Help!!! :((

[coet]

I got my betta, Berry, a new home Friday (x). Before that he was in a one gallon betta bowl. The home includes a Whisper 3i filter. Well, yesterday I notice a piece of Berry's tail was missing. I figured he was getting hurt by one of the plants, so I took out the one that was really prickly.

Today, it's gotten worse. The tips of some of the fins on his tails are almost in shreds. He's got an ornament in there, and I checked it to make sure he could fit through all the holes in it, but I'm considering taking it out, especially it if's hurting his tail. Here's a picture of Berry's tail, and the home. The pictures are not the best quality. I can't find the USB for my camera, so I took them with my phone. :( Does anyone know what's going on? I'm so worried.

[Abby]

sounds like tail biting
self inflicted, can be from stress or boredom. a few of my guys are biters

[Abby]

this is benny a prime example this is all self inflicted

Benny is a blue and white VT butterfly chewed till hes a blue and light blue Almost hm look lol

[ANHEL123]

One of my betta tail bitter. I have him since 02/10 he did it 3 times. So far he didn't get any infections yet. I just change his water more often than others. It looks like Abby's betta.
Good luck i hope he will not get inf. Good luck. I think if he will get sick u can treat him with Aquarium salt.

[coet]

Aw, poor Berry. He didn't start until he got his new tank. So there's nothing I can do?

[ANHEL123]

If he is eating,active and don't have any fuzz,clumped fins,white cottony patches i guess u need just maintain clean water. My betta is fine.

And if he will have any symptoms u can treat him with Aquarium salt 1tsp/gall with 100% daily water changes for 10 days. But i think if he is ok don't treat him .

May be someone else can give u advice. But my betta didn't have any infections. I just keep changing his water more often. But it my betta i don't knkow how is your betta. I think u have to just observe him and see how is he doing.

Also i feed my bettas with little little ....pieces of the cooked shrimp. I think more protein better for immune system.

[rswfire]

Maybe the stream from the water filter is really bothering him in such a small tank and that is causing him to be more stressed than normal. You could try turning it off and see how he reacts. He'd probably be happier. (I'm sure some people would frown on my suggestion, but I can just picture the flow of that thing in a 1.5g tank -- it would drive my betta nuts!)

Another suggestion: If you paid $25 for that tank at Petsmart, take it back and spend an extra $25 for this one:

Top Fin&#0174 10 Gallon Goldfish Aquarium Starter Kit - 10 gallons and under - Aquariums - PetSmart

I know it's an investment, but you clearly love your fishie, and he will love you for it...

[ANHEL123]

I agree.
And if u can't buy another tank he will be fine without filter just change the water more often. I don't have filters for my bettas.



I would do 100% every 2 -3 days. But it me i don't know how is other people recommending.

[coet]

I got the tank with the filter so I wouldn't have to change the water every other day, but, I guess I have no choice now. I don't want him chewing his tail off.

I have a 10 gallon, but I'd have to divide it to take it with me to school and still have my two bettas, and I really don't want to be in class one day and have one of my boys make it through the divider and I get back to my room and the shredded remains of one of them is waiting for me. D:

The thing that gets me is the filter doesn't really have a flow. It just kinda bubbles up and bubbles spill over it. I can't even see the surface of the water being disturbed, but I suppose living in a cup all his life and then suddenly getting like a 10x bigger tank with some bubbles going around would be aggravating. I'll turn it off and see what happens.

[rswfire]

If you dump some flake food in there, you can probably get a pretty good idea of how fast/where the water flow is moving... If it's really just bubbling a bit, and there's no stream, then maybe less of a problem and he could get used to it. My betta was originally in a tank with an air stone, which only purpose was to make bubbles for a colorful LED light underneath of the center of the tank. Never seemed to bother him, but when I put him into a tank with a real air filter, he was very unhappy, lol...