sick betta =(

[Venturer4life]

Hi everyone,
I am a college student and unfortunately had to leave some of my fish at home as I can only have up to a 10 gal tank at school, which means, that the fish at home had to be cared for by my parents.

The other day I came home for summer, and when I got home, I did my rounds to look at/ take care of any needs of my tanks. (My parents unfortunately are horrible care takers, and I would never have them take care of my fish except for the fact that I had them all before I left for college and could not bring them with me. I tried to make it home every 2 weeks or so, but towards the end, I did not come home for around 4 weeks because I had a lot of work and finals to prepare for and take.) When I looked at my crown tail betta, he looked horrible. His color is gone, and on his fins he had pin holes and ammonia burn. He is also quite lethargic. It makes me so sad that my poor boy had gone from such a beautiful fish to one that was obviously neglected.

Here are some pics of him about a 3 years ago (though he looked exactly the same when I left after for the spring semester, albeit a bit bigger!) (sorry for the cruddy quality, I did not have my new camera then)





and here is him now





Is there any way to try to help him out and make him feel better and possibly get him back to his previous beauty (other than the obvious care that he should get such as regular feedings (though I do a fasting day per week to let him digest), water changes/ monitoring, and socialization) ? I know that he will live, as he is a fighter and has made it through worse, but I just am hoping that he has not been permanently damaged, as he used to be one of the most beautiful fish I have ever owned, though I will love him regardless of his beauty.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks!!!

 

[AlexandraDanielle21]

Hi everyone,
I am a college student and unfortunately had to leave some of my fish at home as I can only have up to a 10 gal tank at school, which means, that the fish at home had to be cared for by my parents.

The other day I came home for summer, and when I got home, I did my rounds to look at/ take care of any needs of my tanks. (My parents unfortunately are horrible care takers, and I would never have them take care of my fish except for the fact that I had them all before I left for college and could not bring them with me. I tried to make it home every 2 weeks or so, but towards the end, I did not come home for around 4 weeks because I had a lot of work and finals to prepare for and take.) When I looked at my crown tail betta, he looked horrible. His color is gone, and on his fins he had pin holes and ammonia burn. He is also quite lethargic. It makes me so sad that my poor boy had gone from such a beautiful fish to one that was obviously neglected.

Here are some pics of him about a 3 years ago (though he looked exactly the same when I left after for the spring semester, albeit a bit bigger!) (sorry for the cruddy quality, I did not have my new camera then)

and here is him now

Is there any way to try to help him out and make him feel better and possibly get him back to his previous beauty (other than the obvious care that he should get such as regular feedings (though I do a fasting day per week to let him digest), water changes/ monitoring, and socialization) ? I know that he will live, as he is a fighter and has made it through worse, but I just am hoping that he has not been permanently damaged, as he used to be one of the most beautiful fish I have ever owned, though I will love him regardless of his beauty.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks!!!

So sorry for your betta, but I think that he can pull through. I would suggest purchasing
antibiotics for parasite treatment. Is he alone in his own tank, or is he with other fish? I would quarantine him if not, and check the tank parameters either way. It looks like an sickness that may have been caused by the water or another fish. Again, so sorry. Hope this helped.

 

[shellieca]

It's hard to get others to care for our fish as well as we do. I think with clean, warm, conditioned water & good food he should recover. 3 yrs is the average life span for most Bettas so some of what you're seeing such as lethargy may be due to age but I think he'll greatly improve with a little TLC.

 

[maestromad]

He needs nice clean water to try and sort the start of that fun rot. Maybe a course of maracyn plus just as a cover all
Poor thing I'm sure he'll turn around soon

 

[XxNoobxX]

I think he has fin rot because of stress... U should buy a medicine for this disease because it will not go away. Dont freak out this disease is common in this kind of fish... U should do water change often.. This disease makes them have difficulty to breath

 

[XxNoobxX]

Nice fish by the way he is cute i have one too they are so cute



His name is Toby hehehe

 

[Shanny]

Aww, sorry to see his current condition.

I have had great results with API Bettafix.

 

[Venturer4life]

Is he alone in his own tank, or is he with other fish? I would quarantine him if not, and check the tank parameters either way. It looks like an sickness that may have been caused by the water or another fish.

He is alone except for a small amazon sword, which has been in that tank for around 2 years, so nothing could have come from it. I never put water from other tanks in there, because there is no reason to. And I have not put any water from my LFS in there either because I have not added anything into the tank since the plant. I checked the parameters, and everything but the ammonia and nitrates were fine. I know it is because my parents did not change his water at all in around a 4-6 week period (it is a 3 gal, so needs water changes regularly).

t's hard to get others to care for our fish as well as we do. I think with clean, warm, conditioned water & good food he should recover. 3 yrs is the average life span for most Bettas so some of what you're seeing such as lethargy may be due to age but I think he'll greatly improve with a little TLC.

Am going to be checking the parameters often and changing out the water every 2 days or so (more if I get an ammonia spike). He has always had a heater set at 78'F, and I always try to get the new water in his tank the same before reintroducing him (I take him out in a cup and then vacuum the gravel and change the water. I have perfected the method of transferring him between the tank to the cup and vice vera so it is easier on him to just be in the cup for a few minutes, then running away from the vacuum or freaking out cause the water is getting low). And ya, he is gettin a bit old, but I love him and I think there are a few more years in him! He is one of the toughest fish I have ever had! Thanks!

Nice fish by the way he is cute i have one too they are so cute. His name is Toby hehehe

They are adorable!! I love how smart and inquisitive bettas are! My betta is named Pieces. I have had this thing about naming my bettas after either a greek/roman god or the zodiacs.

Thanks everyone!!

 

[maestromad]

Any update on how he's doing?

 

[Venturer4life]

His is still lethargic, but he seems better. He definitely perks up when I come around and talk and interact with him. He seems to have pulled through the ammonia poisoning, but I just need to give him time to get his fins back in shape. Color-wise, he does not look much better at all, but I definitely see his energy level changing.

 

[maestromad]

That's really good news glad he's getting better