Betta Fins Look Like They Are Melting Away

[bettaowner101]

Hello, I have had my Crowntail Betta for about 5 months in a 1 gallon tank. I know, the tank is small, but I got the tank for my last Birthday gift. Anyways, My Betta Sparky doesn't seem as active as he used to be. His fins look like they are melting away and they have a white spot on the end of his tail and a red spot on one side of his tail. Does he have Fin Rot? Can I treat him with Aquarium Salt and a lot of water changes? I do a 100% water change once a week and I clean his tank once a week. I add 1/2 Teaspoon of Aquarium Salt per gallon each time I clean his tank. He is hiding right now and he hides more than often. He still eats with no probem. I told my parents that I want a bigger than for my birthday. My birthday isn't that far away and it is November 22nd. My dad was on the computer today and he was looking at a cheap 5 gallon tank on walmart.com and it was rated 5 stars and it has a filter. If I get this tank, Will this make him happier and maybe make whatever he was go away? Should I use 1 Teaspoon of salt per gallon instead of 1/2 teaspoon of salt because he is sick? Please help me. He has two hiding spots by the way.

[kelly528]

In a 1 gallon tank you will want to do water changes every 2 days. Until you get a tank with all the fixings, unfortunately there is not much you can do to treat him. Warm, clean water is absolutely essential. I would also suggest dosing aquarium salt to discourage the bacteria.

Basically all you can do is keep his water as clean as possible and hope he hangs in. Once bacteria get good footing on a fish, they usually spread quite fast.

Don't forget to order a heater with the tank!

And hold off on any medication... it is not usually necessary with fin rot and sucks the oxygen out of the water, which for obvious reasons becomes problematic when you are not running a filter.

[JamieTron]

Kelly is right, keep up with the salt baths for now. But don't over do it...salt can obstruct their osmoregulation (which is basically the balance of water and salts in their body) give a few days in between if you decide to do it more than once a week. Do you leave the salt in the tank? This is probably not a good idea, I know some people do do it, but in my experience I have learned that salt dips for 5 minutes at a time are better then leaving salt in the tank. Again, due to the fact that they are not equipped to osmoregulate in salt water. The concentration you are using seems fine, some people put as much as 1 tbs per gallon for a dips if you do decide to go that route.

Also, Kelly is right about no medication until you need it. Monitor the situation, if you feel you are getting no where with the salt baths are you fear the worse then do so...but you should be very sure. Since it does remove oxygen you should not use it in a small non aerated tank. I would wait until your new tank comes along

Hopefully he will cure up nicely without having to use medication I had to use it on my betta before, it worked fine, but his fin was falling off in chunks and nothing else worked I just had to make sure he had lots of oxygen.

I am sure your betta will LOVE his new tank! He will feel quite spoiled I am sure

[bettaowner101]

Originally Posted by JamieTron

Kelly is right, keep up with the salt baths for now. But don't over do it...salt can obstruct their osmoregulation (which is basically the balance of water and salts in their body) give a few days in between if you decide to do it more than once a week. Do you leave the salt in the tank? This is probably not a good idea, I know some people do do it, but in my experience I have learned that salt dips for 5 minutes at a time are better then leaving salt in the tank. Again, due to the fact that they are not equipped to osmoregulate in salt water. The concentration you are using seems fine, some people put as much as 1 tbs per gallon for a dips if you do decide to go that route.

Also, Kelly is right about no medication until you need it. Monitor the situation, if you feel you are getting no where with the salt baths are you fear the worse then do so...but you should be very sure. Since it does remove oxygen you should not use it in a small non aerated tank. I would wait until your new tank comes along

Hopefully he will cure up nicely without having to use medication I had to use it on my betta before, it worked fine, but his fin was falling off in chunks and nothing else worked I just had to make sure he had lots of oxygen.

I am sure your betta will LOVE his new tank! He will feel quite spoiled I am sure

Thanks but, He seems to be getting no where with the meds. I tried using the salt in the tank and he didn't get any better. He gets extremely stressed when I clean my tank and he is VERY lethargic