Think my betta has fin rot

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jlbfish

Aquarium Advice FINatic
Joined
Feb 21, 2012
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I've read over the information on the site. I just did a 50% PWC today and it is past 9 so can't get meds till tomorrow.

He seems to have a white spec on one of his side fins but his back finds look like they are ragged or cloudy or have white fungus or something on them.

I see the meds recommended but I see adding salt recommended in some spots and not in others.

My questions are:
Can I easily determine if he has fin rot?

If he doesn't and I treat him for it will it hurt him?

Should I add salt?

Thanks
Jana
 
For now just keep the water as clean as humanly possible. I would do another 50% change now and another one tomorrow. A small dose of aquarium salt can help ward off infections, but dissolve the dose in some tank water and add it a little at a time over a couple hours. When you can, I recommend melafix as an antibacterial to further prevent more infection and to help battle the infection that has already started, but with Bettas use about 1/5 the recommended dose, or buy bettafix instead. It is the same thing, just at the proper concentration already. These antibacterial measures along with good clean water will make it easier for the fish to heal itself, just don't stress the fish further by adding too much. Also, when you change the water if you add salt, only add back the percentage of salt you took out with the water change. If you remove half the water, only add back half of the dose you were using. Most brands of salt recommend one flat tablespoon per 5 gallons of water. Start with maybe half of that and see how it goes from there.
Also, a picture could help us determine how bad the fin rot is and if further medication than salt and melafix is needed.
 
I got the best I could so my husband is trying with a better camera. Problem is he is an orangish/peachish fish with neon blue colors at the ends of his fins. Makes it difficult to see.

The first picture I added is just funny. Can't really see anything but he was curious what was up.

The second one you can see just a little in his back fins towards the middle. Otherwise there are some other spots that just look whitish or fuzzyish.
 

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From the look of those pictures, it doesn't appear that his fins are starting to get any bad infections yet, so clean water and perhaps a low dose of melafix and / or salt should help. How big is his tank?
 
There are just a few spots. It is hard to tell weather or not it is his coloring or something else. There are areas that look a bit ragged like at the edge of his dorsal fin (I will attach another pic).

I was gonna change the water again tomorrow and then add stress coat to it and put in 1 tsp of salt tonight and a little more tomorrow with the water change. Should I do 100% water change?

His tank is a 3.5 gallon. I want to up him to either a 5 or 10. I prefer 5 but 10 is cheaper and more room so.....

Anyway I added another pic where you might be able to see the spots that are ragged looking but either way if he is healthy I am happy. The spots that concern me are on the edge of his dorsal fin. Edge closest to his head. It looks whitish and like something took a nip out of him. Also not he bottom there is that one spot it looks whitish instead of the bluish of his coloring. We do see spots where seems white and ragged so if I do the antibiotic I cant it I won't hurt him. Do you do salt and antibiotic? Or just one?

THANKS SO MUCH! :)
 

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You can do salt and melafix. Melafix is just tea tree oil and it is mildly antiseptic. From the looks of it I would say you could just do the salt. For a 3.5 gallon I would use maybe a quarter of a teaspoon of the salt, maybe a little less. With such a small tank, I would just do 100% changes daily until he looks better. Changing 3.5 gallons is a piece of cake so why not!
 
Didn't see melafix. I may have missed it. I got Betta Fix. I was wondering if the filter sponge needs to be changed out. Does the bacteria that causes fin rot live in the filter?


Thanks
Jana
 
Fin rot is not caused by a particular bacteria and isn't really a disease, it is a symptom of poor water quality. Give the filter a rinse in old tank water but don't replace it, or you would lose all the beneficial bacteria it holds, throwing the tank into a cycle and resulting in a buildup of ammonia. Bettafix is fine, it is just melafix at a dose appropriate for bettas, so you can just use what it says to use on the bottle instead of doing a 1/5 dose like you would with melafix. Just remember, the meds can help prevent infection and can do a little to help the fish heal, but clean water will be the main thing that will get the fish all healed up and keep it from happening again.

Also, I just realized I forgot to ask about your water parameters last night! Do you have a test kit? If you do, what kind is it and what are your usual readings?
 
I do test. Currently it tests at:
Ammonia 0
Nitrites 0
Ph 8
Nitrates are either 5 or 10 it is really hard tot ell the difference between the two.

I admit I have gotten lazy about cleaning it. This is a bow front 3.5 gallon tank and I try to vac the gravel but suck about 50% of the water out before I finish all of the gravel I gave him some dried blood worms and he didn't like them. When I looked later they were gone so maybe they were rotting? I dunno.

At this point I am tempted to get him a 10 gallon and just move everytig to that one. It would be easier to clean.

I put meds in a bit ago and will change out the water after i pick up the kiddos from school. I changed 3/4 of it yesterday.
 
Ok so we are sticking with the 3.5 while he is sick. I have 2 more questions. I am going to start removing gravel a bit at a time.

I added the meds this afternoon but will do either a 50 or 100% water change later (is 100% more stressful for the fish?) do I re add the med back after?

