Tail biter!

[Patsgirl13]

I think I have a tail tier!! Grell (the fish In
MY avatar )has fin damage it seems not to be healing but I know it's not fin rot. Could he be a tail biter?

[Patsgirl13]

Biter*

[Enkil]

Either tail biting or something in his environment.
Keep his water very clean and warm. I have a couple of tail biters and they get along just fine. Try rearranging his tank and see if that helps things.
What kinds of decorations/plants does he have?

[Patsgirl13]

He has a Japanese temple and a plant
But now I think it might be fin rot
But I am medicating the tank for amonia and high ph so I don't wanna stress him out with more meds

[Hallyx]

Originally Posted by Patsgirl13

He has a Japanese temple and a plant
But now I think it might be fin rot

Are those deep scallops turning blackish around the edges? If not, it is probably just bites which can be treated, as Enkil suggests, with warm (82*), conditioned water, changed often.

Originally Posted by Patsgirl13

But I am medicating the tank for amonia and high ph

What are you using for the ammonia? The preferred method of controlling ammonia is water changes with conditioned water.

What are you using for your pH? How high is it? What is your sourcewater pH? It is generally recommended that a keeper not mess with pH if it is within an acceptable range, which, for a Betta is quite wide.

[Patsgirl13]

His source water (my tap water) is ph between 7.8 and 8
I just did a water test:
Ph 6.8
Amonia .25ppm
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Everything's perfect exept his amonia
His temp is 78
And he is swimming around lively as ever

[Hallyx]

Those are good parameters for just before a water change to cut the ammonia.

Interesting how much your pH drops. Do you have a lot of plants? Driftwood? Leave a bowl of sourcewater out for a few days and see how much your pH drifts day to day.

That wide a pH range can shock your fish (7.8 is 10 times as high as 6.8). Although it's more trouble, you might want to do two partial water changes to ease the transition. example: two 30% 20 minutes apart, instead of a 50%.

I think you might need calcium (like seashells) to bolster the alkalinity (buffering capacity) of your water, to keep the pH from dropping excessively. Ask this question on the 'Bowls, Habitats and Accessories' section of the forum to get other opinions.

[Hallyx]

Oh, wait a minute. Did you put something in your water to lower your pH?

[Enkil]

For an ammonia spike, I recommend just doing a partial water change as suggested. What size is his tank? Is it a live plant?

If he has no black edges to his fins, I wouldn't suspect fin rot. Long finned males can be prone to biting. There are many things behind it. If he is biting, there are quite a few things you can try to stop it.
He may be bored. Try rearranging his tank. Add more to it. Give him exorcise once a day using a mirror.