Betta fish with Red Fins

[BlueBoy]

Hello Everyone! I joined this forum because I am in desperate need of advice with my Betta fish Blue Boy, and google only helps so much. I got him from Petsmart about 4 months ago, and until now, he has been very healthy. Now he has red fins, and maybe some slight damage to his fins, but I will not swear to it just yet.

I know you need details, so here it goes:

I keep him in a 3 gallons tank that has a heater in it that keeps the temperature at a steady 78-80 degrees. I feed him 5 times a week, alternating between pellets and bloodworms. I clean once every 7-9 days (try to do 7, but life happens). I remove 25% of the water, use the API conditioner, and scrub down the walls and remove debris in the gravel bed using a gravel cleaner. In the last month, my tank has been getting extra dirty and the plastic rock has been growing algea or moss. So for the first time, I took out everything except my fish and gravel and gave it a good scrubbing and put it back. That was when I noticed Blue Boy had red fins. I thought it was shock, but it has been a week now, and he has not changed. Also, I cleaned the tank again today and noticed that even the fake plants had black junk on them, which has never happened before. I wondered if this increase in dirt is causing this reaction in Blue Boy? I did get the water tested, and I have a very high PH (test showed deep blue), but the Petco worker said the Nitrate level was low. Sorry, I do not have specific test results besides what I posted above.

If anybody has suggests, I would appreciate it. I don't want my fish to suffer if I can help it.

 

[subliminalme]

Betta actually go through different color changes all through their life. Is it red veins or just the red coloration?

The fin damage may be from when it got too dirty. Whether it was ammonia build up or fin nipping you're prolly never gonna know. Just keep the water clean and they'll grow back fine. In my 3 gal I have to do weekly water changes. Sometimes even every other day if I get too much melting of my plants.

 

[BlueBoy]

Thanks for the advice! It is just red coloration not red veins, and he seems pretty active right now, which is good, although the fin damage seems worse. Do you recommend using aquarium salt to help with the re-growth or just waiting to see if it gets better by itself? I have also considered doing a full water change and deep cleaning of the tank to help with the dirt, but I have heard that is not good for the fish.

 

[subliminalme]

Yeah fish generally like gradual changes, but with 3 gallons I don't think it can really fully cycle so it is kinda needed IMO. I do small water changes weekly (or every other day depending on plants) but one BIG water change once a month. I have ivy, bamboo, and peace lily in my 3gals. So if it gets to the point im doing a small water change every other day I pour him into a small vase and completely remove my plants and rinse the gravel very well while I do a 100% water change.

Your fake plants can be scrubbed with a new, never used tooth brush. The brown is prolly just algea ☺

 

[BlueBoy]

Thanks, I will go ahead and do a 100 water change and clean everything thoroughly. If my Betta does not get too stressed out, I may do it on a monthly basis like you and hope it clears up my problem. Thanks for the advice!

 

[JenRhaine]

could be fungal... my thoughts...

hi, i'm a betta keeper/breeder (sometimes) for the past 25 yrs or so. love freshwater tanks; I tend to stay w/ bettas (on their own, usually), livebearers like guppies and platies, gouramis, corys, etc. real plants and a well-run setup pretty much runs itself.

re: betta... red could mean stress or rot; if your plants have dark stuff on them, it sounds like u have fungus in there. that will damage his fins. look at his gill slits, esp. when he flares... are they RLLY red? if so, he's having trouble w/ getting oxygen in. I would do a large water change; scoop him out - use a clear glass, see if u can suck him into it instead of netting him - b4 u mess bigtime w/ the tank. tell me ur filtering! rlly, any fish needs a filter and light; temp sounds right. an airstone is good too. use a good dechlorinator, invest in test kits (at least strips), learn about pH, hardness, nitrites, nitrates, and enjoy urself. u r controlling every aspect of fish's existence so learn and watch. know what is his normal and BEST. happy fish play w/ u, flare and swim around, sleep at night. pinched fins, stuff growing in tank, not good. I try to avoid real chemical meds; try Pimafix and bettafix, read and use right!!
join Betta groups on FB if u r on there.


keeping bettas w/o filtration will stress them BIG TIME b/c of allll those dramatic changes needed to keep water parameters OK. I suggest getting a bigger tank, 5-6gal min, a filter, etc. use a starter kit if u rlly want to keep fish.

 

[Toad]

Are you cleaning the filter too? Because you don't want to clean the media beyond swishing it around in old tank wated, otherwise you're wiping out your cycle

 

[BlueBoy]

I do not use a filter. I had one, but it was electrocuting me so I took it out. Even though I did not use it, I had no trouble keeping the tank clean, until the last few weeks.

 

[Autumnsky]

Is there sunlight coming through a window, or a light being left on nearby which could be increasing algae? Is there a light on the tank you could reduce the light period. A cheap mechanical timer for lamps will work well, you could do 2 periods of lighting am and pm to be more in the times of day you are with the fish to see him better.

Ease up on the feeding just a little bit.

If freeze dried worms, please put in a few drops of water, enough to wet for a few minutes at least, to rehydrate. Add just a couple in at a time for him to eat so that you do not lose many to the bottom of the tank.

The most important healing tool is clean water, try to do a pwc every few days of around 25-30% and to keep best possible water parameters. Get a test kit and check it yourself so you can know. If the clean water does not seem to help in a week or so or it is apparently MUCH worse and you don't see new growth on the fins, you may need meds.

 

[BlueBoy]

Thanks Autumn Sky,

There are no windows in my office, but I have a light that is on 9 hours a day when I am there with him. I guess I could experiment with it and leave it off for longer periods of time. I feed him two blood worms at a time, twice in one day, and he always gobbles them up, so it is only when I feed him pellets of food that they occasionally fall to the bottom of the tank. I had increased his food a little as I wondered if it was not enough, but I will go back to the regular feedings. I will also keep up more with the water change as that can only help the situation.

Thanks,
Stephanie

 

[BlueBoy]

Hi Jen, I just saw your message,

I did have a filter, but I opted not to use it. I also heard bettas prefer not to have one because they do not like moving water. Being new, I was not sure if this was entirely true, but I decided to give it a shot. Do you have a good recommendations for an affordable filter? Trying to do this right while not breaking the bank at the same time. And Yes, I am wondering if the black on my silk plants and plastic rock are fungus, hopefully a good cleaning will remove it. The red is not near his gills, only the tips of the top and bottom fins, hopefully no problem breathing. I use the API water conditioner. My fish does tend to have an interest in what do and follows my fingers. He still does that, but I have caught him resting at the bottom of the tank alot more on Friday.

Thanks,
Stephanie