[Moo Moo]

This is Muffin,just looking for some advice.
He is a crown tail,he is very small and hasn’t really grown that much,we have had him for about 6 months.it kinda looks like there’s some scales missing around his head,but I’m not sure how it would happen
He is in a 5 gallon, 26 ‘c

 

[graciee]

do you have any specific questions or concerns?

he could just be naturally small and coloured so it looks like 'missing' scales. my bb now has a few white spots around his body and i thought it was ich and panicked until i realised that it was nothing.

 

[Feanor]

Even if you don‘t find your issues important, you‘ll get better answers when filling out the form.

Without guessing I can just say that he is too thin, his fins are looking a bit shredded and his tank needs some more cover/hides in the upper part of the tank.

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING: Fill out this form so we can...

 

[RussellTheShihTzu]

Please fill out the form linked by Feanor. As stated on the form, members are asked to refrain from answering without it. To do so is to speculate or guess which can cause more harm than good. "Before responding to a call for help please request this form be filled out or wait until it is."

As noted by Feanor, size is the least of your boy's issues.

 

[Moo Moo]

Even if you don‘t find your issues important, you‘ll get better answers when filling out the form.

Without guessing I can just say that he is too thin, his fins are looking a bit shredded and his tank needs some more cover/hides in the upper part of the tank.

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING: Fill out this form so we can...

Thanks,
Just saying He’s a crown tail his fins are ment to be like that

 

[Feanor]

I know that he‘s a Crowntail.
How is he doing?

 

[Moo Moo]

Housing:
How many gallons is your tank?5
Does it have a filter?yes
Does it have a heater?yes
What temperature is your tank?26*c
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration?no
Does your Betta have tank mates? What kind?no

Food:
What food brand do you use?
Do you feed flakes or pellets?
Freeze-dried?pellets

How often do you feed your Betta? How much?once a day,a small pinch

Maintenance:
Before your Betta became ill how often did you perform a water change?/
What percentage of water did you change?half
What is the source of your water?tap
Do you vacuum the substrate or just dip out water?vacuum
What additives do you use other than conditioner? What brand of conditioner?

Water Parameters:
What are your water parameters? Please give exact numbers. If tested by pet store please get exact numbers. "Fine" or "Safe" won't help us help you. Important: Test your water before the regular water change; not after one.

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness (GH):
Alkalinity (KH):

Symptoms and Treatment:
When did you first notice the symptoms?
How has your Betta’s appearance changed?no
How has your Betta’s behavior changed?no
Is your Betta still eating?yes
Have you started treating your Betta? If so, how?no
Does your Betta have any history of being ill?no
How long have you owned your Betta?6 months
Was he or she ill or suffering some sort of damage when purchased?no
.......
When we got him

 

[Feanor]

Thank you.
I would highly recommend a water conditioner with every water change as the salt you‘re using is only replenishing minerals and won‘t take care of chlorine, nitrates and ammonia.
If you can get Seachem Prime it would be fabulous. There are other brands aswell that at least lock nitrite and chlorine.

Get your water tested with exact numbers in your LFS or better - get a drip test like the API Freshwater Master Test Kit.

You didn‘t mention how often you do a water change, so have a look at the link here and follow the guide for your filtered 5 Gal.

Oldfishlady water change recommendations

As long as somebody more experienced hasn‘t looked into further diagnose of his coloration (darker parts on body and initial concern about missing scales). I don‘t dare to comment on changing his diet.

 

[Feanor]

Concerning Oldfishladies recommendation:
100% water changes are no longer recommended - the rest of the content remains and applies unchanged.

 

[Moo Moo]

Btw,Muffin is my Nanas fish, it’s not mine.I’ve been feeding him as she is unwell.That’s when I noticed his colouring and that he is a bit skinny.I’ve been slowly increasing the amount of food I’m feeding him,it’s going well.I just am being very cautious because I don’t want him to bloat, as my fish Moo bloats really easily. Moo is 3x the size of Muffin; are crown tails generally a smaller variety?(I’ve never owned one)
...
Thanks so much for the help
...

 

[Moo Moo]

Just wondering,Is that brand of food ok,or should we get a different one?

 

[BettaloverSara]

All male betta grow to be roughly the same size unless they are giants or there are some complications. I would stop using salt, it’s hard on them to use it all the time and he doesn’t seem to have anything that would indicate any need for it. I am not familiar with the brand of food but when you look at the ingredients the first should be some kind of fish or fish meal. I’d also maybe get him frozen blood worms or shrimp. He might get bigger with some proper care but it’s hard to say.

 

[KekeTheBettaDoc]

I agree with Sara-a higher quality food like Omega One Betta Buffet, Fluval Bug Bites, New Life Spectrum, or Aqueon Pellets (not betta "Pro") are all good options. Up feeding to 2-3 times daily.

Regarding water changes, like said earlier you really need to be able to test the water. Many petstores will do it for free! Seachem Prime is a great option for water dechloriantor like said above.

I would say it also say the tank looks very bare. See if you can add some more silk plants (I like silk plants from the craftstore or even walmart/dollar store) but ones from the petstore work fine

He looks healthy other than that just skinny.

 

[Moo Moo]

Thanks guys, im planning to put some live plants in there soon(we use live plants in all of our plants).