[tara5ellie]

Hi

I bought a betta from the pet store 3 weeks ago. Hes in a 10 gallon tank, with filter, and I have dont 30% water changes each week. Is it normal for a red betta to have what appears to be gold specks on his body? This is how i bought him. Also, it looks like he has black scales? Thirdly I noticed that the tips of his fins are pale. I think you can see all of this in the picture, because I took a close-up. The tips are no fuzzy, they just have no color and Im pretty sure when I bought him they weren't like that. He looks to be ok. He swims, eats, and looks alert. Anybody have and ideas?

Thanks

 

[mattoboy]

If you turn off all the lights in the room and shine a flashlight on the fish and it appears to have a gold/rust looking dust on him, thats a external parasite disease called "velvet". I think your fish may have velvet as you describe it looks like a gold-ish colour on him, the tips of his fins are pale, and to me, his top fin looks a little clamped. Let us know!

 

[SarahandOscar]

Hi,
I had a red CT with the exact same colouring, let us know how you go with the flashlight but i think he may be ok compared to some pics i've seen of velvet but i've had no personal experience so definitely get some more advice on that.

As for the tips of his fins, have you tested the water at all? it MAY be the start of rot (i'm new myself and had a bit of a rude shock when i realised what was going on with my 4 so i may be jumping to conclusions) if you have any pics of him the day you got him or early on to compare him to it could be usefull. the deterioration of the fins could be due to any ammonia build up or spike. i don't have filtered tanks myself but that could be something to check maybe? let us know how you go =)

 

[finnfinnfriend]

Are you talking about those shiny scales on his back and the base of his tail? If so, a lot of red bettas have that. Some have more than others, some have none. As for the fins, they look fine to me...a lot of bettas have a clear-ish or even black-ish pigment on the edge of their fins (especially solid reds). If you are worried about fin rot, watch him for a couple days and see if his fins get shorter (it won't kill him that fast). As soon as you notice his fins getting shorter (if they do) then start treatment.

 

[SarahandOscar]

If you haven't treated a Betta before you may have a few questions, let us know how you go and if you need any guidance for treatment (it may seem silly but for me the first time was rather stressful so if you'd like step by step instructions we can help).
Good Luck!

 

[broncosfan84]

How do you treat fin rot? My HM male's fins are looking shorter.

 

[lvandert]

Well everyone seems to have answered most of your questions but I'll answer one they missed. The clear edges you are seeing are new fins growing in. The have no color and then color up as time goes on

 

[broncosfan84]

walmart

I just purchased 2 crowntail males from Walmart. The red one looks like he has fin rot. How to I treat it? The ends of his tail look white and beat up.