swim upright. Attempting to alter the function of the swim bladder could cause irreversible harm.

You mentioned that your betta’s waste has changed and appears to be more mucus-like. This could signal an infection due to parasites or bacteria. Keep in mind that bettas have a good immune system able to fight off many diseases. So having an infection wouldn’t necessarily kill him. He may just be trying to fight it off. Again, this makes me wonder if he has parasites rather than bacteria. (I really can’t be sure). My other theory is that you may be over-salting your water when you do water changes, which could affect your betta’s ability to control his buoyancy through osmosis.

Salt is not necessary to add to your aquarium water. Some people add it when there is ammonia or

nitrite present to help the fish breathe easier but typically it isn’t necessary. It is important to note that salt does not evaporate. The only way to remove it is to remove the water itself. It is a common mistake for fish keepers to add a full dose of salt to their aquarium at each partial water change. For example; say on day 1 you dose your 10 gallon aquarium with 1 tablespoon of salt; on day 7 you do a 50% water change. You should only then dose with ½ tablespoon of salt. If you do the full dose again you will have 1.5 tablespoons of salt which is too much. Repeating this mistake over time could lead to buoyancy and other health problems in your betta fish. This isn’t to say that you are dosing incorrectly. I’m just putting it out there as a possibility.

I’ve never used Betta Revive but from what I can see the active ingredients are salt, Methylene Blue and Malachite Green. All these ingredients are effective against fungus and external parasites. It is less effective on internal bacterial infections and internal parasites. I’m not sure that this will help. Epsom salt baths are effective to reduce swelling in fish with dropsy due to kidney failure. Unless your betta is severely swollen, I don’t think it will help at this time.

There is no way to say for sure what is causing the swim bladder problems in your betta. You may have luck trying Jungle’s Parasite Clear, which I know does treat internal parasites. It’s also possible that the problem is bacterial or due to physical injury to the swim bladder, in which case hand feeding Baron may be the only option. It may take a little time to figure out what is causing the problem with your betta.