[Betta Nerd]

Housing:
How many gallons is your tank? 10
Does it have a filter? Yes
Does it have a heater? Yes
What temperature is your tank? 80-82
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Does your Betta have tank mates? What kind? 3 mollies 1 african dwarf frog Moon

Food:
What food brand do you use? Fluval bug bites
Do you feed flakes or pellets? Both
Freeze-dried? No
How often do you feed your Betta? How much? 2 times a day half a cap full of flakes for all the fish

Maintenance:
Before your Betta became ill how often did you perform a water change? Every week
What percentage of water did you change? 25-50 %
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? API Stress coat

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? A month or two ago
How has your Betta’s appearance changed? A large growth on his body
How has your Betta’s behavior changed? Not at all he acts like it doesn't exist
Is your Betta still eating? Yes
Have you started treating your Betta? If so, how? Indian almond leaf
Does your Betta have any history of being ill? No just fin nipping from a few months ago
How long have you owned your Betta? Since July 29 2022
Was he or she ill or suffering some sort of damage when purchased? No

I'm not going to euthanize my fish so if that's the edvice your planning on giving me I'd rather not you waste your time he doesn't look in pain he doesn't act in pain so I'm not going to euthanize him he still zooms around acts like his spunky self and he's not dying I just want to get rid of it

Sorry about the blurriness he swims really fast and I haven't been able to get a good picture of him in a while

 

[TropicalFlow3]

I don't thibk you should euthanize if he's acting normal and eating like normal too. I would guess its a cyst or tumor, but the photo is too blury to see what it truly is, other than a light colour on his blue body.
Maybe try and get a knother picture, or post a video....

Long time no see, kinda. I havent seen you post much recently!

 

[Eridanus]

If possible, can you get a more clear photo?

In the meantime, I do agree that it looks to be a tumor. Sadly though, there's nothing that can be done for these except to keep the little guy comfortable.
To add, euthanasia, even though it's up to the owner on when/if to do it, isn't typically considered by most unless the fish's quality of life is severely degraded or they're suffering and there's no hope.

Sorry to hear that he's having troubles.

 

[TropicalFlow3]

If possible, can you get a more clear photo?

In the meantime, I do agree that it looks to be a tumor. Sadly though, there's nothing that can be done for these except to keep the little guy comfortable.
To add, euthanasia, even though it's up to the owner on when/if to do it, isn't typically considered by most unless the fish's quality of life is severely degraded or they're suffering and there's no hope.

Sorry to hear that he's having troubles.

i 100% agree with thsi. I hate to hear, im assuming TANK is having issues!

 

[Betta Nerd]

Is there any way to treat him I just want to get rid of it please I'm begging you guys there has to be a way I'm crying I don't want him to die please

 

[Betta Nerd]

I'm going to treat him the water quality got bad for a while so I'm guessing it's non cancerous if no one is going to help me then I'll do this on my own I'm not losing him period he's had this for a while he's actually never better I don't care I'm not euthanizeing my fish I don't think I could ever love a betta more than him he plays pika boo with me when I come home from school I can't stand here and wait for him to die it's never going to happen I will buy any medicine anything he's not dying I've already lost to many fish in my life so please if someone can help me I'll do anything absolutely anything please help me please I don't care ok he is not dying because of this I will not allow it you probably think I'm crazy I don't care so is anyone going to help me or shall I just go on a rampage and buy every fish medicine known to man kind maybe some people will let their betta die but I'm not the person to give up this easily so now I can going to dedicate every minute of my day besides school to this fish thank you for the recommendations I will get better pictures and now I'm going to stay up all night researching tumors on betta fish bye

P.S. I'm not euthanizeing any fish ever I'm more of a person to let nature run it's course I could never kill an animal call euthanizeing what you want but your still killing the animal you never know when your going to have that lucky pet that lives through the inevitable like me lizard Rey for example her body became so soft her jaw bent so far to the side but she stands here today so ummmm yeah he's not dying if you disagree I don't care ok I really don't

 

[TropicalFlow3]

I can tell your upset, so am i. I can also tell your frustrated but your becoming agressive which is kinda startling me.
No one is saying you should euthanize it it is 100% up to the owner. If you start treating him with every fish medicine, it will be very hard on his little body, and he could die from stress. He will die enventually, when nature runs its course. Their is one thing that you can try, but its quite risky and only very expirienced fish have good sucsess rate. You can put him under anestiasia (clove oil) and try and do a surgery on him to remove it. Read this HERE and this might be helpful too HERE. Honestly, if its growing rapidly, i would also do aquarium salt baths. I have removed a tumor on a massive goldfish, but he was huge i wouldnt attempt a surgey on a betta fish, but maybe you will.

 

[Eridanus]

@Betta Nerd I know this is a hard time for you and I know you're scared for him. But please know that it's not that we're not trying to help you, because we really are, it's that we're giving you the only information we can that'll do something.
If we gave false information, it would do so much more harm than good, which isn't something we want either.

