melafix experience

[veggiegirl]

Depends on the seller I guess but generally they are quite good to deal with because they are relying on the good feedback that you give them if you are happy with the transaction and product.

[cnbufford]

[Hadoken Kitty]

Oh that poor baby! Hopefully our boys can get better soon. Thank you for the name of the site. I just purchased the methylene blue myself. Can't wait for it to get here!!!

[Myates]

Have to be very careful when dosing medications - all medications have potential to harm/kill the fish due to their tiny little organs and medication really isn't healthy for any one/animal.

Melafix, as mentioned, is controversial - but it can be used as long as it is diluted a good amount prior to use. Even then it's iffy.. I've seen some bettas have no trouble with it, others start shedding slime coating, etc. I think your guy either freaked out from being moved, or it irritated his open gills.

How did he get his gills inflamed like that? Normally it happens from things such as nitrate poisoning (not cleaning the tank enough - not siphoning out the poop each week from the substrate will build it up quickly), bacteria infection or even something dripping/sprayed into/near tank.. I accidentally placed too much green tea too quickly into a tank of one of my boys about a year+ ago and his gills went straight out like that as a result, had to treat him with AQ salt for a few days before he got better.. ended up taking over a week before they fully closed.. never used green tea since, prefer IAL/oak for tannin now.

Clean water and AQ salt would help him - AQ salt will help keep the gills clean and keep the mucus on them..

1-2 tsp per gallon, daily 100% water changes adding in the AQ salt (+ water conditioner) each time. Make sure to dissolve the salt in hot water (keep stirring it) before adding him to it.. continue the treatment until he is better, or for 10-14 days, whichever comes first.

[Myates]

Question.. saw your other post.. why did you place him in medication? Your other post says he flares randomly when "patrolling" .. which is normal.. is that why you placed him in medication? Or was his gills sticking out 100% of the time, never going down?

[cnbufford]

His gill was inflamed like that and stuck out all the time, whether flaring or not. Thanks for the advice; there's a notable difference already.

[Shadyr]

I have used bettafix...but keep in mind what it is. It's an antiseptic. IE, wound cleaner. The equivalent of putting alcohol or hydrogen peroxide on your scrapes and cuts. I can see why your boy was not happy about it hitting that distressed gill. I have used *betta*fix diluted in conjunction with AQ salt and Stresscoat+ when I had a boy get some scales on his head bonked off (silly betta head butted the water change cup). Probably coulda skipped it, but he healed up in about 5 days, so my limited experience with it was positive.

You say you didn't realize this was such a science, but I proffer this: it's because we care about our pets. All of them, be they furry or finny. Most people would take their dog or cat to the vet if it gets sick. We love our fish too, but since there are no fish vets, we have to be the vets for when they get under the weather.

[cnbufford]

Bettafix and melafix are literally the same product.

[cnbufford]

He's much better with a water change and dissolved AQ salt.

[LebronTheBetta]

Get well soon!
All -fix meds contain "tea tree oil" which can coat their labyrinth and suffocate them... Bettafix and Melafix are NOT the same. Bettafix is much weaker, so the betta won't be hurt as much. But Melafix is the strong med, you want to avoid -fix meds at all costs, no matter if it's a chance or not.