Great. Our new betta has fin rot

[lmdbww]

So I got DD a new betta on the 6th with a new filtered 2.5 gallon tank (I know things online say to get larger but that's all we really have room for...)

So anyway, all was well! He is so sassy, he really is fascinating to watch! Water has stayed nice and clear and clean. He loves to eat and sit in this dang little car DD loved for him (i'll insert picture).


Last night i'm looking at him and dude is floating upside down in one of the plants in the tank. Upon closer inspection, his back tail is black halfway up. Googled like hell and see, he has fin rot. I was prob overfeeding and it caused the tank water to get all jacked up. (But it said, just keep tank water clean and the black will shed off and new fin will come out, etc).

I did a full tank water change and let it set running overnight. Added him back in this morning and where his tail was black, it's now full of holes (looks very thinned out and....wispy?) on the ends.  I also see pieces of his tail sitting on the stones.

I ran to the pet store after DD got on the bus and $48 later! lol We now have a thermometer (the light on the tank actually does keep the water warm but I was done guessing), new food, water testing strips, new filters (the filter stank really odd lol), and 2 gallons of spring water (I'm done w/our tap water for his tank).  I changed the filter and topped the tank off w/spring water.  So at this point the water temp is spot on (80, which sounds like it's optimal healing temp for betta fish), and when I tested the water, chemical levels were all within normal range.

So, does it sound like i'm on the right track now? lol Like Ugh maybe i'm not meant to own a fish. I've spent more on this fish in the past month than I have on the dog.

[lmdbww]

Meet Gumball
Big pimpin' in his ride of course.

[r]

I don't know anything about fish but as an animal lover I can understand wanting to do everything you can to make your pet feel better. He's really pretty! I hope he gets healed soon.

[dr.girlfriend]

I don't know much about fin rot, but under normal circumstance you'd never want to change all of his water at once, it's too much of a shock. You want to take 1/3 out and replace with fresh (treated) water. If you do change him from tank to tank, put him in a ziplock with some of the original water and float it in the new tank for a few hours so he can adjust 100% to the temperature before releasing him into the bigger tank. For fin rot, though, I don't know if you do have to start totally anew. Sounds like you're doing all you can. Sorry you're having so much trouble...we've had a beta for a few years. His tail isn't as long as it used to be, but he's seemed pretty healthy. One thing I have noticed is you have to feed him slooowly. Like, we give one pellet, wait like 30 seconds, then another, 30 seconds, etc. for all seven pellets. That way he has time to "find" and eat the first one before the next one is released. Otherwise it just goes to the bottom of the tank and contributes to tank filth, I think. Some healthy bacteria in the tank is good, but I guess it's kind of a balancing act. The way we have it now you can see some algae on the gravel but it doesn't accumulate on the side of the tank or anything.

[elcjet]

You're doing the best you can here.  

The holes in the fins could be caused by something rough in the tank - pull out that car and make sure the edges are okay.  If pantyhose would get snagged on them, so could your betta's fins.....so sand them down.  I have the same tank and the same plant -- they are great!

One thing that helped me with water quality was getting a few live moss balls.....seriously helps a ton.

Unlike Dr.Girlfriend, I'm an evil betta mom and on occasion I will do total water changes.  (Except I put him in tupperware with about 10 cups of water, so it's not 100% exactly)  I need to clean that acrylic tank and scrub it down -- hard to do with him in there.  

One thing you can do is add 2 tsp of aquarium salt for your tank for a day, transfer little guy to a holding container, and then do another 100% water change.......add more salt.....don't add salt on salt...the tank needs to be changed.  That can really help with the fin rot.  

And remember, 1-2 pellets twice a day is PLENTY for these guys.  They are shameless beggers and it's so tempting to feed them more.  Don't do it.    

Here's my dude -- Killer:

[lmdbww]

Mar 20, 2015 11:10:46 GMT -5 elcjet said:

You're doing the best you can here.  

