# Betta hasn't pooped in a week



## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

I don't know what else to do. I did a routine water change and noticed that there was no poop in his gravel. I took him out of his 5 gal and now he is currently in 2 gallons of water with 2t/gal. I've fasted him for about 3 days, but he is still very bloated, and he doesn't seem to be getting any better. I fed him a flake today (and he still has a ravenous appetite) but his stomach got HUGE, just from one flake, and that has never happened before. I've tried flaring him for a little exercise, but he barely flares, and he used to flare at EVERYTHING. Is there anything else I could do to make him poop. All he does is mope around on his plants, he is becoming very lethargic.

And I've also noticed a white dot where the female ovipositer would be, however, im PRETTY sure its a male. I don't know if that is relative to his poop isue or if that is a completely different problem.


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## jaela (Feb 22, 2012)

You can try putting some epsom salt in his tank and see if that helps -- it kind of works as a fish laxative. 

As for the egg spot -- sometimes males have them, it's just more uncommon. Is it possible it's always been there, or is it something that just showed up?


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## Aus (Feb 3, 2012)

Epsom salt for bloat.. take him off the AQ salt, it may be making him worse.

Was he bloated and lethargic _before_ you put him in the salt, or just not visibly pooping? He may not have needed medication at all..


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

sorry guys, I was in such a rush that I guess I forgot to put that he is in epsom salt, not AQ salt. he is in 2gal of water with 2 teaspoons of epsom salt per gallon, and has been since Sunday

And the egg spot is something that just showed up. i first noticed it on Tuesday. and Im sure it hasnt been there his whole life or else I would have been noticed it because i check my fishes all over everyday.


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## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

_Ok, and with that said, what is the normal range for a fish to poop? 1x a week, or 2x a week? if you only see 1 poop in the gravel, and clean the tank weekly, wouldn't yu see more..maybe not, Idk, always wondered what a normal poop cycle is for a fishy??_
_Anyone know this??_


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

When I clean the gravel, I usually see about 10 pieces of poop in a 5 gal, but thats because its all broken up and falling apart. I dont know how many "whole" pieces of poop their should be in a week....hmmm good question =)


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## Kenny G (Jun 9, 2012)

If his scales are nice and flat and smooth, then you may have a constipated betta, and if so, you may want to vary his diet. I would try frozen bloodworms and frozen brine shrimp. Some people recommend feeding betta a cooked pea. There are many articles on the net regarding how to cook it.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

His scales aren't flat and smooth, they are slightly raised around his stomach area


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## iElBeau (Feb 20, 2012)

In your case, I wouldn't feed him a pea until after his bloat is gone away, to help prevent it from happening again. I'll edit this when I'm home with some pea feeding instructions  I would just fast him for the time being though and keep doin what you're doin. Hope he gets better soon!


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## Kenny G (Jun 9, 2012)

In the case of a very mild raised scales it could be dropsy. Some bettas recover. Let's hope it's something else. 

Keep us updated please.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

I don't know what dropsy is, or how to treat it, or the symptoms. And I don't want to feed it a pea because I've heard that it wasn't good for them.


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## zombiegirl (May 24, 2012)

One of the biggest indicators of Dropsy is pineconing - where the scales lift away from the body and the fish resembles a pinecone. From what I understand it happens in the later stages of the illness. I'm not sure how to treat it. There are others here with far more knowledge than I. You should try looking at the sticky in the disease forum. It helps a lot. 

I've heard frozen Daphnia can help with constipation. I'm actually waiting for our LPS to get a shipment in so I can try feeding it to my fish. I have a CT that's going through this right now. He's on day eight with nothing and looking bloated. Same thing as you posted; I fed him a tiny bit of frozen brine shrimp this morning and he blew up like a balloon. I'm on day three of ES and still nothing. I'm getting a little concerned, too. 

I hope the issues clear up with your fish quickly. Keep us posted.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

Well thanks for the help guys, but I still dont have a definite solution to my problem, for that matter, I still dont now what the problem is. Hopefully someone will come along with more ideas or confirmations on this pooping problem.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

Hey guys, still looking for answers over here..............


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

It sounds like your boy is constipated and/or may have a mild bacterial infection. Increase the epsom salt dosage to 3 tsps per gallon and add tannins (Indian Almond Leaf or naturally dried oak leaves) if you have them. If he'll eat, try feeding him a piece of frozen (NOT freeze-dried) brine shrimp.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

Ok, I dont have oak leaves or IAL nearby, so I will have to order them online. I also dont have any brine shrimp, but I can pick them up from my LPS tomorrow. will live brine shrimp work as well as frozen? Also, if he has a bacterial infection, would I need to pick up some AQ salt?


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Live brine shrimp will work well too, just rinse under cold water. If it's a bacterial infection, you'll still want to stick with epsom salt. It helps to leech out the fluid buildup caused by the infection, whereas AQ salt would only increase the swelling.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

How long should he be kept in epsom salt, he has been in it since Sunday. If I continue to keep him in there, will it harm him?


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

You can keep him in epsom salt indefinitely, as long as he needs it. It won't hurt him.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

Alright, thanks. I did a 50% water change and increased the ES to 3t/gal. I did some searching online for IAL and found that all the places that sell them are overseas, and that will take too long to get to my house. There are no oak trees near me, so idk what to do about that. 
and just an update, his fins are clamped now, which is not good. Sheesh, I'm so worried about him...........


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

In a pinch, you can use decaffeinated green tea for tannins. Use pure decaff green tea, no additional flavors or anything like that. It's best to place the bag directly in his tank and steep it until the water changes color, then remove the bag. You can also steep the bag separately and pour the tea into the water but that has been known to cause osmotic shock.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

sheesh, that sounds dangerous....but I guess thats my only option. I will go to the store and pick that up


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Steeping it in tank works better because the tannins are released slowly. Anytime you do something suddenly to the water like dump half a cup of tea in, that's when a fish can get shocked. Gradual is the best way.

Tannins aren't necessary though, if you aren't comfortable using green tea. He'll do just as well in clean, epsom salt water too.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

alright, thanks so much, Ill just keep doing what Im doing and hopefully he will release a load soon.


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## zombiegirl (May 24, 2012)

Any better yet?


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

No, he is still laying around. And I haven't seen any poop as of yet. I surely wish he would get better soon, all this waiting around is wrecking my nerves
Edit: actually, I just looked in his tank, and he pooped!!!! But it's only a little bit, and some of it is green. Any ideas why it's green. It's normally red-brown


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Green? A betta's poop is the color of whatever he's eaten. Has he eaten anything green?


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

No, I dont think so. His food is brown.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Odd. I hope it's not an indicator of something internal, like abscesses.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

gosh, I hope not. If his poop continues to be green, then Ill look into that.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Yeah. Maybe he just metabolized something weird this time. At least he did poop, that's good.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

Yea. I hope that's all. Thanks so much Sakura


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

No problem. If his behavior changes at all or he gets worse (I hope not), you can PM me if you need to.


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## MissFutureVet (Dec 26, 2011)

Ok, great. Thanks for all your help =)


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