Age slowing him down?

[BeansMom]

My betta, Smarty, was a rescue with the worst case of rot I've ever seen. He miraculously recovered and has been well and fully re-finned for about 5 months. Since I've had him for about six months, and I would imagine (as a pet store betta) he was a year old when I found him, would he be showing signs of slowing down? I ask only because he seems almost "depressed". He is eating well, his 2.5 gallon tank water is in the ideal range, he is kept at a toasty 79 degrees. He did shred his tail about ten days ago (on what, I am clueless - so he may have blown it), and I put him on a seven day course of Melafix. He did fine on Melafix following his rot, but I trusted my gut that it was bothering him this time and changed it out. That improved his mood a bit, but it still seems like I really have to work at waking him up, and he is not quite the feisty little dragon heart that would flare just for fun - I have to work to see it now. What do you think? (By the way - I could put him in what I have left of my BettaMax if it will help).

[abm]

My's daughter's betta (at college) recently exhibited very similar behavior...she backed off on his food just a bit and he perked up . No clue really why it happened, or why he returned to normal, but he's fine now.

[BeansMom]

Good advice, ABM - I'll give it a try and let you know.

[abm]

Dory is probably about the same age as Smarty, maybe a bit older - all we could think is that maybe the metabolism begins to slow and the same amt of food was too much for him and made him lethargic. She was dreading coming back from classes - he just stayed still near the bottom of his tank - she had to nearly shake it to get him moving
And congrats on the successful rescue

[Rachel]

What have you been feeding him? You may want to add some new foods to his diet to see if that helps perk him up more.

[BeansMom]

Rachel - Sorry for the long time for my reply. He is getting HB pellets (the Bio-gold are too big for him), a few meals of bloodworms and brine shrimp a week. I tried the gel food you suggested, but Smarty has a hard time eating. Since I've had him, he has had real difficulty - repeatedly strikes at the food, but seems to miss it three times out of four. Does get it, but gets it stuck in his teeth (at least 1/3 of his food), which he eventually knocks out, but it sinks to the bottom and he won't eat it once it's hit the gravel. I tried to get the gel food as small as possible, but he eventually gives up if he strikes at the food too many times. Alas, alot of water changes because of this problem (turkey baster never seems to get it). The last two weeks he spends a great deal of his time behind his filter unit (it is suspended in the tank with suction cups, and loves to rest between the upper and lower cups. The problem is, he always would come out the second I entered the room and do happy dances. Now, he only comes out when I truly distrub him. I have checked him carefully, there is no sign of disease I can identify.

[Rachel]

I'm sure you checked it, but water quality was fine when he recently shredded his fins? I remember the struggles with Smarty at the beginning and the poor guy has been through a lot. You could give the Bettmax a try if you feel like it to see if that helps.

[BeansMom]

Thanks, Rachel - I've been checking his water almost daily just to be sure - all is okay. I raised his temp 1 degree to 80. I'm really not at all happy with his demeanor...he seems too unhappy. I think I will give the BettaMax a try (although he hates all the messing with his water - and actually pouts for a little while). Of course, a pouting betta is no surprise to anyone, I'm sure

[BeansMom]

Sorry for the long delay in updating Smarty's condition. I've been extremely ill with pnuemonia, and still am, but have used up my sick time at work. I put Smarty through a round of BettaMax, but there was no improvement. After three days of unmedicated water, I put him through a round of Triple Sulfa, guessing that if there was no obvious fungus or parasites, he must have some bacterial infection. Still no improvement. He is holding his own, and he is eating, but he lays in the upper corner of his tank, draped over the top of the suction cup for his thermometer. Important to note, that during the round of Sulfa, his BRAND NEW heater went wacko - I woke up to find his tank heat at 86 degrees! Seems the heater's thermostat must have stuck. I ran off to the local tropical fish store, pnuemonia and all, and got a new heater. His heat was lowered as carefully as I could from 86 to 80 in about a day and a half. He is completely listless, will not flare, and is laying around with clamped fins. There is still no indication of any obvious disease. UGH!!! I hate to keep medicating him with no real diagnosis, but I changed out 70% of his water to remove the sulfa, let him be in clear water for about 36 hours, and started a round of Tetracycline last night. This is the last med I will put him in --- I just hope the TC works --- given that I cannot describe an ailment other than what you see, I'm not willing to med him anymore like this willy nilly. As a matter of fact, if you think it is in his best interest to take him out of the TC and let him be, I am prepared to do that ASAP. Appreciate your wisdom (mine seems to be sleeping on the job).