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Fin Rot - Need Advice

367 views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  peeptoad 
#1 ·
Hello everyone! I'm new to posting, though not to reading, and I need some advice about my betta, Old Gregg. I am pretty certain he has fin rot, but in all of my experience (13 bettas over the years), I've never dealt with a case of it before. I thought it was fin nipping at first since he'd done it once before, but the next morning more of his tail was missing, and now there are dark, frayed edges. He was a chain pet store fish sold as a baby, so I suspect it may have been nipping and then a weak immune system might have led to infection. Here he is a month or so ago:


And today:


Any treatment suggestions would be great.

Housing
What size is your tank? 3 gallons
What temperature is your tank? 79
Does your tank have a filter? Yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No - bubbles cause him to flare for long periods of time and become stressed to the point of not eating or resting, which is weird because he's never flared at one single other time/thing
Is your tank heated? Yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? Just a pair of moss balls

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Hikari micro pellets, occasional freeze dried bloodworms
How often do you feed your betta fish? Small amounts twice daily (he's too easily distracted to eat much at once, usually)

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Once a week, twice if he has missed more food than usual
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? Between 1/3 & 1/2 - I would guess around 40%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? BettaSafe

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? I ran out of testing stuff last week, but his parameters have always been perfect up to this point

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? He initially looked as though he'd nipped a chunk from his tail, but now I'm thinking it's fin rot because the edges are turning black and he's lost more of it very quickly. It may have initially been nipping and become infected, because it did not look like rot at all on the first day.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Initially he seemed very agitated and almost panicky, but this seems to have decreased.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? The first missing chunk was Saturday night, and this morning (Monday) it was much worse and seemed like rot
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? He's been moved to .5 gallon quarantine tank with full daily water changes and has been receiving Melafix (at 1/5 dosage of course), as I thought it was nipping and he simply needed something to aid in regrowth. I know some betta owners loathe (and/or fear) Melafix, but I've been keeping bettas for the majority of the last nine years and have never experienced any negative reactions.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? None, and we've had him since he was quite young. Too young, really. He was a PetCo baby. Or PetSmart? One of them, anyhow.
How old is your fish (approximately)? Six to seven months
 
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#2 ·
I'd ditch the Melafix, I haven't heard anything positive about it.

I've used some aquarium salt with good results. 1 tsp/gallon - make sure it's pre-dissolved. Pour in small amounts of it to his tank over the course of an hour, about every 10-15 minutes. Since he's in the .5 gal hospital tank, you'd use .5 tsp. You can use the AQ salt for up to 10 days, and be sure to do 100% daily water changes as well. Keeping the water warm (80-ish degrees) will also help :) Have any other questions?
 
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