I know you don't want to euthanize, and I'm never going to recommend it to someone as it's entirely up to the owner, but hear me out for a moment so I can explain? If you don't want to, you're welcome to skip this next section and to where I have a line of periods.


I had talked on the subject of euthanasia in my last post just to let you know that it's up to you. No matter what state the fish is in, it's up to the owner on whether to do it or not.
I just wanted to add though, it is an extremely hard decision and should never be taken lightly.
There are some people that euthanize a fish early on to avoid troubles down the road, but then there are people like you and me who try our hardest to help them fight the issue.
If I thought your boy was suffering greatly I would ask you to consider it. As euthanasia is a mercy for those where it's just not fair for them anymore. For example, my past boy Santiago could barely swim and couldn't eat without me quite literally holding him up to the surface and dropping food in his mouth. I euthanized him because it was fair to keep him like that.
As I mentioned before, I'm not advising or asking you to consider it. I'm just sharing this so you know that it is intended as a mercy for the fish that we love.


..............

You mentioned that you wanted to try medications, I know this is something you want to do because you're looking for something that could possibly help; but as @TropicalFlow3 said, doing that will do nothing but cause him stress, which could take him before his time.
To add, a single medication in general is hard on their little bodies. And multiple, especially back to back, when they're not needed will do more harm than good.

In addition, we're not advising you any medications because there aren't any to treat tumors. All we can do is give them the best life we can while we have them.
If it helps, I've seen Bettas with external tumors go for months with them. I had a boy, Kristobal, that went for months with one on his fin and he was just fine otherwise.

Tumors don't always spell gloom and doom. They're something that are just there and are an unfortunate part of life at times.

As for what @TropicalFlow3 mentioned about removal of it:
We are not allowed to discuss (in depth?) surgical procedures on this forum anymore. Because of this, I would advise you to find and call an aquatics veterinarian to see if they could do anything.
As she mentioned though, there are past threads that can give some information on them.

I mentioned talking to a vet as doing it yourself, if you decided, is extremely risky. Not only because Bettas are so small, but because most households don't have the items needed. In addition, you have to administer clove oil at just the right amount or else it's an overdose and could take your boy before his time.

You mentioned also that the water quality wasn't the best at one point. While that doesn't cause tumors, if you're worried though, a couple of small extra water changes have never hurt anyone. You could always throw in some IALs too.

As I mentioned before, I know this is a hard time for you, but we're truly trying our best to help as we care about the both of you.
Please keep us updated on him?

 

[TropicalFlow3]

@Betta Nerd I know this is a hard time for you and I know you're scared for him. But please know that it's not that we're not trying to help you, because we really are, it's that we're giving you the only information we can that'll do something.
If we gave false information, it would do so much more harm than good, which isn't something we want either.

I know you don't want to euthanize, and I'm never going to recommend it to someone as it's entirely up to the owner, but hear me out for a moment so I can explain? If you don't want to, you're welcome to skip this next section and to where I have a line of periods.


I had talked on the subject of euthanasia in my last post just to let you know that it's up to you. No matter what state the fish is in, it's up to the owner on whether to do it or not.
I just wanted to add though, it is an extremely hard decision and should never be taken lightly.
There are some people that euthanize a fish early on to avoid troubles down the road, but then there are people like you and me who try our hardest to help them fight the issue.
If I thought your boy was suffering greatly I would ask you to consider it. As euthanasia is a mercy for those where it's just not fair for them anymore. For example, my past boy Santiago could barely swim and couldn't eat without me quite literally holding him up to the surface and dropping food in his mouth. I euthanized him because it was fair to keep him like that.
As I mentioned before, I'm not advising or asking you to consider it. I'm just sharing this so you know that it is intended as a mercy for the fish that we love.


..............

You mentioned that you wanted to try medications, I know this is something you want to do because you're looking for something that could possibly help; but as @TropicalFlow3 said, doing that will do nothing but cause him stress, which could take him before his time.
To add, a single medication in general is hard on their little bodies. And multiple, especially back to back, when they're not needed will do more harm than good.

In addition, we're not advising you any medications because there aren't any to treat tumors. All we can do is give them the best life we can while we have them.
If it helps, I've seen Bettas with external tumors go for months with them. I had a boy, Kristobal, that went for months with one on his fin and he was just fine otherwise.

Tumors don't always spell gloom and doom. They're something that are just there and are an unfortunate part of life at times.

As for what @TropicalFlow3 mentioned about removal of it:
We are not allowed to discuss (in depth?) surgical procedures on this forum anymore. Because of this, I would advise you to find and call an aquatics veterinarian to see if they could do anything.
As she mentioned though, there are past threads that can give some information on them.

I mentioned talking to a vet as doing it yourself, if you decided, is extremely risky. Not only because Bettas are so small, but because most households don't have the items needed. In addition, you have to administer clove oil at just the right amount or else it's an overdose and could take your boy before his time.

