take a bite out of...your tail?

[westkanye]

hello friends...
I need help. My beautiful new halfmoon (had him like 3 weeks?) took a big chunk out of his tail-and he obviously regrets it, as all his fins are clamped now. He swims around like a psycho.

I assume he is stressed-how do I fix it? Darkness? Light?

[westkanye]

um part two:L

is there something I can buy to put in his water? he also swims around like a mad man, I think he has lost his damn mind. I feel so bad for him, so I have been covering his tank in hopes that maybe will help. I am not sure if he could see too much of his reflection and it got to him...

or maybe my tank is haunted :( haha

[EvilVOG]

clean water conditioned with stress coat could help it grow back.

Tail biting can be a sign of boredom, and sometimes they are just tail biters.
What size is his tank?
What kind of decorations are in his tank?
Does he have any tank mates?

[westkanye]

Hi thanks-

He has a 2.5 gallon which I keep at around 79. I do the 50 and 100% once a week.
he has a tree with a hollow trunk and fake silk leaves and a bridge in his tank-i'd say about 40% of his tank is places to hide.

[Luimeril]

is he in sight of any other bettas? does his tank have a filter at all?

tail biting is more frustrating to us, than them. just keep his water extra clean, and it'll grow back on it's own. :3 if you want to stop it, you have to figure out what caused it.

[westkanye]

no filter, it seemed to bug him......
and no other bettas-but his reflection seemed to bug him a lot more at first than it did my old guy, so I am trying to keep his tank dark for a few days to see if that helps-or should I just light it as normal?

[Luimeril]

well... none of my tanks are lighted by anything other than the light from the window, and the light of my room. so, maybe the light's bugging him?

[Myates]

Reminds me of my Butters Scotch- he jitters and twitches and swims all over.. or No Name who will do laps in in circular tank.. around and around and around and around and around and.. oh.

Are you using water conditioner?

I would go ahead and continue using lights on during the day if you wish, and turn them off at night to keep him on the day/night schedule- possibly turn them off earlier? Around 9-10 and see if that helps.. maybe he just needs more sleep after all that psychotic swimming.

How much and of what are you feeding him?

Is his tank anywhere near something that vibrates, make sudden loud noises? Or an outside door that is opened often?

[vilmarisv]

The lights will create reflection.
Because he's swimming around like a "mad man" I would say there's some reflection he's not liking. If you have a dark background, it will create reflection. Also, if you cover the tank while the lights are on your tank will appear like a mirrow enclosure from you bettas point of view wich will stress him out a lot.
When having lights on, the room must also be bright in order not to create a reflection. If you want to cover the tank to soothe him you need to turn off the light.
I rarely turn the lights on in my male tanks, just when I want to look at them closely, feed them or if the room lights are also on.