Red Lump

[Zoetrooper]

I've noticed this strange red lump on my fish's ventral fin. At first I thought he just had a weird fin, but it is only on one side and looks very much like a growth of some sort.

I'm wondering what it is or if anyone has ran into this sort of thing before.

He is very active, feisty, has a good appetite, doesn't seem to have an issue with clamped fins, struts about the tank etc. Pretty much thinks he's the boss, has a great personality.

He does glass surf quite often though.



Housing
What size is your tank? 1 gallon. This is only temporary as I have been looking for a new tank for him.
What temperature is your tank? 24 C
Does your tank have a filter? Yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? Yes
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? Hikari Betta Bio Gold
How often do you feed your betta fish? 3 times a day, 5 pellets

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Once a week
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50% normally
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Aquarium salt, AquaSafe Water Conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia: ?
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
pH: 7.0
Hardness: 25
Alkalinity: 60

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? He actually looks way better then when I got him three weeks ago. Colourful. So, improvement I suppose.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Not much, he's still active, healthy appetite. Sometimes I will catch him laying on the leaves on his side, but I think that is just what he does, not a symptom.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? 2 weeks ago.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? Aquarium salt and 100% water changes once a week.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? I don't believe so, the petshop didn't know much about him.
How old is your fish (approximately)? Not sure, I just purchased him a short time ago.



Here are some images, they are decent quality, but it still seems rather hard to tell. :/ He is his temporary tank while I change his main tank. He also fears the red monolith that is my camera and would dart away frequently, so shots were hard to get.

[AyalaCookiejar]

Well.. Your tank needs to be a few degrees warmer. Are you feeding 5 pellets total a day or 15? 15 is too much. You also need to be doing another 100% water change per week along with the 50% in that tank size. I'd get a test kit that tests for ammonia. You won't ever see nitrites or nitrates in an unfiltered tank... How long has he been in the AQ salt?

[callistra]

You are severely over feeding your guy.. 15 pellets a day? Are you talking about the regular betta pellets? I wouldn't feed more than 4 a day of those, and you also need one fast day a week. I would also suggest looking for a different pellet. Good pellets will have the first two or three ingredients as whole fish, not fishmeal and wheat is the worst. New Life Spectrum Betta and Omega One Betta Buffet are two good ones.

Something of this size needs two water changes a week - 50% and 100%. Even then they will see smaller amounts of ammonia.

The white across his back is a concern.. that could be the start of columnaris. From the second pic it looks like he's pretty clamped too and the white beard is also a sign of stress.. Red lump could be some sort of lymphocitis? I don't know.

It does need to be heated eventually but I would not at this point due to potential columnaris threat. I always treat columnaris with Kanaplex. It can also be treated with Maracyn Plus and Furan 2.

[Zoetrooper]

Originally Posted by AyalaCookiejar

Well.. Your tank needs to be a few degrees warmer.

Well. Doing the best I can there. He has a nice heater in his tank, but I am currently experiencing Canadian winter with only a space heater for warmth. 75F/24C is minimum from what I have read. It would be nicer if I could raise the temperature more but going to have to wait for summer for that methinks.

Are you feeding 5 pellets total a day or 15? 15 is too much.

I am feeding him the minimum of what the product suggests. I am a stickler for reading directions. How much would you recommend?

You also need to be doing another 100% water change per week along with the 50% in that tank size. I'd get a test kit that tests for ammonia. You won't ever see nitrites or nitrates in an unfiltered tank... How long has he been in the AQ salt?

Check, check. The tank is filtered. Just started using aquarium salt last week.

[AyalaCookiejar]

Don't use the salt for longer than 14 days... Otherwise, I think the other questions Callistra answered.

A filter is likely causing him stress. They really don't do anything in one gallon tanks... I'd remove it until you get a larger tank.

[Zoetrooper]

Originally Posted by callistra

You are severely over feeding your guy.. 15 pellets a day?

Again, just feeding him what it said on the back for directions. He doesn't appear fat or bloated. I will feed him significantly less though. Gotcha on the fast day too.

Something of this size needs two water changes a week - 50% and 100%. Even then they will see smaller amounts of ammonia.

The white across his back is a concern.. that could be the start of columnaris. From the second pic it looks like he's pretty clamped too and the white beard is also a sign of stress.. Red lump could be some sort of lymphocitis? I don't know.

He's barely ever clamped. He was a little stressed in the pictures because I had him out of his regular tank to change his water. I'll see if I can get a better picture later. I'll keep my eye on the white, though I think the stuff you are seeing on his back is his blue colouring. I'll see if I can get better pictures later.

It does need to be heated eventually but I would not at this point due to potential columnaris threat. I always treat columnaris with Kanaplex. It can also be treated with Maracyn Plus and Furan 2.

It is heated/has a heater.

[Zoetrooper]

Originally Posted by AyalaCookiejar

Don't use the salt for longer than 14 days... Otherwise, I think the other questions Callistra answered.

A filter is likely causing him stress. They really don't do anything in one gallon tanks... I'd remove it until you get a larger tank.

I'll turn the filter off for him then. I was told each change should have AQ salt in it, I guess that is wrong?

[AyalaCookiejar]

Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there... Especially with accessories for your fish. Kind of like how small bowls are advertised towards goldfish, who need at least 20 gallons to themselves. It's kind of a scam to get money... If you feed more pellets, you'll run out faster and buy more? Idk.

At least he does not look bloated at this point. They will pretty much eat themselves to death... and constantly overfeeding will cause swim bladder issues.

Edit: Yes, AQ salt should only be used on sick fish. It seems right now that the AQ salt is not helping... and it is harmful if used for too long. *facepalm* pet store people are so uneducated, it's ridiculous.

[Zoetrooper]

Originally Posted by AyalaCookiejar

Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there... Especially with accessories for your fish. Kind of like how small bowls are advertised towards goldfish, who need at least 20 gallons to themselves. It's kind of a scam to get money... If you feed more pellets, you'll run out faster and buy more? Idk.

At least he does not look bloated at this point. They will pretty much eat themselves to death... and constantly overfeeding will cause swim bladder issues.

Edit: Yes, AQ salt should only be used on sick fish. It seems right now that the AQ salt is not helping... and it is harmful if used for too long. *facepalm* pet store people are so uneducated, it's ridiculous.

Welp! I'll fast him tomorrow, and do a 100% change in a few days to get that AQ out. Filter is off to, so, yay.

I'm kind of shocked by this, that companies can get away with such invalid information on their packaging. :/

[AyalaCookiejar]

It's really sad, isn't it? They don't really care about fish in general. There are laws against abuse against dogs and cats, but fish can be abused and neglected countless times and no one really does anything about it. I can't really say why that is.

This is a great forum for anyone keeping bettas, IMO. The people here may be able to help you with sicknesses and stuff, and this help is only educated guesses... But mostly all of our members are dedicated to the absolute best care we can provide. I've learned tonss in the couple months I have been a member here, and it's so relieving having somewhere to go where people understand. It's super easy to get attached to these fish... So be prepared :p