Mystery death.

[Guest]

I had this betta, Cloud who I kept in a 3.5 gallon who died Sunday. It was of old age we think but I also suspect something else to contribute to this. He had a lump near the end of his body meeting the tail fin. It was never there before, he also swam in an odd pattern, like a snake almost. He became EXTREMLEY lethargic and did not eat. He was white so I couldn't tell if he had fin rot, ick, or discoloration or color loss. Any ideas? 

[Lillypad]

- sorry for your loss

do you have pictures before he died? Pictures help a lot when it comes to identifying diseases.

[Guest]

@Lillypad No pictures but that's the best description I can give. Usually, physical evidence is in the form of color loss anyway and he was white so it would've been no help but any knowledge as to what it could be is greatly appreciated 🙂

[Lillypad]

It could be that he developed a tumor, especially if he was older. How old was he? Unfortunately, bettas don’t live very long. The weight of the mass could have contributed to the strange swimming pattern.

- hope this helps.

[Guest]

@Lillypad Thanks, and he was about a year old I got him in February around MLK weekend. But you usually get bettas that are around 1-4 months old by the time of purchase. Thanks for your help, it probably was a tumor that affected him but also I forgot to mention he did have a small red dot near the edge of his tail. So it could have been numerous causes but that seems logical, thanks again!