Very sick rescue advice??

[SpeakNow13]

I rescued a little guy from wal mart today and it just shatters my heart. His fins are falling apart. Like literally. Hanging on by a thread. He has ich. His water was so dirty I couldn't see him very well. I have him in a 1.5 gallon to qt. he is just kind of hanging out towards the top. Any advice will help. I want to help the little guy :'(

[AyalaCookiejar]

Oh boy. AQ salt will treat both his fins and the ich. What is the temp of the tank? Start with 1tsp per gallon Pre-Dissolved (!very important!) then add one more tsp aster 12 hours. In another 12 hours do a 100% water change and add 3tsps then continue to add 3tsps for up to ten days doing daily 100% water changes. Also, you can use stress coat as well to help his fins.

There are medications you can use to treat them if you don't want to do the conservative salt treatment.

[SpeakNow13]

I have him in a saltwater/stresscoat concoction, His water temp is 80 degrees. He is doing about the same as he was last night except after he swims around he floats back up on his side. Could this be because he doesn't have any fins to keep him balanced? Even if he doesn't end up making it at least I feel like he had a better chance with me. There are pieces of his fins floating around in the water and it makes me sad :( I would use medicine but I don't want to medicate him just yet. I feel like he needs as little stress as possible!

[jessp118]

Originally Posted by SpeakNow13

I have him in a saltwater/stresscoat concoction, His water temp is 80 degrees. He is doing about the same as he was last night except after he swims around he floats back up on his side. Could this be because he doesn't have any fins to keep him balanced? Even if he doesn't end up making it at least I feel like he had a better chance with me. There are pieces of his fins floating around in the water and it makes me sad :( I would use medicine but I don't want to medicate him just yet. I feel like he needs as little stress as possible!

Only use "Aquarium salt". If its the same saltwater that saltwater fish use then take him out of it imedietly. I wish the best of luck for you and your fish.

[AyalaCookiejar]

The floating could indicate internal problems. My Betta floated sideways when he had internal parasites. Aquarium salt wouldn't help this. That would be something you would treat with Epsom salt as its either an internal infection or something is wrong with his swim bladder. However, I would not mix aquarium salt and Epsom salt which is difficult when he has ich, fin damage and an internal problem. Epsom salt could be combined with medication, however.

Trying to treat all of these at the same time will be both difficult and also stressful to the fish, but at the same time, not treating it will probably result in death. Even if you do treat it, it may be too late for him.

Also, Epsom salt alone would not treat it if it were an internal parasite or bacterial infection. You could try a medication for ich and Epsom salt for the floating plus stress coat. It sounds like he's not in great shape and I would be prepared for the worse at this point.

Edit: I believe the Epsom salt might also help his fins slightly. Does he look even slightly bloated? My fish had very slight bloating with internal parasites.