Help With Betta, Major Swelling

[crazy_cat]

Waldo is very sick! A week ago I noticed he had swelling right under his gills on his stomach so we treated him for a bacterial infection since that is the only thing we could find that described the swelling he had. Now he has another lump on his right side by the end of his body. His body is starting to curve in an S shape and the swelling is getting bigger. He acts the same just looks horrible! Any idea what this is or what I can put in the tank to help him? We treated with Maracyn and I have now started putting in Melafix trying to find something to help him. The swelled areas are just getting bigger and bigger.

Thanks

 

[revfred]

Do the scales stand out from the body ... the term is "pineconing". If that is the case then he is likely to have "dropsy". Personally, I know no cure for this. I've had several casualties over the years from this. According to my local SE Asian betta breeder, there is no known cause of this. But I have noticed that the fancier bettas seem more prone to dropsy . . . perhaps because of the inbreeding. Those bettas that I have that are of the "wild" variety seem to do better. Of course the finnage is less "splendid".

 

[crazy_cat]

Yes they stick out like a pine cone and the swelling is getting worse. It is like he is fighting to stay level now.

 

[revfred]

I'm afraid to be the bearer of bad news, but you will likely lose Waldo. You can keep him comfortable. Keep the light in the tank subdued, and offer him food. But eventually you will most likely lose him.

 

[Iggy]

I agree, it sounds a lot like dropsy. Dropsy is usually some sort of failure of the internal organs (like kidney) that makes the fish swell up. Not many fish survive, I have lost three myself to dropsy. Kanacyn may work, if caught really, really early stages, but not always.

You have a few options.

1. Give it time and wait it out, but don't overmedicate, it will not heal the organs by adding more medicines. He may hold on for a week or longer that way, but not likely to get better.

2. The other option is to put Waldo in the deep freezer in a small cup with just enough water to cover him. He will eventually pass out and die from the cold. Its not fun to put a fish down that is suffering, and I would not blame you if decided not to... but if he keeps swelling, its only going to get worse.

FYI, both Dwarf Gourami and betta's seem susceptable to dropsy for some unknown reason. It is not always a water quality issue, and it seems no one is really sure what brings it on.

Sorry

 

[crazy_cat]

Thanks for all the help! It is killing me watching him but I just don't know if I can freeze him. He is such a cool fish! He still swims around and gets excited to see me and interacts but the swelling is getting worse and I just hate to see him suffer. I guess at some point he won't be able to swim and that will be horrible as he needs to go get air. Guess I need to do what is best for him. He has been this way around 1 1/2 weeks now and the swelling has gotten worse over that time.