sirdarksol

My wife just got a new betta. He was in a tank with a few Bolivian Rams, and it looked like they did not get along. He is currently white in the body, though he looks like he's going to be red and blue once he gets his color back.

His fins look a little bit ragged, and there's a red spot on his forehead that I can't tell if it's an ulcer/hemorrhage or if it's just a patch of scales that haven't lost their color. I'm worrying that he may have been injured pretty badly, and am worrying that I should medicate the tank.
Currently, he's being fed my home-made fish food (lots of veggies, nori, and spirulina, with some bloodworm for extra protein), his tank has been dosed with Vitachem, and the waste products are all sitting at 0. The tank is Keiji's old tank, and the massive number of snails should have kept the tank cycled, at least to some extent (though I'm still watching for a spike).
The tank has a bunch of plants, which he seems to love to hide in right now.

If I am to medicate, I currently have SplendidBetta BettaFix. Is this stuff safe for plants/inverts? (I've asked the company, but they haven't responded yet. Their website doesn't have anything specific about it, and I've apparently discarded the info sheet)

Barbrella

Most of the bettas we get from petstores are not in the best of shape.

"Lots of veggies" is not the best for bettas, who are carnivores. I would feed the bloodworms mainly for now to kick up his appetite and since he needs the protein they provide. You can alternate them with betta pellets. I like the Hikari ones.

It sounds like you're doing everything possible for now - super clean warm water often is healing on it's own. IF you think there might be fin rot, Maracyn2 is a good medication!

sirdarksol

Alright, good point about the protein. At this point, I'm worried that he's been malnourished due to having aggressive tankmates (this pet store does in-store breeding, and from what I've read, rams get pretty bad during breeding), so I've been worrying about vitamins and minerals. I think what I'm going to do is feed him the blood worms with little bits of the homemade stuff mixed in, since the spirulina is one of the healthiest foods on the planet for nearly everything that lives.

COBettaCouple

i'd get him some fish protector to help him heal and watch for any signs of fin rot. if he shows any signs of it, a 10-day course of Triple Sulfa combined with Rid-Fungus is what i'd treat him with.

poor guy, hope he recovers quickly and well in his good home now.

sirdarksol

Well, his fins merely look ragged right now, not infected. They aren't being eaten away or anything.

Followup question.
How long can I expect this little guy to be white? His body is white, but is dusted with little bits of blue and red, while his fins are really brightly colored. If it weren't for the bright fins, I'd guess that he was part albino or a female.

Barbrella

Do you have a picture?

sirdarksol

No, I don't have a digital camera that's good for close up shots.

COBettaCouple

were the white areas on his body ever colored? it sounds like he's his normal coloring. We have an all-white female betta.

sirdarksol

We have no idea. He has grown a bit darker, but hasn't actually become fully colored.

Huh, so that's why the algae is making a comeback in that tank...
He's methodically picking the malaysian snails off the walls of the tank. I just watched him do so while I was typing this message.