I ask because I noticed a slight bulge on his underside where his pelvic fin is. It’s either something I’ve just failed to notice before, or a new development. He’s otherwise acting normal. Swimming, resting on leaves/substrate, begging for food. Any ideas?
Note: the last pic is a picture from a few months ago for reference.
For context, he is a plakat (short finned) betta. He lives in a 10 gallon tank. I fed him 2 NorthFin Betta Bit pellets at 5am, went to work, and took these pictures when I got home at 3pm. He has not been fed today except this morning. The tank is cycled and has been established for almost a year now. His only tank mates are 2 nerite snails who are both chilling in a corner right now, so he didn’t eat them. I have only real plants, no fake plastic. The only hard scape is 2 pieces of drift wood. The tank is kept between 78-79°F.
I just tested my water, 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm nitrite, 10-15ppm nitrate. This is from natural causes as well as me dosing Aquarium Co-Op Easy Green, 2mL a week.
Should I be concerned, or is this something as trivial as bloating? Thanks for any help!
Edit: right after posting, I noticed something white and stringy protruding from that area. I’m assuming that’s fish poo and that he’s constipated?