Hugely round belly on my betta

[doctawife]

So my betta is acting fine, does not have pine cone fins (i.e. no dropsy), and has not changed colors/developed spots. He does, however, have a protuberant belly. His belly clearly bulges outward like a pregnant woman's.

Problem - Jorge is a he.

I'm treating the tank with a broad spectrum antibiotic, did a water change just prior to treating and I've held his food.

What else should I do? What's going on with my fish?

 

[Phooka]

How much and how often are you feeding him? Also, what do you feed him?

 

[revfred]

Agree with Phooka. Bettas can be real "pigs". The also have a tendency to get constipated. Try not feeding him for a day or two.

 

[ashleigh]

his scales are normal right? try feeding him a peeled pea, I've heard that works.

 

[doctawife]

I usually feed him about once or twice a day, about two to four betta pellets per feed.

His scales are normal. He does NOT have dropsy. I've seen that before, and this isn't it.

Eh. I read elsewhere that peas are not a good thing to feed to bettas. Opinions?

 

[ashleigh]

I figured you knew to check for dropsy but you know, I wanted to ask just in case. Here's what I am thinking on the peas- I have never tried this, so of course don't take my word for this, see what others say, but I think it would be a challenge to get him to accept the pea, but I don't think it woudl harm him. I think the danger in feeding bettas vegetable matter is when it is offered as a staple- since they need primarily animal protein not vegetable.

 

[Iggy]

doctawife,

I would cut back down to 1 feeding per day, about 3 pellets only (hakari bio-gold right?)

Again, skip 1 day a week for adult bettas, like the water change day. A lot of these pellet foods are quite dense and swell up enormously in water, which often causes the swollen belly. Your betta will be more active on a slightly leaner diet.

I am glad its not dropsy

REea - none of the breeders I know ever endorsed using skinned peas. I am not sure the origins of this remedy, but it certainly does not apply to Betta Splendins.

 

[ashleigh]

I'm sure the origins are just feeding fiber to clear the blockage. Do you think that breeders don't endorse it becasue it woudl actually be harmful or because bettas woudl be unlikely to eat a pea?

 

[ecotank]

Definately cut back on feeding, no more than 3 pellets a day. Betta's will overeat if given the chance, and their stomachs aren't very big, so you will certainly notice a swollen belly after a feast.

 

[Iggy]

Originally posted by ashleigh
I'm sure the origins are just feeding fiber to clear the blockage. Do you think that breeders don't endorse it because it would actually be harmful or because bettas would be unlikely to eat a pea?

If I remember properly, peas are cures for goldfish with swim-bladder issues originally, same with the 'salt' cures floating around out there, mostly apply to goldies.

Bettas often get bunched-in with goldfish for cures, which is unfortunate because (as I am sure you know) goldies are herbivores, bettas are carnivores.

That said, there is no veterinarian evidence a pea should ever by fed to a betta for any reason. Betta’s tummies are roughly the size of their eye! So, even a small pea, or half of one makes no sense to feed to a betta.

Give the betta a few days without food, it will NOT hurt him. He can go for a full week (if he is healthy) without food and be just fine.

 

[ashleigh]

I knew he wouldn't eat they whole thing! that's so odd- I don't keep goldfish, so I know little of them aside from the size of tank they need (which circles back to why I don't have goldfish) I wonder why people would lump them in the same group? the only connection I can see is that they are both mistakenly put in bowls. Anyway, sorry for the mistake- I had seen the recommendation elsewhere and assumed that a bit of vegetable material might help with the bloat-

 

[Iggy]

Ah, more fiber in the diet eh? Betta pellets are pretty packed with protein, especially Hakari Bio-Gold.

I use Betta Bits instead of Bio-Gold, mostly because the pellets are smaller and tend to swell-up less in water. When people over-feed with bio-gold, you really notice it.

Oh, one more thing doctawife... is the 'poop' fairly solid and brownish OR is it stringy (thin) and white or clearish? Some local betta breeders believe there is a 'betta' virus that affects a betta's digestive track. The symptoms are: swollen belly with stringy/whiteish feces. Bettas with this 'virus' tend to live much shorter lives and are typically infertile, which is why breeders have taken notice.

There is some controversy about the 'betta virus', some disclaim it, some swear it is true. I have seen the symptoms first hand with another breeder, who has lost 95% of her breeding stock to it.

Its a little easier for breeders to spot stringy poop, because we typically keep bare-bottom tanks (or jars) so we can spot it easier than gravel tanks.

Regardless, the best course of action I recommend in this case is to (QT them first if not already done) go a few days without food, then feed them at 1/2 the rate before, with a weekly planned 'skip' day.

I sold a lot of my bettas to store owners, who don't feed them on Sunday (not open) and the bettas are going just great!

 

[Velvet AciD]

I would say rather than feeding it pellets, you should try a good ole diet of bloodworms mixed in between the pellets. I don't know how lean insect larvae is but it might be better than the things that swell up.

 

[ashleigh]

Iggy do you feed pellets? What is your opinion on them? This will sound stupid- but do you think the vegetable meal in the pellets could have something to do with the bloat not just the quantity of pellets fed? Does that make sense? I've been a bit sleepy lately and I'm afraid my language skills are suffereing.

 

[Iggy]

Some pellets list 'Fish Meal' as the first, others list 'wheat meal'. By far, fish meal is better (more protein). Same with flake foods.

See, bettas are low-carb fish They prefer the Atkins diet.

No, I think bloat is more to do with over feeding and swelling pellets, like Hakari Bio-gold, which almost triple in size once they swell up in water.

I use a variety, betta bits as the staple, FD blood worms and Frozen brine shrimp now and then.

I prefer the 'smaller' pellets, unfortunately my brand just tripled the pellet size in their new products, probably to compete with Hakari bio-gold 'marketing'.

Try to find small, floating pellets, with Fish Meal as the first ingredient. Feed once daily, skip a day a week and use some treats now and then for variety.

 

[doctawife]

Huh. Well, it has been two days since my first post, and I haven't fed the poor guy at all. He's still quite active, but his belly is still huge.

I haven't seen him poop yet, but in the past his stool was brown and pretty typical for fish (from my experience, anyway).

I didn't know that Hikari pellets can swell so much. Very unfortunate. I will definitely cut down on his feeding - that is, if I ever see him poop again. I'm not going to feed him anything until I see poop!!!

Thanks.

 

[ashleigh]

How frustrating- I hope he's better soon. So Iggy do you see any problem then with not feeding pellets at all? I do not have a betta right now, but when I do they only get pellets if I am out of town- I feed frozen bloodworms, live black, and sometimes daphnia. Is it the wheat or corn meal that causes the pellets to expand?

 

[Iggy]

doctawife...
Give him a couple more days without food. Keep note of his activity level and body color. If he goes pale, something is definately wrong with him, try a good water change and an antibiotic to treat internal infections. He should be fine for 4 days without food, and if the swelling goes down tomorrow, just feed him 1 pellet per day for the next 4 days and see if his tummy swells up again. Keep us posted!

ashleigh...
I am not sure what ingredient makes Hakari expand, the pellet is already quite large... it just might be the processing method. Again, look for smaller pellets, its easier for them to digest. Try the Hakari for 'fry' (smaller) size, it might be more suitable.

A variety of live, frozen (parasite-free) foods is excellent. Pellets alone are not ideal, but they can form the 'base' of a diet if they are made up with the proper ingredients. The idea is to get a high protein diet, with enough minerals and vitamins to keep their immune systems in top shape.