Red Spots

[Kanra Chan]

Here's the story of Mako.
The person who sold him to me told me that he was a year and a half old, but I found out later that he was less than a year old. He succumb to cold, stress, and hyperactivity easily, unlike my brother's bettas even though he had a much better tank setup than they did. Despite that, his bubble nest was huge, and he ate well. When I saw some fin rot on his tail, I asked a Pet Smart employee (The employees at Pet Smart are all supposed to be educated) and she gave me MelaFix.
Minutes after giving it to him, he was nearly dead.
His reaction was far worse than the other bettas, and I know now that was because he was so young. He got ich soon after, because of the hit his immune system had taken. The next week I got lots of help from veterinarians, friends, and a betta breeder from Pet Valu who gave me a bag of his own medicated water to take home. This water saved my fish.
But since that day, he has had red spots on his fins that will not go away, no matter the salt baths, medication, or quality of water. Here are the methods of treatment I have implemented over the past four months;

(Any use of aquarium salt was combined with a water temperature of at least 80F. All treatments lasted 1 week or less, as directed.)

Salt Dip
- 3tsp. of aquarium salt per half gallon (He has a bad reaction to salt, so this is the most I can put in).
- Longest duration, 20 minutes.
- Number of uses, 1.
- Reaction: Stress, lethargic. Ate without problems. Recovered within minutes of returning him to normal tank water.

Salt Bath
- 1 tsp. of aquarium salt per half gallon. Put whole salt crystals underneath gravel.
- Longest duration, 1 week.
- Number of uses, 4. (I tried a bath three times a week for one week, then a month later, one continuous bath for a week)
- Reaction: Same as with normal tank water. Brighter colour. More aggression. Larger bubble nest.

Medicated / Quarantine Tank
- 1/4 tsp. of BettaFix OR 1/10 tablet of Tetra Fungus Guard
- Longest duration, 1 week as directed.
- Number of uses, (BettaFix) over 10 (Fungus Guard) 3.
- Reaction: Same as with normal tank. No signs of recovery, no signs of worse health.

*** When I stopped adding Betta Fix to his water every other batch, I noticed the red spots became worse, so I add it in pattern with his aquarium salt, every other batch of water for water changes.

I am not sure what to do now.
If anyone has any ideas or advice, I would greatly appreciate your help.
Thank you :)

[Myates]

Poor guy.. Petsmart employees don't have to be educated. Consensus around here when it comes to pet store employees is that take whatever they tell you with a grain of salt and come home and research the facts.

Melafix is a harsh medication, if not very careful it can really harm the betta.. both with the organs, and his labyrinth organ (due to an ingredient that coats the organ they breathe with and could suffocate them). So if you ever use Melafix (or even bettafix) make sure to water it down a great deal.


Salt Dip
- 3tsp. of aquarium salt per half gallon (He has a bad reaction to salt, so this is the most I can put in).
- Longest duration, 20 minutes.
- Number of uses, 1.
- Reaction: Stress, lethargic. Ate without problems. Recovered within minutes of returning him to normal tank water.
3 tsp per gallon is the max.. basically you doubled the salt content, which can harm a freshwater fish. That is why he was lethargic and in trouble.. and then recovered once back in his tank. Just avoid the dips all together, as they really don't do anything for them.

Salt Bath
- 1 tsp. of aquarium salt per half gallon. Put whole salt crystals underneath gravel.
- Longest duration, 1 week.
- Number of uses, 4. (I tried a bath three times a week for one week, then a month later, one continuous bath for a week)
- Reaction: Same as with normal tank water. Brighter colour. More aggression. Larger bubble nest.
Don't place whole crystals into the tank - it can burn the fish.. rather use a cup with a small amount of tank water and dissolve the salt first.. continuously stirring it will help speed up the process.

Medicated / Quarantine Tank
- 1/4 tsp. of BettaFix OR 1/10 tablet of Tetra Fungus Guard
- Longest duration, 1 week as directed.
- Number of uses, (BettaFix) over 10 (Fungus Guard) 3.
- Reaction: Same as with normal tank. No signs of recovery, no signs of worse health.
Poor guy.. using so much medication and salt, really not good on his organs. I would not place him in any more medication for a long while to help him recoup. Even though he may of acted normal, it's still taking a toll on his organs.

*** When I stopped adding Betta Fix to his water every other batch, I noticed the red spots became worse, so I add it in pattern with his aquarium salt, every other batch of water for water changes.
Are you sure they are not normal colors, as bettas can change colors in time? But honestly I think you are burning him with all the medication and salt you are using.. very dangerous mixtures and treatments.

Proper AQ salt treatment:
AQ salt treatment 1-3 teaspoons of AQ salt per gallon (nothing more than that), make sure to dissolve it before using as the crystals can burn the fish. Daily 100% water changes adding in the salt (+ conditioner) each day, and for no longer than 10-14 days.

But at this time I would remove him from all salts and medication.. only keep him in clean water with ONLY water conditioner added. Post pictures if you can so we can make see the red in his fins. How did the fin rot look? Black edges that were flaking off?

But honestly, I would not have him in anything right now other than just clean conditioned water.. most of the time, if caught within reasonable amount of time.. just extra water changes will stop the fin rot.

[Kanra Chan]

Thank you.

I do not use the medications one after another, they are treatments used a few weeks apart, and only when I see him getting worse.
100% water changes stress the fish out, so I use them sparingly. His water levels are fine, so I only do maintenance water changes.
The salt crystals are under the gravel and don't come into contact with him, but I will remove them.
I am pretty sure they are not normal colours, but I have considered that. The reason I am sure is because his white fins have actually changed to blue in a couple of places and that colour changing process was pretty pronounced compared to the red on his fins. But it is still a possibility, I don't know how to find out for sure.
I'm pretty sure medication can't burn the fins, but too much salt certainly can.
It may be possible that the medication is taking a toll on his organs, but I have had fish with organ problems, and I am at least certain that he is having no trouble right now. I will do more research on this, as I am giving him medication and not drugs.
He has no more fin rot, just the red spots. I'm not sure if they are still open sores, or if they have just been stained from the time he was sick and had open sores.
Now how do I post a picture...

[Kanra Chan]

Can't seem to post a picture...

[LittleBlueFishlets]

To upload a photo:
Clickthe"go advanced" button at the bottom of the reply box.
Then select the paperclip icon - about 5th from the right on the top row.