# How much Epsom salt for one gallon?



## littlegreendog (Nov 22, 2012)

My Betta fish has been bloated for several weeks now. It's not constipation, I don't even know what it is, but I was told to use epsom salt for her. She lives in a one gallon tank by herself.

How much epsom salt should I use?


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## nel3 (May 29, 2011)

you can use up to 3tsp per gallon. does your betta's belly get bloated after eating? my CT are bloaty looking but once they pass the food into the water their bellys look perfectly normal.

can you give more info on the tank setup ie temps, size, behaviour, occupants etc. are there any other signs to hint a disease or sickness?


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## littlegreendog (Nov 22, 2012)

nel3 said:


> you can use up to 3tsp per gallon. does your betta's belly get bloated after eating? my CT are bloaty looking but once they pass the food into the water their bellys look perfectly normal.
> 
> can you give more info on the tank setup ie temps, size, behaviour, occupants etc. are there any other signs to hint a disease or sickness?


Are you sure it's 3 teaspoons per gallon? I read that it was 1/8 teaspoon for five gallons.

She lives in a one gallon tank, no tankmates, and her water is around 65-70 degrees. Her tank is not setup to have a heater, but she has been living fine for around two years in these conditions, this sickness just started randomly.

Normally she is very active, swimming around the tank and eating normally. I noticed her belly began to swell several weaks ago, and at first I thought it was constipation. I started giving her peas but it didn't help, she was pooping but her belly only got bigger. It's the biggest I've seen it now, and instead of her normal personality, she just sits at the bottom of the tank, only coming up for air.

I have put some grains of Epsom salt into her tank for a week now, and they don't seem to be doing anything. I am wondering if I am not putting enough in.


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## Imgarde (Dec 6, 2012)

Could she be full of eggs?


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## littlegreendog (Nov 22, 2012)

...Like I said, she never was with any tankmates, so there is no possible way she could be pregnant.


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## Sivan (Aug 30, 2010)

Betta fish do not get pregnant. Females create eggs within their bodies whether a male is present or not. They occasionally release those eggs into the water and even eat them.

Illness can be caused by many factors. Betta fish are tropical fish and need heaters. Just because an animal can survive, it does not mean that the animal is living a comfortable life or flourishing. 65-70 degrees is too cold for a betta fish. This temperature range is sure to lower their immunity and make them probe to illness, regardless of how long your fish has been living within such conditions.

You should begin by upgrading your tank so that it can have a heater. Denying a betta fish a heater and keeping it in cold water is like buying a dog and keeping it out in the winter time with no shelter--the animal can survive but it is not living a high quality life. 

As for the bloating, females do get fat looking bellies when they are full of eggs. Pictures would help us determine what it is. Also, if you could post your tank cleaning schedule, the water conditions (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate levels), and typs of food you are feeding, we can help you better.


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## Myates (Aug 2, 2011)

In time, long exposure to cold water will cause their metabolism to slow down - making them lethargic, not eat well and not digest as quickly.

She may have been fine for the last two years, but you do have a female who is much more active than a male (males who have long fins often do better in the smaller tanks) in a small tank that is well below what is healthy for them. Yes, she has spent 2 years there, but her life span has been shortened because of those years in the cold. If you wish not to buy her a heater (there are mini heaters as cheap as $10 for 1g tanks), make sure she is in the warmest spot in the house and to cover her tank with a blanket to keep the warmth in. 

If she has had a rounded belly for weeks then that is not true bloat, nor constipation - she should show other symptoms if that were the case. Most likely it could be she is being over fed and with a slow metabolism she isn't expelling as quickly as she is receiving, or she is eggy - as mentioned before they do have eggs in them all the time, and some will bloat up with eggs from time to time regardless if there are other bettas nearby. It could also be parasites.. Without pictures it's hard to say exactly what is going on, and whether or not she needs treatment.

For Epsom salt you will want to do between 1 - 3 TSP per gallon, dissolve it prior to adding her in it, daily 100% water changes (adding in new Epsom + conditioner each time.. make sure the temp is the same..) and it will take anywhere from 5 days to 10 for her to return to normal if it were bloating.. I would start her out with 1tsp per gallon, since it may not be bloating, but as Epsom is as gentle/safe as can be then go ahead and do the treatment as a precaution.

For further recommendations, here is a link to one of the threads a resident vet had created for treating different ailments. You will be looking for Swim Bladder Disorder/Bloat.

Good luck!

Make sure to dissolve the Epsom salt first! A few grains won't do anything, and placing it in without dissolving will risk her being burned by it while in rock form.

Also, a list of what you feed her and your water change schedule would help.


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