Poor Betta is sick!! White looking Patch!! HELP PLEASE!!!

[RSandelli]

Hi! I bought my little Betta about 5 months ago. I think he is sick and I need some advice, asap! Any help is appreciated!

Basically, up until a few weeks ago he was a happy, outgoing little fish. Then about a week and 1/2 ago I noticed a white, cottony looking spot on his side. The below is a picture of another fish I found on the internet, it looks similar to what Villa has.

I bought Marcyn and some aquarium salt. I did a 1/3 water change and added in some of the aquarium salt. I also treated the aqaurium with the Marcyn for the past four days. (He is in a 4 gallon Biorb aquarium, by himself). I also changed the filter.

He dosen't seem to be getting better. He is very outgoing in the morning but dosen't respond to me like he usually does. He sits on the bottom and has his fins clamped up. He also seems to have a little speckling of white on him but I don't think it is Ich.

I am not sure if I was right in thinking it was a fungal infection, maybe it is bacterial? I saw something hanging off of him last night that almost looked like tiny intestines or something, a little pink color but it dropped off of him. Could that be a parasite or was it probally just him pooping?

Basically I don't know what to do next. Over the past week I have done two additional water changes to make sure the water is clean and adding in more of the aquarium salt.

Should I take him out of the 4-gallon tank and put him into a vase to treat him there? I am afraid that maybe there is bacteria or what not lingering in the aquarium. I checked my levels this morning and my ammonia levels are perfect but my nitrite levels are at 0.25.

Please let me know if I should move him to a vase to treat him and if I should continue to use the Macryn or switch to something else.

Thank you sooooooo much! I will be absolutely devastated if he dies!!

[RSandelli]

Hi! Hopefully this will help as a supplement to my post above:

Housing
What size is your tank? 4-Gallon Biorb
What temperature is your tank? 78o
Does your tank have a filter? Yes, just changed last week.
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? Yes, brand new air stone.
Is your tank heated? No
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None, lives by himself.

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Betta Bites, only thing he will eat.
How often do you feed your betta fish? 3-4 Betta Bites once a day.

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? About 1 Liter.
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Stress Coat, Stress Zyme and aquarium salt.

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

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0.25

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Fins clamped, large white patch on his side. Tiny little spots on him, not sure if Ich though. Almost can't see.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Not as responsive, hiding a lot and sitting at the bottom. Still eating like a little piggy.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? Last week.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? Last week. See above post.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No.
How old is your fish (approximately)? Got him 5 months ago.

[Oldfishlady]

I would Qt him in the vase and start 100% daily water changes with aquarium salt 1tsp/gal for now

Google columnaris and see if that is what he has and if so, increase the salt to 3tsp/gal, lower the water temp to 76F and add an airstone along with the 100% daily water changes...and you are sure he doesn't have Ich???

If you did not remove the carbon when you added the antibiotic he may not have got much of it-also- look on the package and see if that medication cover gram negative bacteria-I don't use OTC meds...how many days are recommended for treatment with that product-you have treated for 4 days and it has not helped correct?

Can you post of pic of your fish?

[RSandelli]

Hi! I will definently put him in the vase tonight then and do the 100% water change.

I googled columnaris and I think it definently could be it. He has that characteristic white patch and it has that white/grey looking color. He might also have itch, I don't know if it is just stuff floating around in the aquarium that stuck onto him? I will try to take a picture of him as soon as I get home. (At 6:00pm, I'm at work!). If he does have columnaris, that explains why the medication for fungus was not working since it is caused by a bacteria!

I am not sure what you mean when you ask if I removed the carbon? I have the baby biorb. This is the kind of filter that I use: http://www.amazon.com/biOrb-Aquarium.../dp/B000ZOSO9K. I have been treating him for four days using the fungus medication, Maracyn and have not had any results. The medication says that is is used for "True Fungal Infections"

Will the airstone work in a regular vase?

Thanks for your help! I am freaking out :(

[RSandelli]

Sorry for replying again but I found the medication I have been using:

Mardel's Maroxy:

http://www.lotsofpets.com/mardel-maroxy.html

[Adastra]

Most infections of this kind are gram negative bacteria--true fungi move a lot more slowly and are a lot less common than gram negative bacteria. The active ingredient in MarOxy is stabilized chlorine oxides.. this isn't going to help your fish a bit.

You need to switch over to an antibiotic that targets gram negative bacteria, such as API's Triple Sulfa, Seachem's Kanaplex, or Mardel's Maracyn-Two. It's a good idea to keep up with frequent water changes and lower the temp per OFL's instructions.

I always recommend reading this article: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fa084 before using or purchasing an antibiotic. It will give you an idea of how they work, what the risks are, and how and why to use them responsibly.