Help! Sick betta?

[mannymouse]

Hey everyone,
My betta was once a brilliant blue and now he is starting to turn redish and is missing his top (dorsal?) fin. His 2 long fins on his sides look like they have been nipped but he isn't with any other fish in the tank. He isn't very active anymore and a few times I have had to tap on the tank to make sure he is still alive! Is there anything I can do to fix this? He isn't eating much either :/ I have no idea what I did wrong.. He was really happy and blowing bubble nests before, I haven't changed anything in the usual routine and now he seems to be sick. Anything helps!

 

[Bloodroot]

Could easily be fin rot but before we get to that can you tell me you tank size? Filter Unit? How long the tank has been running? What is you ammonia nitrite and nitrate levels?

The procedure will be a bit different depending on if you have a bowl or a tank... But no matter the tank I would go to a pet store and buy medication for fin rot. There will be alot of choices of meds if you go to a good lfs. Pick the one that treats fin rot specifically, or as close to specifically as possible. Depending on your lfs the staff could be hit of miss on helping. You need a medication for this not a natural remedy or salt.

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[Bloodroot]

also a picture could be helpful as I am only going by your discription.

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[Laird-and-Dad]

Based on your description, I agree that t probably is fin rot. How you should treat it depends on how bad the fin rot is. Pictures would be nice here.

I had a similar thing happen when I was taking care of my friends Betta when she was on vacation. The pectoral fin was about half gone, and the dorsal fin was starting to deteriorate.

Are any of the fins completely gone yet? Again, a picture would be very helpful.

All I did was to do 50-75% pwc every other day (or even a little bit less), and added a live plant. I personally would recommend having at least 1 live plant, and have found that they really like Anubias nana, although if you don't want live plants, having some hiding places is a must.

If it's possible, I would start by doing a 100% wc, but otherwise do as close as possible. Then do those pwcs I mentioned earlier (you probably don't need to do as much as I did). If the fin rot continues to worsen after the 2nd pwc, then I would add aq salt. It is never a good idea to dose with meds unless absolutely necessary.

If the fin rot continues to progress after adding the aq salt, or if it is already at the point where any one of the fins is completely gone, then I would give some fin rot medication.

All I'm saying is that unless it is at the stage where it could progress into body rot, try to avoid meds—as with all chemicals, meds are something of a last resort because they can have negative effects on the fish.

In my aforementioned experience, the fin rot stopped and the fish perked up, just by doing the pwcs, and soon enough, the fin rot began to reverse itself.

Good luck, and I hope this helps,

-Laird

 

[mannymouse]

Not exactly sure about tank size as I've had it for a long time but it's either 1.5 or 2gal with no filter. I do 100% water changes weekly. Here are some before and now pics

 

[mannymouse]

I am going to get meds for him tomo but I just noticed that he is swimming funny almost at a side ways angle and crashing into the rocks at the bottom. It's almost like he's trying to dig but I know he's not

 

[Laird-and-Dad]

Wow that is a really severe case. I would dose with fin rot meds ASAP. Keep us posted.

 

[Laird-and-Dad]

Has he seemed a little lethargic? Happens for my friends betta.

 

[Bloodroot]

yes that is fin rot and it is very severe!

http://bettasplendid.weebly.com/fin-rot-101.html

Go there and follow the severe rot section. If you want to keep him you are really going to agressivly treat this.

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[mannymouse]

I don't mean to sound cruel but do u think I can save him? Or is it too late?

 

[Laird-and-Dad]

Has he seemed a little lethargic? Happens for my friends betta.

 

[Laird-and-Dad]

Yes you should be able to save him, but get meds ASAP. If it progresses to body rot your going to have a lot harder time. Also, adding aq salt can't hurt.

 

[emilygupps]

I'm following this. Good luck I really hope you can save him! He was beautiful, please update often with pictures of his progress.


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[Bloodroot]

yes you can save him. If you dont want to buy the meds you can at least work with the aquaium salt (note that is different from table iodized table salt). There is a chance that the salt will do the trick. He does have a decent chance as long as you jump on this right now.

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[Bloodroot]

Also you can use salt from the kitchen but it has to be sea salt and pure!

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[Laird-and-Dad]

yes that is fin rot and it is very severe!

http://bettasplendid.weebly.com/fin-rot-101.html

Go there and follow the severe rot section. If you want to keep him you are really going to agressivly treat this.

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+1 that link is awesome. Just read it, and I completely agree.

 

[Laird-and-Dad]

I would say that kitchen salt is probably okay, but aq salt is really cheap and kitchen salt sometimes has additives.

 

[Bloodroot]

I would say that kitchen salt is probably okay, but aq salt is really cheap and kitchen salt sometimes has additives.

yes, I happen to have completely pure kitchen sea salt which is what I used in an emergancy. Check the ingredients list.

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[mannymouse]

Ok thanks everyone! I'll be going to my local pet store tomo and getting meds and aq salt. Fingers crossed this works!

 

[mannymouse]

And yes he has been very lethargic lately. I've had to move the tank slightly a couple of times to check if he was still alive :/ he barely eats anything either