The API instructions say to add it to the water for 7 days then do a water change

Jana
 
jlbfish said:
Ok so we are sticking with the 3.5 while he is sick. I have 2 more questions. I am going to start removing gravel a bit at a time.

I added the meds this afternoon but will do either a 50 or 100% water change later (is 100% more stressful for the fish?) do I re add the med back after?

The API instructions say to add it to the water for 7 days then do a water change

Jana

There is nothing wrong with doing a total water change, in fact I do one almost every week on my 5 gallon and I have done them daily with smaller tanks for fry. I have a 1.5 gallon tank that I use for new Bettas to be sure they get healthy and active before adding them into community tanks and as a back up tank if things go wrong, and I do 100% changes on it about every other day. I recommend scooping the betta out into a cup of tank water, emptying the tank completely, and if you can get the tank into a sink or tub, just run hot water over everything and through the gravel, fill it back up with temperature matched water, dechlorinate, and float the cup for a while then put him back in. As for the Melafix/bettafix, keep up the water changes but re-dose with each change. If you do a 100% water change, add the full dose back, if you remove 50% of the water add half of the dose back in. This will keep the dose steady. Medicate for a week this way, and after that just keep up with the water changes.

If you do get him a 10 gallon, hold onto the 3.5 and it's equipment for future use as a hospital tank. If he comes down with anything else in the future it will be easier to medicate him in a smaller tank and it will allow you to use less medication than you would need to dose 10 gallons of water.
 
Damage to the fins is minor right now. Clean water is the best medicine. I would do a couple extra water changes this week, and if after a weeks time you see further deterioration, at that time add 1 tabelspoon salt for every 5 gals. Treat with salt for about 2 weeks max. BettaFix probably won't be necessary, though you could add it with the salt if you'd like. But at this point I don't feel it's needed. Frequent water changes should take care of this. Fin rot is almost always caused by poor water quality. Make sure his water is heated, if it isn't already, preferably to right around 80 degrees. This will help heal and prevent future issues.

With fin rot you will almost always see curling and/or discoloration (usually black) at the edge of the fins. If you aren't seeing any of this, he could possibly be nipping himself, so keep an eye out for that as well.

It can be tricky to manage dosing the meds properly while still doing frequent water changes. Will meds like Betta/MelaFix, you're instructed not to do a water change for a week. Frequent water changes are best right now, another reason why I wouldn't use the meds just yet. Otherwise, if your pH out of the tap is the same as the tanks pH, large water changes aren't tyically a problem. I would still avoid doing 100% changes however, since you'd have to remove the fish, which is, of course, always stressful. 50% should be great.
 
I have been doing 50% a day since it is a cycled tank and it is looking good. Using 1tsp of Aquarium salt per gallon and 10 drops of betta fix per gallon. Started adding API Slime Coat for the dechlorinator.

Not sure how long I am supposed to wait to see a difference I suppose a week. I will keep an eye on him. I have read some bad stuff bout betta fix and the betta's labyrinth organ. Do you guys know anything about that?

Thanks so much for the help!
 
Just a thought- in one picture I see your decoration in the background - if it is one of those "coral" ones from petco etc they have pretty sharp edges. He could be injuring himself on the decor - if you think it could snag pantyhose it could snag a fin.
 
Good thought. I will pull the deco out tonight and check when I change his water. I looked them over when I put them in but didn't do the panty hose test. I will do that.

That little bugger tried to swim through the plastic water baffle on his filter again last night. I'm afraid he is going to hurt himself.

Jana
 
jlbfish said:
I have been doing 50% a day since it is a cycled tank and it is looking good. Using 1tsp of Aquarium salt per gallon and 10 drops of betta fix per gallon. Started adding API Slime Coat for the dechlorinator.

Not sure how long I am supposed to wait to see a difference I suppose a week. I will keep an eye on him. I have read some bad stuff bout betta fix and the betta's labyrinth organ. Do you guys know anything about that?

Thanks so much for the help!

Bettafix is melafix at the proper dose for Bettas. If you dose it according to the directions you should be fine. Melafix can damage the betta's labyrinth organ if used at the full dosage recommended on the bottle, it is fine for other fish but Bettas need a smaller dose or a diluted solution of melafix. 1/5 of the full melafix dose is what is recommended for Bettas, or you can get bettafix which is the same thing diluted to about 1/5 the strength of melafix.
 
I checked the decor and it was smooth. Hubby reminded me I had him file down any rough spots before we put it in. The log isn't as smooth and will be harder to smooth out.

The fin stuff he showed before I put the log in.

Thanks again!
 
That's too much salt. It should be 3 tsp per 5 gals, not 5 tsp per 5 gals.

Some bettas and other labyrinth fish are sensitive to the mela/bettafix products. If you're dosing correctly, you shouldn't have a problem, but if you see a big reaction from the betta when you add it to the water, you should discontinue usage.
 
:/ It's REALLY difficult to find consistent advice. I was following this website for his treatment.

Betta Fin Rot - Betta Info

He seems to be doing well despite the 1 tsp per gallon. Does the salt damage their labyrinth organ or kidneys? I can't remember. Should I start to cut back? I have been treating him since Monday.
 
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