Eeep! What's going on with his fins?

[Sakura8]

His dorsal looks better. I don't see the nasty black anymore. You're doing really well with him, roar. You're fighting this well. :)

He looks like my late Moped and kind of similar to my current Admiral Floaty McFloatsalot. :)

[roarsirroar]

hey, sorry for the late reply!

darkmoon: i'm doing 2tsp/gal in his 1.5 gallon right now. funny thing is that the anal fin isnt budging. its just a little grey on the tips, but the transparency seems to be going away (veeeerryy slowly but surely!)
yeah i hope thats the reason why he tailbited. he bit off more but i think hes stopped (maybe cause he can't reach it anymore lol)

silverfang: thanks, and its okay :D

sakura: thanks! but i really couldn't do it without you and darkmoon and everyone else who has been helping me :)

[roarsirroar]

GUYS PLEASE HELP!!!
okay so i fed him 2 pellets like i normally do and i changed his water and then i went to a party. this was 5 hours ago. now ive come back from the party and he looks like THIS!! when i left his belly was normal and now it has ballooned! also, a few days ago he got a knick/bump on his head from an ornament (which i took out immediately) and i thought the salt should help heal that too but this morning it looked like a white scab. not only does he have that but now he has a crazy stomach! hes pretty lethargic and sluggish and i think i should lower the water.
the water is like 70F and i should really get a heater.

so what do you think it is? parasites? sbd?

[DarkMoon17]

Do a 100% water change and switch him to 2tsp/gal Epsom salt. Try as best as you can to increase the temperature. It really needs to be around 80*F (more if possible) to help support his immune system if it is bacterial. Perform daily 100% water changes (you may want to quarantine him in something smaller). How long have you been using Aq. Salt?

Is he having any trouble swimming?

[roarsirroar]

im getting a heater today! :)
his stomach has gone down quite a bit but i dont understand how cause theres no poop or anything.
ive been doing AQ salt treatment for 5 days now

last night he was sluggish and at one point he clamped his pectoral fins and did this really creepy shark-like swim.
but this morning he seems to be more active (and more aggressive). hes swimming normally.

[Luimeril]

his fins seem almost normal now! i think that freaky thing with his anal fin was more of a freaky color change. Cup went through one of those with his dorsal. it went pure white, then turned a beautiful pale blue that i just couldn't catch on camera.

[roarsirroar]

haha yeah i was relieved to see that it was coloring up again!

ive got a question about the heater...
can i get a 25 watt heater to heat this vase? its 3.5 gallons, but idk if the tallness will be a problem...

p.s. this is a really old photo. but you get the gist.

[Sakura8]

Roar, a 25w will work great, just try and make sure you get an adjustable one if possible. How is his stomach doing today?

[roarsirroar]

im really stumped on which heater i should buy...
theres the hydor theo 25w: http://www.amazon.com/Hydor-THEO-Sub.../dp/B0006JLPG8
and then theres the eheim jager 25w: http://www.amazon.com/EHEIM-Jager-Aq.../dp/B00425AXQA
theres a thread on here that has a bunch of heater reviews...i read that.

his stomach is normal now. but he still has that white stuff on his head. there was a knick there and now the white stuff is coming out of it.

[Sakura8]

Eheim Jaeger is a good brand but I did discover mine won't go past 79 degrees even though the thermostat does read more. So if you ever had to battle ich and turn up the heat, the Eheim won't cut it. Also, they tend to be on the long side so they don't always fit in short/small tanks.

Are you ordering online or buying in a store? If you are ordering online, then I would suggest the Cascade 25w. I have about 5 or 6 of them, plus a 100w for my 20gL and so far they are the best heaters I have. Otherwise, I would go with the Hydor.

Does the white stuff coming from the wound look like it's moving or alive? Is it definitely coming from the wound or from around it?