What is that thing??

[Tikibirds]

Howdy,

The other day to noticed this thing on my bettas face. I couldn't get a good pic of it and decided to just watch it, to see what happend.

I did some searching online and the closest thing I could find was an Anchor worm but it sound like the only way to get them is via contact with a fish that has them...so i'm confused, unless she had it when i got her a few weeks ago and they are only visible now?

her behavior hasn't changed and she eats like a pig.

Housing
What size is your tank? 1.5 gallons
What temperature is your tank? 74 - new heater on the way
Does your tank have a filter? no
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? no
Is your tank heated? not at the moment
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? none

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Hiraki pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? 2-3 pellets

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? daily
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? Stress coat

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

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness: very hard
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? that thing on her face
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? no
When did you start noticing the symptoms? a few days ago
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? some site said add salt
Does your fish have any history of being ill? no, other then missing a fin
How old is your fish (approximately)? no idea. she's kinda small

This was tankn from the top looking down and the white specks are not on her. I think they are air bubbles from the water change.





Advice?

[Sakura8]

First, oh wow, she really does have no tail, the poor girl. I thought maybe she had a tail that was just so bitten and rotten that it looked like she had no tail. But nope, she's like a corgi in fish form. But what a pretty teal color and she's got a cute expression on her face, like she's not going to let anything get her down. And what an . . . interesting thing emerging from what appears to be her nostril. Hmm. I've never seen worms emerging from the nose before . . . Has her poo been white and stringy or anything that might indicate parasites inside?

Tetra Parasite Guard says it gets rid of anchor worms. Or probably a medicated pellet, too.

Could it be her slime coat coming off, just around her nose?

[CyerRyn]

It almost looks like a booger.. if fish could get those. :P Maybe its just something that was in with the rocks that got loose and stuck on her nose? :o I know all fish have their own thing.. but my Amidala likes to what appears to sniff the bottom of the tank (or the rocks).. like literally looks like she's doing hand stands.. does your girl do that too?

[Tikibirds]

I thought maybe she had a tail that was just so bitten and rotten that it looked like she had no tail. But nope, she's like a corgi in fish form

It's growing back in nicely .

Could it be her slime coat coming off, just around her nose?

I dont think so, It looks like she has a nose ring - like its comming out of her skin or like a catfish whisker.

I thought she may of gotten something stuck on her but i think its getting longer. Originally I though it was a piece of plastic that got lodged there. She is in a steralite container and I used an xacto knife to scrape out holes in the lid. But those shaving would of been transparent. This looks white.

Has her poo been white and stringy or anything that might indicate parasites inside?

I don't think so. Unless I mistook it for dog hair which is also white and is EVERYWHERE

[Sakura8]

Originally Posted by Tikibirds

I don't think so. Unless I mistook it for dog hair which is also white and is EVERYWHERE

Psst, Mr. Bubbles, I think she means you.

I'm going to go with anchor worms, then. What are the odds she'd get a piece of plastic lodged up her nose anyway? I mean, their nostrils are practically microscopic. API has some good parasite medications, too. Yugh, must be uncomfortable having that in her nose. Poor girl.

Oooh, be sure to post pics when her tail has grown back. I bet she'll be beeyootiful.

[Tikibirds]

I'll go look for some medicated pellets. I put in some salt, that's supposed to help with it or so some random website said.

You can treat them with potassium permanganate as a dip at 100mg per 2.5 gallons of water or you can try a salt dip. Another possible treatment is a formalin dip at 2 - 4 ml of formalin per 2.5 gallons of water for 30 minutes and just be sure to immediately transfer your fish to clean, fresh water because he may lose equilibrium. There are some antiparasitics that may help like disco-worm, fluke tabs, and clout. Then, to possibly prevent secondary infections, you might want to put 1 - 2 tablespoons of salt in your aquarium.

It is a good idea to remove the worms by hand and quarantine the tank. Use tweezers and grip them as close to the wound as possible.

I went with salt, i dont know what the other two chemicals are.

rip out with tweezers??

she's not flashing or lethargic, maybe its something else?

[Sakura8]

Something tells me if you try to rip that out with tweezers she'll just up and pass out from the sheer shock of it all. Not to mention the indignity. Poor baby, I hope the salt works. I really have no idea what it could be aside from a parasite. She's had some hard luck in her short little life, hasn't she?

[Tikibirds]

She wont stay still long enough to attempt to try the tweezers.
Arent parasite sympthoms being lethargic and flashing? She isn't showing either of those..I'm still confused

This is a pic i nabbed off the web of Anchor Worms. Sushi's nose ring, doesn't look like that at all...

[Sakura8]

No, it doesn't. Not at all. And you're right, flashing and lethargy are symptoms. So weird. Maybe it's a strange tumor that just happened to form in her nose?

[DarkMoon17]

It might not be anchor worms but it does appear parasitic... Do not try to pull it off, if you leave some in the skin it can abscess and then you'll have a whole new problem...

Potassium Permanganate is awesome. You can buy it pretty cheap online. I find it is the most effective chemical for treating unidentified infections quickly. If you are willing to give it a try, PM me and I will explain how to use it. It is one of the few things that can kill Ich (and eggs/larva) all in one treatment so I respect it, especially for parasites.

Salt might not do the job in just 10 days unless you are able to increase the temp. Since you do not have a heater atm, you should consider using a medication like API's General Cure (petsmart) or Jungle's Parasite Clear (petsmart/walmart). API is better but more expensive.