[tinyfriendtinybowl]

So here's my story.
I joined the forum a while ago due to ammonium poisoning and ended up switching from a bowl to a small tank with a heater and filter, better food, and a good cycle. He was doing great for a while.
I ran out of cartages for the filter and discovered the filter replacements were discontinued. So I spent a lot of time trying to open the cartridge and looking online. When I could finally switched filters this ominous white cloudiness appeared in the tank and it was really hard to get rid of but, after a week and changing to prime water conditioner, it was gone.

Here's the problem.
My fish, Perry, is notorious for fin biting. I believe somewhere between fin biting and having a less-than-clean tank he acquired fin rot.
Because of his nasty habit the tiny bits of black rot are unusually close to his body.
I have just done a filter change along with a 50% water change and added some medicine. (seachem paragard is what I had on hand.)
I've read all sorts of things about salts and medicine and dropping the temperature and water changes and it's made me very uncertain of how to proceed without stressing the fish.

Attached are photos of when he was doing really well a month ago, him now, and the tank.
--
Housing:
How many gallons is your tank? 2
Does it have a filter? Yes.
Does it have a heater? Yes.
What temperature is your tank? 79-81 degrees celsius.
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? Omega one.
Do you feed flakes or pellets? Pellet.
Freeze-dried? No.
How often do you feed your Betta? How much? Once a day, three pellets (the size of his eye) except for one fasting day a week.

Maintenance:
Before your Betta became ill how often did you perform a water change? Once a week.
What percentage of water did you change? 50%
Do you vacuum the substrate or just dip out water? Vacuum
What additives do you use? I condition with prime.
(Of note: filter is changed once a month.)

Water Parameters:

My testing kit was discovered to be old and inaccurate, so I can't really say. I know my pH is a tad high, around 7.6 I believe.

Symptoms and Treatment:
When did you first notice the symptoms? Hard to say. He has been looking unwell and rebounding and then unwell again for a few weeks.
How has your Betta’s appearance changed? Fins are tattered (not unusual he is a biter) but now they are lacking color and some black spots have appeared.
How has your Betta’s behavior changed? He is still active and cheery.
Is your Betta still eating? yes.
Have you started treating your Betta? If so, how? I have just added some seachem paraguard.
Does your Betta have any history of being ill? He had ammonium poisioning early this fall, which is why I joined the forum in the first place.
How long have you owned your Betta? Was he or she a rescue? 37 weeks. Not a rescue.

 

[lilnaugrim]

The white cloud was just a bacteria bloom, nothing to be worried about; it's pretty normal. But don't change the filter cartridge each month, instead, just swish it out in tank water you've taken out with your weekly water change. All your good bacteria live in the filter media and on the filter so by taking out that cartridge, you've taken out a lot of the bacteria which causes a Mini-cycle and you get that Bacteria Bloom. Instead, you can customize your media by just using aquarium sponge. I just use that in all my filters; AquaClear sponges are great for that, you can cut them down to size. You can also use filter floss and sew it up with activated carbon/charcoal which get's rid of nasty stuff for a couple days until it's all used up. Or you can just put it in some panty hose and tie that up. Don't feel like you need to use the exact same filter media for your filter, you can switch it up for whatever you need! And then, you should only have to switch out the media when it starts to die and rip apart. If possible, you'd want to squish the new media in with the old media (not usually possible with cartridges) so the new media can get some of that good bacteria on it before you take out the old stuff which will avoid the Mini-Cycle and Bacteria Bloom. You'd want to keep them together for about two weeks before you take out the old one and dispose of it.

Thanks for filling out the form, I can't see exactly where the black spots are though? Can you get a closer picture of him?

 

[Aquastar]

I can't see the black spots either, clearer picture?

So, you should be doing biweekly 50%, if you don't think its necessary (if it works for you), I'd suggest getting a ammonia chart thing, its like a thermometer for ammonia, not sure how effective they are.
Looking at your tank there could be a few reasons for fin biting, these may not be true, but just some ideas for his tail type. As you know, bettas go to the surface to breath, so in general, a tall tank is worse than a cube tank or a long tank. So he may be having trouble getting to the surface with his fins, so providing more plants would be helpful.

Use aquarium salt to treat him for now.

 

[tinyfriendtinybowl]

Every time I get close with the camera he moves to play. Which is good and bad.
These black spots are about the size of pin holes, however. Scattered around his fins especially at the tip of his very bitten dorsal fin. I'm not sure what to make of them but I don't like how close they are to his body.
I'm also increasingly concerned about the widespread discoloration.

I will certainly look into a taller plan for him as well as finding a testing kit of sorts. So far prying the filter cartiges open to put media in hasn't worled out but if I suceed, how would one glue it back together?

 

[lilnaugrim]

Every time I get close with the camera he moves to play. Which is good and bad.
These black spots are about the size of pin holes, however. Scattered around his fins especially at the tip of his very bitten dorsal fin. I'm not sure what to make of them but I don't like how close they are to his body.
I'm also increasingly concerned about the widespread discoloration.

I will certainly look into a taller plan for him as well as finding a testing kit of sorts. So far prying the filter cartiges open to put media in hasn't worled out but if I suceed, how would one glue it back together?

Try to cup him then or put him in a small clear container to take closer pictures.

It sounds more like Wild Type spots than anything to me but I have to reserve full judgement until we get better pictures

And noo, don't pull the cartridges apart lol, it doesn't work like that. I literally just mean to use aquarium sponge and stuff it in the filter instead of the cartridges. Cartridges are a big waste of money anyway.

 

[tinyfriendtinybowl]

(I hope everyone had a good Christmas c: )

Alright, so here are the best pictures I got, but now I'm even more confused. Do betta fish just, lose their color sometimes?
--

 

[xShainax]

Looks like he is marbling. That means changing color

 

[tinyfriendtinybowl]

I had no idea bettas could do that! When all the little bits of black and white started I thought it was rot because of how small it was.
I'm very glad it's not and I wonder what he'll look like.

 

[xShainax]

Keep us posted on his color change.

 

[lilnaugrim]

Yes exactly! Not all Betta's marble, it's a certain gene that causes them to spontaneously change color. Sometimes we know if they're going to change if we know the lineage of the fish but most of the time, it's just a surprise! A solid blue fish can change to a white and red one! And then it can go to yellow or something and then finish off on black, it's quite amazing to watch! Definitely keep pictures of the process so we can see it as well! :-D