[wyshlexia]

Poor Basil's been having a rough time with his tail. I'm a first time Betta owner and nothing seems to be working. Please help?
I don't have access to a pet store at the moment, so I have to buy any fish supplies online and have them shipped. (Unless they can be bought at a Walmart)

Housing
What size is your tank? 1 gallon
What temperature is your tank? 73 degrees Fahrenheit
Does your tank have a filter? No
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? No. My room is very warm, so the tank over heats with the heater on. I do have one though.
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? Just himself

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? TetraBetta plus pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? 3-4 pellets every morning.

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? Every other day
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 100%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Aqueon BettaBowl Plus water conditioner/dechlorinator and at the moment 1 teaspoon of API Aquarium Salt.

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Haven't tested the water.

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? About 3 1/2 weeks ago I noticed black around the edge of his fin. A few days later I noticed holes in his fins. I began treating with 1/2 teaspoon per gallon of aqaurium salt assuming it was fin rot. For the next two weeks his tail would remain black around the edges. Every few days new hole would appear. Last week I upped the aquarium salt to 1 teaspoon per gallon. Today the back of his tail is completely frayed.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? It hasn't changed at all. He's very lively.
When did you start noticing the symptoms? 3 1/2 weeks ago.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? I started with aquarium salt. First 1/2 teaspoon and 1 teaspoon for the past week.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? Not that I know of.
How old is your fish (approximately)? Bought him from petsmart 4 weeks ago, not sure how old that makes him.


I'll see if I can get a photo of the tail this afternoon. I can't get him to sit still long enough to take one!

 

[Oldfishlady]

Not all black edges are fin rot...sometimes it can be normal pigment...a pic would really help......Fin rot usually will look discolored and crusty at the fin tips-not curly...crusty looking.....since he has holes and now fin are frayed...it may be too many water changes, damage from netting, over treatment, something in the tank itself causing it...etc.....

I would remove everything in the tank and start clean water treatment and good nutrition......water changes using just dechlorinated water....50% twice weekly for the first week-leaving him in the tank for the water changes-

On the second week-twice weekly water changes of-50% and 100%...repeat this schedule and see if he improves

If you have live plants add some floating or a soft silk plant to help make him feel secure....or even better-if you have IAL add one or if you have any Oak trees near by that are free of pesticides-gather 20 or so naturally dried and fallen from the tree Oak leaf and add 2-3 to the tank-remove weekly and add fresh....
This will help you rule out the environment as the cause...provided that he doesn't have a secondary infection already or he is tail biting....

You may also want to bump up the temp a tiny bit to at least 76F...

Nutrition is important-good quality varied diet fed in small frequent meals-If you have access to mosquito larva offer several rinsed for one meal a day.....

 

[wyshlexia]

I did manage to get pictures, not the best quality though I'm afraid.

And here's a full body picture.

I'm about to replace the water and remove everything from the tank. I'll definitely look into the leaves and larva.

 

[Shirleythebetta]

That doesn't look curley or crusty, he is a half moon chocolate? if he is they get a black outline normaly. Mine did, here's a pic. Does it look more like this? If it looks like this it's normal coloring. Means his colors are coming in. Like OFL says, the tearing could be fin damage from decorations, gravel, and netting. I had a Veil Tail rip his fin on gravel that was too sharp.

 

[wyshlexia]

I'm starting to think that he might have been taring it on his little barrel-cave. I'm glad I didn't try increasing the salt again or getting medication! Thank you so much for the help. With any luck he'll be looking better soon.

 

[Shirleythebetta]

ooo yea the caves are nasty sometimes. Take it out and try to file it. The sharp spots are usually on the inside of the entrance. Keep his water clean and he should mend in no time.