Beta: help?

[fly0away0]

I have received a beta fishy for my birthday (October 5th) for three weeks with me, he seemed to be doing fine...and actually better... his coloration became brighter then when I first got him and his fins started stretching out more (they were kind of curled up when I got him) recently I noticed red spots near his gills...possibly a cut???I'm wondering if the fishy is sick or not? and what I should do???
I'm assuming the person who gave him to me bought him at walmart (and I know they're not known for taking care of fish...)
the water is clean and I feed him pelet-food twice a day...and theres nothing sharp in his tank... o.O?




thats him... Say hello to SIR. SQUISHY!!

[iamntbatman]

From the pictures, it really looks as if the redness around his gills is part of his natural coloration. It's really common for fish that are under stress (i.e. when they're moved, as in your case) to wash out. As they get more comfortable in their new surroundings, they color back up.

However, just to be on the safe side, could you post more info about your setup? How big is his tank? Is it heated and filtered? Can you post your water parameters (temperature, pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)?

A betta thrives at tempertures between 76 and 82 degrees, so ideally you should have a heater for the tank. Low-flow filtration would also help keep the tank clean and would provide a place for beneficial bacteria to grow. Your water parameters are all very important for the health of your fish, so having a good liquid test kit like the API Freshwater Master Test Kit will let you monitor these levels and keep your fish healthy. You can also take a sample of your water to a fish store for them to test, but make sure they give you exact numbers for pH, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. In the long run, though, having your own test kit will save you a lot of trips to the store (as well as save you a lot of time, money, frustration plus the lives of a lot of fish, to be sure).

[dramaqueen]

I thought that the coloration by his gills was his natural color too, but hesitated to say anything until someone else made that same observation.