Extremely Advanced Fin Rot PLEASE HELP!

[Lindsey19]

My poor betta fish Rupert has come down with an extremely bad case of fin rot. When I rescued him from a pet store he had the disease just lightly at the edges of his fins. I took him home and within a few weeks it was completely eliminated... or so I thought. A few months later he came down with an extremely rotten and vigorous case of fin rot. I began treatment immediately but his tail fin was just 2 mm away from his body and now he has a lot of trouble swimming.

Currently he is in a little hospital tank and receiving 100% daily water changes. His fins are growing back slowly so that is not the whole problem. What I really need help with is getting him to eat. Because he cannot swim right anymore he floats all day and all night at this bizarre angle where he cannot eat, even if I try to put the food right in front of his mouth with a toothpick. He has not eaten in a few days and if it continues like this I am going to loose him. :(

Housing
What size is your tank? The hospital tank is 1/2 gal
What temperature is your tank? 80 degrees
Does your tank have a filter? Not in the hospital tank (which he has been in for a week)
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? Yes, his usual tank does
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? Nutrition Max Flakes, occasionally bloodworms, and very occasionally pellet sized bits of cooked pea
How often do you feed your betta fish? Once daily

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Right now, 100% daily
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 100%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Stresscoat, bettafix, tetracyclin, 1/4 tsp AQ salt


Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Only his fins have become ragged and missing, his color is still fine
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? He is depressed and has stopped eating
When did you start noticing the symptoms? I noticed a very basic case of fin rot at first
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? With the medication above and a hospital tank
Does your fish have any history of being ill? Only the very minor fin rot when I first bought him
How old is your fish (approximately)? 2 years

[Lindsey19]

Here's another... the way he floats he just can't eat.

[sunlight]

can you please tell us if he is bloated? The reason i ask because he is floating on his side. It usually comes with swim bladder problem or can be something else.

Also if you started Tetracycline i will finish whole course of it. But please follow the instructions on the dose. And do daily water changes . Just redose it every time when you change the water.
Stop bettafix. It too much medications and you stressing him out. And i read bad responses on bettafix. Stress coat- continue to use.

How long you using aq salt? 1/4 not right dose it not therapeutic dose and will not help. So stop aq salt. Finish tetracycline first and then you can start aq salt. I will tell you instructions on that.
How long you using tetracycline , when it should be done?

Acclimate fish every time when you do water change. Don't put him in the new water right away. Add small amount of the new water to his changing cup let him sit for about 5 min and do it for about 3 times so he can use to new chemistry/temperature.

[babystarz]

I agree with everything Sunlight said. You might also want to make him a hammock to stick near the water surface for him to rest on, so he doesn't have to work to stay where he is.

[Lindsey19]

Thanks for all of the advice.
No he is not bloated at all, he shows no signs of being bloated.
I am following the tetracyclin dosages exactly and it should be a few more weeks until it has run it's entire course. I will stop bettafix and just stick with stress coat.
I do already acclimate him to his new water just as you wrote above.

I will try getting him a hammock to make him less stressed. That is all I can think of, on top of stopping the bettafix. Thanks!

[Lindsey19]

Oh btw, I set up another one gallon tank with just stress coat, water dechlornator, and still the correct dosage of tetracycline and had it heated to 81 degrees. I acclimated my fish to the water and when I put him in it he swam around upright for a few minutes and explored his new tank happily. I came back a few minutes later and he was sinking to the bottom barely breathing. I quickly transferred him back to his original 1/2 gallon tank with the treatment I listed above and he is now breathing and floating again... I don't know if that helps at all but something is really wrong...

[sunlight]

is he bloated? He might sink to the bottom because he is bloated. I think it easier for him to be in the hospital tank so he can swim easier to the top. But question if he is bloated is very important. This can be the reason that he can't swim and sinking to the bottom. And we need to find out why he is bloated then.
And i would not use betafix i read again a few people had bad experience ...and you already giving him medications any way you don't need to give too much. It more harm then help him.

If he is bloated you might need epsom salt that you can buy at probably any pharmacy not at the pet store

[NyaNyanNaa]

Pea's are awful to give to your betta since they cannot digest them, even if broken up so you should stop feeding him though since that could be a problem.

[sunlight]

Yes i missed that. No pea. The best if betta bloated is frozen daphnia. And if he is bloated we need to find out why. I hope it not internal parasites. Did you see what color and shape his poop. If it white,clear stringy wormy color it can be internal parasites.

[Lindsey19]

I came home from school today and the little guy didn't make it. :( He hadn't eaten in a full week now and I think that is what did it.

Sorry guys :( Thanks for all of the help.