BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Fish My Betta floats on his side...

Does anyone else out there have a betta that floats on his side? I have two of them in one container that is split by a clear divider. one of them is always fine, the other floats on his side a lot, but continues to survive somehow...Anyone have any suggestions as to how I might be able to save him? or is this normal?

Email me with any responses at jellwood@adelphia.net, I'm not sure if i'll ever remember my way back to these forums...

Jellwood, hope you find your way back here...might want to bookmark it..would make us easier to find! <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

No, bettas floating on their side is not very normal..lol..He most likely has a swim bladder problem. This can be caused by constipation which occurs by overfeeding. The other issue could be that his swim bladder never developed properly because of overfeeding as a fry. In the second case there isn't much you can do to solve the problem, but as long as he seems healthy otherwise I wouldn't worry too much, just keep his water good and clean. It isn't painful, just sort of a handicap.

If he is constipated than the solution would be to stop feeding him for a few days, then offer him some bits of cooked frozen pea..and nothing else until he passes the blockage...also, keeping his water good and clean.

HOpe this helps and that you can come back and let us know how it goes. Thanks for stopping by! <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Ok thanks for your help, I will try not feeding him. He does not get fed on weekends though because he's in my office at work...would it take longer than a weekend for this to happen?

Do you think I should pour some ex-lax in his tank? LOL, it's a handicap! All of the trillions of Bettas out there and I ended up with the "special" one!

Thanks for your help though, and what did you mean by frozen pea?

A "Cooked" frozen pea, as opposed to the canned variety..lol. Make up some frozen peas for dinner tonight...set one aside for your betta...peel the skin off of it and break it up in little bite sized bits and give him a few. Clean out what he doesn't eat, then give him awhile and wait to see if he passes something.

That's good that he fasts over the weekends actually. Fasting is good for them once in awhile, cleans them all out...so...maybe he is just one of those "special" bettas!

Anyway, give the pea a try and see if you see any imporvement over the next week. If he is going to the bathroom normally and is still on his side...that means...He's Special! <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Oh...lol...no ex-lax....just nice clean water and TLC...and...by the way, welcome to the forum Jell!