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Severe and Advanced Fin Rot!

2K views 17 replies 3 participants last post by  callistra 
#1 ·
Housing
What size is your tank? 5 Gallon
What temperature is your tank? 79 degrees F
Does your tank have a filter? Yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? Yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Mix of Betta pellets, Brine Shrimp, and Blood Worms
How often do you feed your betta fish? 3 times a day

Maintenance

How often do you perform a water change? At least once a week, although I have no control over water changes when I am at college, and I don't think my mom does them as often as I ask her to.
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 25-50% depending on situation.
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Conditioner, Stress coat, and salt(when sick or has torn fins)

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia:0
Nitrite:0
Nitrate:0
pH:8
Hardness:0
Alkalinity: 300

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Drastically since the beginning of last semester. Gaunt, curved spine, short fins, scales falling off, heaving breathing
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Lethargic, easily spooked, hangs out at top of tank.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? Christmas break
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I have been treating him since last June for chronic finrot, but nothing seems to work permanently.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? Chronic Finrot and one brief bacterial infection last year.
How old is your fish (approximately)? 2 and a half to 3 years old.

I know there is no real excuse for Touchstone's condition, but I have been away at college and when I got back for Christmas, his fins were basically gone and he looked as if he were at death's door! I feel as if I have tried everything. This poor boy has a history of chronic fin rot, and I have tried treating it in the past, but it never seems to go away completely. The Ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite levels are all fine, so I don't understand why he keeps getting worse. He looks as though he is about to die, so I went into a local petstore for Maracyn 2, but they didn't have any. The lady there said that the meds actually hurt the fish, and that the best way to treat fin rot is to slice an aloe vera leaf and squeeze the jelly into the tank. Would this work? This sounded kind of suspicious, and I don't want to hurt my fish anymore than I already have. Also, I don't always trust petstore people. Anyways, I value any advice and opinions.
 
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#3 ·
Ok, that sounds good, thank you so much for responding. I will get him either triple sulfa or Maracyn 2, asap. I gave him a good water change with salt yesterday, so he is swimming a little bit more, but he still looks terrible.

So you wouldn't recommend the aloe vera thing? Also, what about raising his temp? Would that help? Thank you so much for your advice!
 
#5 ·
I am already using stress coat w/aloe vera in it, so I think I will play it safe and use conventional medicine. Thank you for your help, here's hoping it works!
 
#6 ·
Umm.. is he looking like he's losing weight at all or have a caved belly at all? I'll tell you what I'm thinking once you say..

I would do Maracyns in combo or try to get some Kanamyacin (Kanaplex by Seachem)
 
#7 ·
Yes, he looks starved, but he is still eating. The middle of his body looks sunken in. His back is arched, and is constantly in an S position. He also has veins visible and is losing color and scales. I assumed it was a result of advanced fin rot, but you think it is something else?
 
#8 ·
The bent spine, weight loss, and sunken in appearance are symptoms of fish TB, but I'm unsure if this is what your betta actually has. It usually kills very quickly.

Do not use the same equipment for water changes between any tanks you have and watch your other fish closely for similar symptoms.

Wash your hands very thoroughly before touching any food you'll be preparing or eating, before touching your face, and before you touch anything for your other tanks.

Be very cautious since if it is fish RB it can spread to you and your other fish.

don't take this as a "Your fish has this" but simply as the symptoms you describe match the symptoms of that disease.
 
#9 ·
I really hope that's not what he has, but all my other fish are pretty healthy. I use the same equipment between all of them, and they all seem fine. Just to be safe, I will keep an eye out and use different equipment. How could he have gotten this disease, if that's what he has? Is there any test to find out if it is TB?
 
#11 ·
He does have tiny white lesions on his body behind his pectoral fins. I had him treated for Ich, but they never went away. He looks so sick, and I feel like such a bad betta mom!
 
#12 · (Edited)
Yep that's what I was thinking too.. fish tb. Sorry but he's got every symptom in the book.. Isolate the fish to QT tank. The tank he's in will need to be bleached and out gased. Treat him with Kanamyacin (Kanaplex) by Seachem for 30 days is treatment for this. The bacteria is only effected by antibiotics during a very small part of its life cycle so this is why treatment long term is important. I've also heard of b6 is helpful when added. Sources suggested are liquid baby vitamins. I would just be careful what it's suspended in and try to find something without a lot of add ins.

This can infect you too (usually in the form of a rash) so make sure you wear gloves and wash really well when handling the water.

It's not your fault if your mom isn't keeping up with water changes.. I would take this opportunity to impress upon your mom exactly what the frequency of changes you do when you are there is so important.. Unfortunately, sometimes people just don't get it until such a thing happens. It also could have come in somehow.. there's no real way of telling. You might think of switching food sources as I've heard it can come in with a contaminated food source.
 
#13 ·
I just wish I weren't at college right now, I am kinda stuck here, at least until next weekend. My mom doesn't care about my fish like I do, and I don't know if she would be willing to go out and find the meds, especially if those meds can't be found nearby. And I just talked to her about the tb possibility, and she doesn't believe that's it, because she can't see how it could have gotten into the tank and the fact that my other fish don't seem sick. I have Triple Sulfa, could that possibly work, as it is also an antibiotic?
 
#14 · (Edited)
No. Not if it's fish tb. Even the Kanaplex is not a 100% treatment and the only other thing that I am aware of helping in this is are actually tb drugs.. although I think there may be a combo antibiotic treatment people have used with small success. Could work on the fin rot but the sunken belly, lethargic, curved spine and scale loss is classic tb..The only other thing that might have any chance of causing that would be advanced internal parasite infection with secondary bacterial infection.

In any rate your mom needs to be prepared to do some quick and thorough treatment. I'm sorry I hope she listens to you.


ETA: Just double checked it. The other treatment I've seen suggested never actually seen used is streptomycin and isoniazid which are actual tb drugs and you're going to have to find a vet if you want to try that course but the Kanaplex will be an easier find and I do know about treating with that with at least some success.
 
#15 ·
I will talk to her, but I doubt she will want to try it, she will tell me that it is too much for just one fish. If he can hold out until this weekend, I can move him to a hospital tank and start treating him, if I can find kanaplex. I can check my local fish store, as I don't think petsmart carries it.
 
#16 ·
Petsmart does not carry it. When I was trying to find uncommon meds I went to yellowpages.com and typed in 'aquariums' and called down the list. Otherwise you can get it on Amazon.com.
 
#17 ·
If I cannot get it at my local petstore, I will look at amazon. I do want to thank you for your advice, I really appreciate it. I just hate seeing my baby suffer like this, and I want to do all I can to help him. So thank you again for your help and for alerting me about the possibility of this disease.
 
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