My Son's Beta has big problem...need your help

[Logan5]

My Son's beta has this white/gray color change spreading on him for over a
month.
Has a very hard time eating. (Have to point to the food to find it and
takes about 10 min. of failed attempts to eat it) Has a slight tilt to the side when moving.

I have done an anti bacterial treatment...didn't notice any effect.

Thanks in advanced for any help.

L5

[Luimeril]

oh, goodness! O_O i don't know what in the world that could be! bumping in hopes that someone does....

try and answer these, though.
Housing
What size is your tank?
What temperature is your tank?
Does your tank have a filter?
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration?
Is your tank heated?
What tank mates does your betta fish live with?

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish?
How often do you feed your betta fish?

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change?
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change?
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change?

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

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed?
How has your betta fish's behavior changed?
When did you start noticing the symptoms?
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?
Does your fish have any history of being ill?
How old is your fish (approximately)?

[Sivan]

I want to say its columnaris. Please answer the questions though, just to be sure.

[Sakura8]

Welcome to the forum, Logan. Is this white coating fuzzy? It looks like it in the pics but I can't tell for sure.

We'll be able to make a better diagnosis after you answer the questions but I'm thinking columnaris as well. What anti-bacterial med did you treat him with?

[Logan5]

I'll get the requested questions answered right after I get home from my office later today.

Sorry about the pictures...they are fuzzy...the white on his fish does not appear to be really fuzzy.

My son took the pictures _ I'll see if I can get a clear shot.


Thanks!

[Logan5]

Answering the best I can...

Housing
What size is your tank? 1 gal
What temperature is your tank? 72 - I guessing it could go as high as 76
Does your tank have a filter? No
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? No
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Kyorin Hikari Betta Bio-Gold Pellets.
How often do you feed your betta fish? Usually one a day

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Once a week - I alternate bowls That I fill up a few days before.
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 90%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Splendid Complete Water Conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? NO If so, what are the following parameters?
The water used is softened water from a water softener using salt.
Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? Yes
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Yes
When did you start noticing the symptoms? Over Month a go.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? 4-5 weeks back I used BettaFix
Does your fish have any history of being ill? Only once before 2 years ago
How old is your fish (approximately)? 4+ years

[Sakura8]

Wow, your fish is getting up there! 4+ years is positively ancient for a betta. Their average lifespan is 1-3 years. :)

So based on that, I'd say there's a combination of things at work here, particularly his age.

Since your betta has survived this long as things are, I don't want to change things too much and upset him. The only two things I'd recommend are changing his water twice a week and feeding him more than one pellet a day. Since I suspect he has columnaris, we should leave the temperature where it is, but when he gets better, I'd recommend trying to keep his temperature steady between 76-78 F by wrapping a towel around his bowl or keeping him in the warmest part of the house (but not by a window). If you can get a heater, that would be ideal.

Let's start with AQ salt for treatment. You can get it at any pet store that sells fish things. You'll want to use 2 tsps per gallon and predissolve it first in a little bit of his tank water. While you are treating him, it would be best if you could change the water 100% every day but if you can't, try to change it as often as possible. Continue with the salt treatments for 14 days. If he hasn't shown any improvement at all within the first 5 days, let us know. He may need a medication.

[Logan5]

OK Going to go get some AG Salt. Thanks for you help.

[Logan5]

I'm starting a salt treatment as recommended. Increasing the water changes.
Do I add salt on every water change?

Still working on getting a better picture.