# How Often Should They Be . . . Er Pooping?



## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Sorry about the title but I'm curious. I can't tell how often my male goes since he's in a tank with gravel but my female is in a barebottom isolation tank (until she's deemed disease free and can move into her permanent home) and I notice she poops about once every 2-3 days, and pretty big. She's not bloated at all and very active so I assume she's not constipated but I'm wondering if this about the normal frequency for pooping or if she might be _getting_ constipated. She gets 1-2 freeze dried bloodworms for breakfast, each roughly a quarter inch or slightly larger; and about 6-8 micropellets (seriously they're like grains of sand) for lunch and dinner. My male gets the same bloodworms but gets 6-8 micropellets for lunch and 2 Top Fin pellets for dinner. They get fasted when I remember that I'm supposed to fast them once a week. 

Until I had fish I never thought I'd be having a conversation about pooping. Sad thing is, this isn't the first fish-pooping conversation, either. :roll:


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

One of the best indicators of health...is the poop....healthy poop/pooping.....something that should be monitored...not just for fish but every living thing that eats......unhealthy poop can mean something is wrong.......healthy poop=health fish.....usually.....lol.....

With that said...my Bettas poop several times a day every day.....but I also feed lots of live foods and homemade food...very little processed foods.....


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## nowzem (Apr 14, 2011)

Yes, my bettas poop at least once (and usually more every day). However, I have ONE who has a tendency to bloat and he poops a huge poop every other day or so with some smallish poops in between (sometimes longer if I'm not careful with his feeding). Haha, how many times can we say poop?  You may wanna try some different food, or supplement with live foods to help her pass more often. If she doesn't seem uncomfortable, I don't think I'd worry about it...


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

I think I'll go on the hunt for some daphnia. She doesn't seem uncomfortable but this also doesn't seem to be normal. I'm feeding her New Life Spectrum Small Fish Formula .5mm micropellets because it's all that'll fit in her mouth . . . and yet, even though she can't eat regular betta pellets, she manages to suck up a bloodworm of the same diameter . . .


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## nel3 (May 29, 2011)

Sakura8 said:


> I think I'll go on the hunt for some daphnia. She doesn't seem uncomfortable but this also doesn't seem to be normal. I'm feeding her New Life Spectrum Small Fish Formula .5mm micropellets because it's all that'll fit in her mouth . . . and yet, even though she can't eat regular betta pellets, she manages to suck up a bloodworm of the same diameter . . .


i know what you mean regarding the bloodworm. i fed it a full length bloodworm once. once he got it in his mouth he did partially spit it out 2-3 times with out ever letting it drop out if his mouth.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Haha, sounds like spaghetti to them. Sluuurp.


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## Punki (Apr 30, 2011)

My female poops a couple of times a day so far, and my male is usually the same except for when the live food ran out, then he didnt poop for a day and on the second day had a huge round poop. Now they are back to normal )


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Yup, definitely something wrong my girl then. I'd better nip this in the bud before she _does_ get uncomfortable. I'll skip her evening meals today and cut down on her meals tomorrow - my male is already being fasted, as it's his fast day, and he's mad at me so what the heck, might as well have her mad at me, too and get it all over with.  I'll have to order the daphnia online so that'll be a week or so. No epsom salts and I don't drive so I'll have to wait a few days for that, too.


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## Punki (Apr 30, 2011)

I wouldnt worry about epsom salts just yet anyways since she seems fine otherwise. 
I fast mine on the same days cause when they see the net/yellow food container they would get excited so i couldnt just feed one XD Hope she started to poop more often for ya.

Maybe shes just so used to living in a cup that shes decided she doesnt want to live in her own poo like other fish  lol


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## Echo (May 18, 2011)

i swear, when i first saw Zenners with constipation i thought he was growing a third fin :rofl:


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

I think it might be the bloodworms. You said they were freeze-dried, right? Since they're so... dry, they can make it harder for the fish to poop. Instead of taking out her evening meal, I'd take out her morning meal or give her pellets instead. Fasting still sounds like a good idea, though.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

I think I'm giving her too many pellets, too. It's really hard to judge with those super tiny things and I forget the things expand. I'll cut down on those, too. I may dump my male in a barebottom tank for a few days too, just to see how he's doing. Gravel is nice but makes it hard to tell.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

I have the same kind of pellets, and I just put a pinch in XD too hard to count. I only feed them once a day, though.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

They're like coffee grounds or something, they're so small. But it's handy because of her tiny mouth so if she's happy, I'm happy.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

I know. I use the same exact ones XD I love em because I don't have to crush them up or soak them for anybody.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Well, she pooped, a big one, so she's right on her irregular schedule of about every 2-3 days.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

Then it would be an regular schedule of irregular pooping times XD


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

'Cause she's in a barebottom tank, it's pretty obvious and if I don't get the vac and suck it out, she acts all embarrased and hides in her plant. Such a modest lady!


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

Lol, cute.


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## Sakura8 (May 12, 2011)

Even a partial fast seems to have helped because she pooped again. First time she's gone twice in a day. I'd be ecstatic if this wasn't such a weird topic to be happy about.


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