fish update (for those of you who were concerned)

as per an email this morning from my sister:

I think JD is going to be ok.
After performing extensive research on the internet, I decided to follow the advice of one fish owner who's own little pet suffered from swim bladder disease. One of the causes of swim bladder disease is constipation. It was recommended to keep the fish off food for 4 days. I also need to change his food from pellet to gel form. I'm on day 2 of not feeding, and he can now swim fairly upright… Now he seems to be struggling to get to the bottom of the bowl, but at least he can get to the surface for air.

Pictures to follow.

Hey Melissa..
I’m a little concerned about this line:
but at least he can get to the surface for air.
Is your fish a mammal?
Do you have a whale and not really a beta fish? Or is a dolphin? What kind of shop are they running over there???

hahahah
no, it is a fish... i meant that he needed to get to the surface cuz the water at the surface has more oxygen than the water at the bottom.. most fish tanks are aerated to make sure that there is the correct level of oxygen in the water for the fish to breathe, but for fish that live in bowls, like goldfish and bettas, they normally spend more time near the surface to get the extra oxygen:
"The surface of the water where it comes into contact with the atmosphere tends to hold a higher content of oxygen. Goldfish can survive in non-aerated aquariums because they spend most of their time at the surface"

well then...