That's Ichy!

[McMarvel]

I had my roommate babysit my betta this weekend, and when I got back Monday morning he was alternating between lying on the bottom of the tank and swimming erratically. I also noticed some very tiny white spots on his fins, and I believe by my research that he has ich. So other than never letting my roommate babysit ever again, what can I do? Living in a college town means I don't have much resources or money so I need a relatively simple fix. His spots are still very small so I think I have a chance of saving him.

[McMarvel]

Housing
What size is your tank? 1/2 Gallon
What temperature is your tank? Room temperature
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? Flakes or pellets.
How often do you feed your betta fish? 2 times a day

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Twice a week
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 80%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Tap water Conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?
No
Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? In certain lights he appears to have VERY tiny white dots on his fins and near his head.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? He either lays on the bottom of the tank, floats at the top, or kindof spastic swims in short bursts.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? My roommate said he began laying on the bottom last night.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I performed a water change and added water conditioner.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No. He was making bubble nests just last week!
How old is your fish (approximately)No idea. I bought him home from Petco a little over a week ago.

[McMarvel]

Within the last hour he has lost all the color in his face. Please help!

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum and sorry you are having problems....

Can you post a pic....if, not, google Ich and look at some pic to see if that is what your Betta has......

If you bought him in one of those small temporary cups-you can use this and his half gallon for a 2 cup treatment for the Ich......use the premixed treatment water and change the water 100% daily by switch him from small container to the other each day-you need to allow the unused container to sit dry for 24h....

Premixed treatment water-use a 1gal jug of double dosed dechlorinated water-Add aquarium salt 2tsp/gal-let the salt dissolve...shake well....use this water for 50% water change in the smallest container every hour for 3 hours today and in 24h-fill the second container with the premixed Tx water-net the Betta and add him to that container....*Be sure the water temp is within a couple of degrees between the two by using a thermometer
If you have tannin to add to the premixed treatment water- all the better...either IAL or naturally dried and fallen from the tree Oak leaf

Do this 2 cup manual removal treatment for 3 days PAST the last day you could see the parasites on his body-depending on the water temp this can take 5-14 days
You can't kill the parasite while it is on the fish...it has to fall off first-sometimes salt will kill it unless they are salt tolerant-manual removal is the best method and they will die within 24h once dehydrated and can't reproduce without a host(the Betta)

Heavy infestation can be fatal-treatment needs to be started ASAP

It will really help to get the water temp at least 76F and 86F would be even better to help speed the parasite life cycle to manually remove the parasites once they fall off the Betta

Be sure and cover the container so he doesn't jump out.....

[McMarvel]

Thank you so much for the advice! I bought the salt last night and have already done two water changes. However, today he seems much worse and he is no longer eating!

What can I do?

[Sena Hansler]

Usually the salt would work... Keep up with the treatments, and crank the heat for him to about 80-86 degrees F. that's what I had to do, plus 10-20% daily water changes (for a tank. for a small container 100% water change) with gravel siphoning. It worked in about a week for me...

[McMarvel]

I don't have a heater. Is there a safe alternative to heat the water up? Also, about how long before I see results? How can I get him to eat? And is there such a things as too frequent a water change or too much salt during this sick period?

I know this is a lot of questions, but I'm definitely panicking because my boyfriend got me this fish for our two year anniversary and I don't want to think about what that means for our relationship if poor Azazel croaks.

[Sena Hansler]

He may not eat because of stress.You may just need to let him fast. one teaspoon per gallon of water usually. And crank your heat, use a room heater, or get a heater for the tank is the bets bet

[McMarvel]

I live on a college campus and there aren't exactly an abundance of pet stores around in walking distance.

Are you saying I should turn up the heat in my dorm room?

[McMarvel]

His fins now appear to be...splitting. They look ragged at the edges. Is this part of the ich or something new?