You mentioned also that the water quality wasn't the best at one point. While that doesn't cause tumors, if you're worried though, a couple of small extra water changes have never hurt anyone. You could always throw in some IALs too.

As I mentioned before, I know this is a hard time for you, but we're truly trying our best to help as we care about the both of you.
Please keep us updated on him?

Better than how i could of said it. I would definetly do a few extra water chnges then you would normally do. I had a betta that had a tumour that lived for another year and a half, he was 5 when he passed. Having a lump on a fishes body isnt an insatnt death sentence. As @Eridanus said, please know that it's not that we're not trying to help you, because we really are, it's that we're giving you the only information we can that'll do something.

 

[Betta Nerd]

Thank you I considered having removal but I noticed a while back when it was very small it swelled up then popped I'm unsure what it is but it looks quite like a tumor I'm not as concerned as if it was internal the bump is on the edge of his body I did read aquarium salt and very clean water could help

 

[Betta Nerd]

Oh and @TropicalFlow3 I already read that one and many others he's just so young and I was hoping for him to live and die naturally he has hasn't acted any different he still does his cute swimming like a shark and his little games I just want him to be happy and alive he was our first fish after 6 years and I will try anything to help him the surgery will it work and get rid of the tumor I would feel less comfortable if it was near his organs but the tumor is in a good position

 

[TropicalFlow3]

Oh and @TropicalFlow3 I already read that one and many others he's just so young and I was hoping for him to live and die naturally he has hasn't acted any different he still does his cute swimming like a shark and his little games I just want him to be happy and alive he was our first fish after 6 years and I will try anything to help him the surgery will it work and get rid of the tumor I would feel less comfortable if it was near his organs but the tumor is in a good position

If you don't mess up during the surgery, it would work, but it very very tricky. Personally i would leace him be, do an extra few water changes unless the bump starts bothering him.

 

[BettaloverSara]

Just a reminder that members on this forum are not permitted to discuss surgical procedures and such procedures should only be performed by a vet.

I had a fish that had a tumor for over a year, he was about 2.5 when I thought he didn't have any quality left to his life. I would say, just keep the water clean and he should be happy for a long while. There are no medications that will help a tumor, and any meds would do more harm than good if that's what it is. I can't be sure from the photo.

 

[Betta Nerd]

Could it be anything else besides a tumor my friend told me a bunch of things that it could be but does it look like it could be anything else

 

[Betta Nerd]

He isn't showing any symptoms of a tumor he swims all day he eats all his food he waits for me and chases his tank mates he doesn't look or act in distress my friend says I should euthanize him but she said that about most of my sick fish in the past I'm not going to euthanize him again I'm going to let nature run it's course if it's his time it's his time I don't believe in it I respect your opinion on euthanizeing fish or animals but I hope you don't expect me to do that I just don't have the heart to do it to be honest I could never I'm sorry I get sad when animals die in general so I can't do it I know it's probably very hard and most of the time it's the right decision but I'm not able to know an animal and know it's going to die for sure and that you chose their time when an animal dies I think of all the sweet memories with them turned sour after their death it all floods back in my brain once the animal dies so you know it's hard knowing that you'll never see their dances and greetings that their just gone it's hard I think about how he's best friends with my lizard and how he loves when we make little mouth motions back at eachother I read some bettas can live a full lifespan with a tumor I'm hoping that it won't spread and he'll be ok for a while of course I'm still not going to let him die I will do anything in my power I'm just delaying some things until I do further research

 

[Betta Nerd]

I've got great news the bump shrank a little and is becoming flatter also it sank in

 

[BettaloverSara]

He isn't showing any symptoms of a tumor he swims all day he eats all his food he waits for me and chases his tank mates he doesn't look or act in distress my friend says I should euthanize him but she said that about most of my sick fish in the past I'm not going to euthanize him again I'm going to let nature run it's course if it's his time it's his time I don't believe in it I respect your opinion on euthanizeing fish or animals but I hope you don't expect me to do that I just don't have the heart to do it to be honest I could never I'm sorry I get sad when animals die in general so I can't do it I know it's probably very hard and most of the time it's the right decision but I'm not able to know an animal and know it's going to die for sure and that you chose their time when an animal dies I think of all the sweet memories with them turned sour after their death it all floods back in my brain once the animal dies so you know it's hard knowing that you'll never see their dances and greetings that their just gone it's hard I think about how he's best friends with my lizard and how he loves when we make little mouth motions back at eachother I read some bettas can live a full lifespan with a tumor I'm hoping that it won't spread and he'll be ok for a while of course I'm still not going to let him die I will do anything in my power I'm just delaying some things until I do further research

Most I have seen are not bothered by the tumors, mine, after about 1.5 years was struggling because it was on his head and it got too large. Nobody here is telling you to euthanize, I'm telling you not to medicate him. If you can get a better picture we could maybe determine if it is something else.