So the betta I've had for about a month now has a increasingly bad case of fin rot. I suspect that he may have already had it when I got him as his top fin was a folded mess then.
Anyhow, the fin rot has since worsened and he has two holes in his tail and the edges of his tail or are blacked color and the top and bottom fins are curling and stripping.
His behavior wasn't very bad though as he was active and curious and generally normal until about two days ago when he started acting mopy. One thing I did notice though is that ever since I got him he hasn't been a big eater. I'll usually feed him and he'll leave the floating pellets alone until they sink to the bottom where I'll find him picking at them later on searching through the gravel.
I've done a ton of searching on the subject of treating him and when I stopped by a small local pet shop the owner suggested Melafix. So I bought a small bottle of that and started using it according to directions. He did seem to perk up a bit but it did pretty much nothing to help the fin rot.
Other research I've done on medicines to help him turn up a mix of results it seems. Half the time people seem to say this or that helps a lot, while the other half say to never use it, it killed their fish. So i'm really lost of what to try as far as a medicine although I've familiarized myself with Maracyn I and II, tetracycline, and all the likes that seem to be suggested normally.
So in wake of the confusion I also read that increased water changes do a big deal of helping as well as a bit of aquarium salt. So my plan for now is putting Berry (the beta's name) into a separate, easier to clean and a tad smaller place, and changing at least half the water daily. I want to try adding a tiny bit of Aquarium salt in as well whenever I can get to the store and buy some.
His usual 1.5 gallon tank (with what is supposed to be an undergravel filter) is going to be cleaned from top to bottom while he's out of it and get it set back up for when he shows some signs of improvement. If I can get to that stage then I plan on starting 50 percent water changes twice a week with that and I kinda of wanted to buy two or three ghost shrimp to add as well as I hear that help with food on the bottom and I think they would be adorable friend's for Berry.
So, the big question is...do you guys think I might be on track to helping get rid of his fin rot? Am I missing something huge? Does my plan sound like it will help at all. I'm sorry this is my first post and it's long and I'm babbling but I want to make sure I cover everything.
I already moved him over as I wanted to get him in some cleaner water as soon as possible but I've been planning this for a while now so I made sure to treat the water with dechorinater and have it setting out ready since this morning.
um what else can I say..oh! I don't have a heater for his tank, I'm trying to find one that would work for it still all the smaller heaters seem to have bad reviews that i've looked at. Although I hate the anything below 70 personally and I have a portable heater for the room itself going half the time as it is.
I also I might look into upgrading his to a tank between 2-5 gallons in the future. It's not really a matter of money (although I really don't have much to throw around) just space. I think if I can clear my dresser off I could fit a bigger one there.
But yes I'll stop typing now. Any suggestions and comments are appreciated.
Anyhow, the fin rot has since worsened and he has two holes in his tail and the edges of his tail or are blacked color and the top and bottom fins are curling and stripping.
His behavior wasn't very bad though as he was active and curious and generally normal until about two days ago when he started acting mopy. One thing I did notice though is that ever since I got him he hasn't been a big eater. I'll usually feed him and he'll leave the floating pellets alone until they sink to the bottom where I'll find him picking at them later on searching through the gravel.
I've done a ton of searching on the subject of treating him and when I stopped by a small local pet shop the owner suggested Melafix. So I bought a small bottle of that and started using it according to directions. He did seem to perk up a bit but it did pretty much nothing to help the fin rot.
Other research I've done on medicines to help him turn up a mix of results it seems. Half the time people seem to say this or that helps a lot, while the other half say to never use it, it killed their fish. So i'm really lost of what to try as far as a medicine although I've familiarized myself with Maracyn I and II, tetracycline, and all the likes that seem to be suggested normally.
So in wake of the confusion I also read that increased water changes do a big deal of helping as well as a bit of aquarium salt. So my plan for now is putting Berry (the beta's name) into a separate, easier to clean and a tad smaller place, and changing at least half the water daily. I want to try adding a tiny bit of Aquarium salt in as well whenever I can get to the store and buy some.
His usual 1.5 gallon tank (with what is supposed to be an undergravel filter) is going to be cleaned from top to bottom while he's out of it and get it set back up for when he shows some signs of improvement. If I can get to that stage then I plan on starting 50 percent water changes twice a week with that and I kinda of wanted to buy two or three ghost shrimp to add as well as I hear that help with food on the bottom and I think they would be adorable friend's for Berry.
So, the big question is...do you guys think I might be on track to helping get rid of his fin rot? Am I missing something huge? Does my plan sound like it will help at all. I'm sorry this is my first post and it's long and I'm babbling but I want to make sure I cover everything.
I already moved him over as I wanted to get him in some cleaner water as soon as possible but I've been planning this for a while now so I made sure to treat the water with dechorinater and have it setting out ready since this morning.
um what else can I say..oh! I don't have a heater for his tank, I'm trying to find one that would work for it still all the smaller heaters seem to have bad reviews that i've looked at. Although I hate the anything below 70 personally and I have a portable heater for the room itself going half the time as it is.
I also I might look into upgrading his to a tank between 2-5 gallons in the future. It's not really a matter of money (although I really don't have much to throw around) just space. I think if I can clear my dresser off I could fit a bigger one there.
But yes I'll stop typing now. Any suggestions and comments are appreciated.