# Why are all my betta's dying from dropsy?



## Jaggedfury (Sep 11, 2010)

Betta live 2-5 years. 5 years if you take care of it. When buying Betta, I always buy the Betta blue-ish water at the fish shop. I still have my single Betta bought 3 years ago still alive. Not once did I have to treat him for any parasite or disease. I don't think I ever seen ich on a Betta before in person, just online photos. I also used almond leaves in the bowl, that might have buffer out the parasites...


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## ridethespiral (Aug 5, 2010)

Idk whatever killed my last betta came from the corys, and cross contaminated to my moms betta though.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

Temperature of high 70's - low 80's; clean water; variety of food (not just pellets or flakes).

That's pretty much it.


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## Splendid Splendens (Dec 22, 2010)

Chances are they had it before you bought them and just weren't showing it yet. 
Almost every Betta I have had (all from the LFS) have died of Dropsy.
I've pretty well learned to just deal with it, you can't save them most of the time, but you may as well try and give them a taste of the good life, right? Most shops will offer a replacement or give you free antibiotics if you go back pissed that they sold you a sick fish. I got lucky this time and the Betta I chose was young, healthy, and from a fresh shipment.

Next time I might go through a breeder, or I might chance it again.
If you don't wanna chance it, go to a breeder, that'd be your best bet. 

Also, never skip quarantine and always treat for parasites when adding new stock unless from a 100% trusted source.


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## ridethespiral (Aug 5, 2010)

mistergreen: Temp has been atleast 85F or so.. whatever 31C would be lol.
Water has been changed every day. He was doing GREAT for the first week or so when I put him in the 10g, then ich went away, but his scales started getting rough. And I feared the worse.. Dropsy.



FrogFarm said:


> Chances are they had it before you bought them and just weren't showing it yet.
> Almost every Betta I have had (all from the LFS) have died of Dropsy.
> I've pretty well learned to just deal with it, you can't save them most of the time, but you may as well try and give them a taste of the good life, right? Most shops will offer a replacement or give you free antibiotics if you go back pissed that they sold you a sick fish. I got lucky this time and the Betta I chose was young, healthy, and from a fresh shipment.
> 
> ...


I won't ever buy a fish from a pet store again tbh. I've found a local importer  Top quality fish I recieved from him. 
and it was a stupid mistake for me to not quarantine but I just started out and wanted those guys so badly! haha. learned my lesson

Bettas... well it's going to be a while till I get another mr. betta fish :fish:


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## Splendid Splendens (Dec 22, 2010)

Well, good luck with your next one.
I've made the no-quarantine "mistake" before, I payed and learned the hard way.
Some people have to I guess!


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## Clare12345 (Dec 20, 2008)

Does dropsy contaminate shrimp at all? Or other fish in the tank?


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## Splendid Splendens (Dec 22, 2010)

Don't know about shrimp but yes it can contaminate other fish, as well as frogs.


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## Clare12345 (Dec 20, 2008)

Actually the problem seems to be that the fish ate too many shrimp and now is bloated. No scales up. But thank you for the info.


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## Splendid Splendens (Dec 22, 2010)

Don't pass it off so quickly, just because the scales aren't sticking up doesn't mean it's not dropsy.
It isn't until it gets to quite an advanced stage that scales begin to stick out due to stretching of the abdomen.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Saying something is dropsy is like diagnosing yourself with a scratchy throat- dropsy is just a symptom, and there are many different things that can cause dropsy.

In your situation, it could be that you introduced a pathogen into your tank that has remained in the tank. Velvet is extremely common among bettas, highly contagious, and also very hard to treat. And that's just one possibility...

In your shoes, I wouldn't put any more fish in that tank until it's been broken down and sterilized with bleach- filter, gravel, everything. I'd keep the cory in solitary quarantine for the rest of its life in case it's a carrier. It's a very cautious, conservative approach, but I'm someone who always tries to err on the side of caution when it comes to fish health and possible contagion.


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## Bettalovely (Nov 16, 2010)

lauraleellbp said:


> Saying something is dropsy is like diagnosing yourself with a scratchy throat- dropsy is just a symptom, and there are many different things that can cause dropsy.
> 
> In your situation, it could be that you introduced a pathogen into your tank that has remained in the tank. Velvet is extremely common among bettas, highly contagious, and also very hard to treat. And that's just one possibility...
> 
> In your shoes, I wouldn't put any more fish in that tank until it's been broken down and sterilized with bleach- filter, gravel, everything. I'd keep the cory in solitary quarantine for the rest of its life in case it's a carrier. It's a very cautious, conservative approach, but I'm someone who always tries to err on the side of caution when it comes to fish health and possible contagion.


+1

Dropsy can be caused by different kinds of infections. These infections can be viral or bacterial. Dropsy is just a symptom like Lauralee said. It's a sign that your fish's internal organs are shutting down. Unfortunately, it means that there is most likely permanent damage done to your fish by the time dropsy shows up and even if they somehow survive, their life span will probably be shortened drastically.

Always quarantine new fish. Break down and disinfect tanks that have had these kinds of infections show up in them. If you start to see any signs of illness in your betta, try and get a diagnosis and treat as early as possible to help prevent further infections from occurring. I've said it before and I'll say it again, test your water frequently! Tank crashes happen and leave your fishy friend more susceptible to dangerous infections.


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## ridethespiral (Aug 5, 2010)

Thanks for the input, I do believe it was velvet which resulted from my last betta, contaminating my moms which sat untreated for far too long. Once I got the heat up and used meds things progressed fas from then on.. as for my betta, he was never freed of ich fully and later succumbed to velvet somehow. Did not realize it could be velvet until it was too late.

As for all my other fish in my 75g including the peppered cory who went through a final treatment of clout, they are doing awesome as far as I can tell! All my fish who have died since getting into this hobby were results of my mishaps and idiocy lol other than the bettas. Seems I have bad luck with them ever since I stopped using way too small "betta bowls" they lived for years when I had them in these at a young age LOL. I've found an interest in many other fish and am having great luck with them so far!  though aquired through breeders/breeded by a local with extremely high quality stock (wild/ F1 generation for the most part.) And will aquabid my next betta !

Now I even have myself a 10g quarantine


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## Betta Maniac (Dec 3, 2010)

ridethespiral said:


> Bettas... well it's going to be a while till I get another mr. betta fish




I have to say, it's far more expensive to get them from a breeder, but all the ones I've purchased from either aquabid or from Albany Aquariums (who quarantines all their fish and does NOT keep their bettas in little cups) have been healthy and are doing great. 

It’s very different from the pain and hassle of getting them from one of the big chains, where they ALWAYS seem to be sick.


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## secuono (Nov 19, 2009)

Nearly all my Betta die from dropsy too. Some last up to a year, others as soon as 3mo. I have no idea whats going on, all other fish with them thrive. No issues before they puff out, nothing new, no other fish sick, etc. Petstore Betta are inbred messes is what I've summed it up to. I'm done with Betta now, though. I have two males left, one has a round gut for over a month, very active and colorful, who knows. The other is somewhere in the big 90g, he looks good.


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