The holes in the fins could be caused by something rough in the tank - pull out that car and make sure the edges are okay.  If pantyhose would get snagged on them, so could your betta's fins.....so sand them down.  I have the same tank and the same plant -- they are great!

One thing that helped me with water quality was getting a few live moss balls.....seriously helps a ton.

Unlike Dr.Girlfriend, I'm an evil betta mom and on occasion I will do total water changes.  (Except I put him in tupperware with about 10 cups of water, so it's not 100% exactly)  I need to clean that acrylic tank and scrub it down -- hard to do with him in there.  

One thing you can do is add 2 tsp of aquarium salt for your tank for a day, transfer little guy to a holding container, and then do another 100% water change.......add more salt.....don't add salt on salt...the tank needs to be changed.  That can really help with the fin rot.  

And remember, 1-2 pellets twice a day is PLENTY for these guys.  They are shameless beggers and it's so tempting to feed them more.  Don't do it.    

Here's my dude -- Killer:

I <3 Killer! I'll show DD, she'll love him!

His fin wasn't like that last night (and I had him in a quart bowl w/tank water overnight) so I think it is just from the fin rot.  I added Stress Coat into the tank when I got home to get DD off of the bus, so hopefully that will help.


I do have an additional feeding question.  Two different pet stores told us (myself and my sister, who also has a betta) that they feed their fish every 2-3 DAYS. The pellets that I have Gumball can't fit into his little mouth and he didn't seem interested in them so I picked up Omega One Betta Buffet Flakes today. The container says "Feed three times daily, using only as much as fish can consume in two minutes."  That seems like a lot! Should I do daily? just a little pinch?

[elcjet]

You can feed them daily -- it's really the only entertainment they get. Just keep it to a small crushed flake twice a day. Some betta owners go one day a week where they don't feed them -- they say it clears out their gut. So you could do that, too.

I feed my guy twice a day. Since he was not hungry the first five days he was with us, I had 3-4 different types of food and DH put them in a little jar....so I take a tiny tiny pinch and feed it to him. He is done in under a minute and wants more, but that is fine. I think I read their stomach is the size of their eyeball?

[lmdbww]

Well. Gumball lost almost all of his tail and died overnight. I just do not understand what I'm doing wrong but the pet store will be getting a call when they open at 10.

[dr.girlfriend]

Mar 22, 2015 7:57:29 GMT -5 lmdbww said:

Well. Gumball lost almost all of his tail and died overnight. I just do not understand what I'm doing wrong but the pet store will be getting a call when they open at 10.

Sorry to hear it.  :-( 

[elcjet]

Sorry about Gumball.

Go find the ugliest betta you can in that pet store. I bet it will live forever. (And it might not be you -- it could have been sick before you got it) It sounds like you've done everything right!

[house]

Oh no. I am sorry. how is your daughter doing.. or have you not told her?

[lmdbww]

UPDATE:

DD was at IL's the day that I found him so I did tell her later on that day (but I already took care of him and cleaned the tank out before she got home). She was ok, cried for a second, and that was it.

On Friday we went to the pet store and got 2 Neon Glow Danio's and they are doing great so far. They chase each other around all.day.long and eat like there's no tomorrow. The plus is that there was a tank with a thousand of them in so if one dies i'll just replace it and not even bother telling her. lol She picked a pink one and a yellowish orange one.

Mar 24, 2015 9:53:56 GMT -5 elcjet said:

Sorry about Gumball.

Go find the ugliest betta you can in that pet store. I bet it will live forever. (And it might not be you -- it could have been sick before you got it) It sounds like you've done everything right!

That's so true lol I bet you're right

[dr.girlfriend]

I will admit that I'm usually pretty up front with DS about death, especially since both of our dogs died in recent years, but for the first betta I did the, "He looks sick, I'm taking him to the pet doctor and they'll make him better but in the meantime I got a different one" routine.