He is turning extremely pale!...

[ashleyy]

Something is wrong with Nadador again. I noticed yesterday that he is beginning to get pale on the base of his fins... his body is getting slightly pale too.

I don't see any slime or fuzziness or anything like that. And he is acting better than ever, eating all his food gracefully swimming around in his tank, his fins aren't clamped together anymore... I don't understand. Could it be because he went 3 weeks without eating? He only started eating three days ago (Sept. 15).

he is getting so pale??!




This was him One week ago!


Here are my stats:

Housing
What size is your tank? ---- 2.5 gallon critter keeper
What temperature is your tank? ---- 80-81 degrees
Does your tank have a filter? ---- No.
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? ---- No.
Is your tank heated? ---- Yes, Hydor Mini.
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? Nope.

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? ---- His favorite is Tetra BettaMin Tropical Medley, but he also eats Tetra Sun-Dried Baby Shrimp, Wardley's Betta Food Pellets and Hikari Betta Bio-Gold baby pellets.
How often do you feed your betta fish? ---- 2 to 3 times a day

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? ---- every 3 to 4 days
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? ---- Start Rite Water Conditioner and one tablespoon of Aquarium Salt.

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

Ammonia: ---- 0
Nitrite: ---- 0
Nitrate: ---- 10 ppm
pH: ---- 7
Hardness: ---- 35
Alkalinity: ---- 40

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? ---- He has gotten really pale on the base of his fins, some of his body too.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? ---- Well, he was acting terrible ever since I got him, but three days ago he started to eat and act more lively, he still is.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? ---- I noticed yesterday morning, but it could have started a day sooner.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? ---- No.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? ---- Yes, for 3 weeks since i got him he wouldn't eat and was very aloof and lethargic but now he is acting great.
How old is your fish (approximately)? ---- I don't know, I got him on Sept. 2, 2010.

[ashleyy]

he is getting more pale by the hour and now he is swimming around frantically!!

[Alex09]

It could be all the effects of not eating are showing up now. Or maybe its the aquarium salt? Im not sure if the salt could do this. How long have you been adding salt to his water?

[ashleyy]

I was thinking that it could be effects of not eating too. He is bloated and I never see him poop. I hope everything is digesting.

I have been salt in there for the last 2 water changes so its been about a week.

[MrVampire181]

When you look at him from above does he look like a pinecone?

[ashleyy]

Originally Posted by MrVampire181

When you look at him from above does he look like a pinecone?

nope, he is not pineconing.

his color actually came back. but I am still worried there is something wrong.

He actually got 50% paler than the pictures I posted in a matter of 15 minutes.

My dad who isn't very observant said "omg. he's white now?" it was bad..

[TurquoiseBetta]

wow... do you have plants in his tank? Betta fish love places to hide, so maybe he's not getting enough protection or he just needs some more places to sneak around.

[ashleyy]

I don't know what in the world happened, but his color has come back 100%. How weird?!

There is a tiny 'pin-hole' in his fin. I'm sure it isn't fin rot or anything like that because I keep his tank very clean and I have spent a very long time looking at him for anything odd on him.

I think it was from the plastic plants I got him. Darn. I went thru every plastic plant at petsmart (I would have gotten silk, but they didn't have any at all!). I spent forever feeling them to decide which were the softest. I'm the workers thought I was a nut. haha!