Bedraggled

Hello,

I got a new betta named Sushi about a week and a half ago. All was well until a few days ago when I noticed a tear in his tail. I thought perhaps he snagged it on gravel or the filter intake .

I did about a 35% water change and added stress coat to his water. The next day, it was obvious that it was more than just a torn fin as he was worse with very frayed dorsal fin, tail, as well as anal fin. Poor baby..looks a mess.

I did a 50% water change and added more stress coat, as well as Fungus Eliminator by Jungle Labs which is supposed to treat bacterial and fungal infections including tail/fin rot. He is still getting worse. Yesterday was day #2 on the above treatment, and he is still getting worse.

Perhaps his problem is gram-positive instead of gram-negative bacteria? My local pet store does not carry vita-chem or garlic guard, but I do have both on order and am awaiting the arrival, hopefully soon. In the meantime, should I switch treatment to something such as Maracyn to treat gram-positive bacteria since the gram-negative treatment is not working? He is still eating and is still active..He just looks terrible and I feel so bad for him. I will have to wait to attach a picture later, as my husband has the camera with him at work. Thanks in advance for your suggestions and advice.

pinkfloydpuffer

If you use gram-pos meds, I suggest moving him to a seperate quarantine tank so you don't crash the cycle in his current tank.
Do you think it's possible he's a tail biter? It's especially common in halfmoons. Mine was, and man was it a pain (RIP Emerson, I still love you)

Bedraggled

I have not noticed him biting his tail at all, and he sits right beside me on the couch..well he is on my end table..lol. I watch him all the time. Although he does flare at his reflection in the aquarium all the time. Maybe he did catch sight of his tail and dorsal fin over his shoulder and thought it was that "other betta" he was flaring at? I just see his fins all getting shorter and shorter and more frayed and ratty.

pinkfloydpuffer

I never saw mine biting his tail either, but I removed all the things that he could possibly have caught his tail on, blocked the filter intake, etc... and still he would be missing some tail.
What do the edges of his tail look like? Are they discolored at all?

Lucy

You can use Maracyn and Maracyn 2 together. That would cover both gram negative and gram positive infections.

Bedraggled

The edges of his tail are perhaps a bit darker or grayish on the ends. His tail was not missing anything when I got him, but now appears like little spikes, same with dorsal and anal fins. There does not appear to be any discharge or growth coating his fins, just frayed and spiked. His color is royal blue.

Phinny12

Have you checked the levels in the tank? Bedraggled, you said you got Sushi a week and 1/2 ago. Was your tank cycled previously to putting him in? I would suggest getting a water test kit and checking all your levels before starting to add antibiotics. Rule out any problems with your water chemistry before adding medications. Keep up with the daily 25% water changes with water conditioner & stresscoat.
Do you have any decorations in the tank?

pinkfloydpuffer

Discoloration on the edges is often a sign of fin rot. So it'd probably be a good idea to treat it.
My halfmoon would only bite his tailfin.

Phinny12

A darker color around the frayed edges of tail fin would indicate ammonia burn.

pinkfloydpuffer

Ah yes, check the ammonia first. Sorry, I took that for granted

Bedraggled

I used filter media from my established tank to seed the tank for Sushi. My readings are 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and less than 5 nitrates. (The nitrate is definitely darker than 0 but not quite as dark as the 5.) I use the API master freshwater liquid test kit. The first thing I did when I saw his tail was tested his water. I do have decorations in the tank, but they all are pretty smooth. The plants are silk, and I cut off all the little fake roots that might have been too pokey. He does have a castle in his tank, perhaps I will remove it and see if that helps over the next few weeks.

Phinny12

Was there any indication of Fin Rot when you first took him out of his "death Cup"/ Was the water in the cup foul?
One of my females I got was in just Horrid water in her cup.. I battled fin rot with her. A condition she had previously to purchacing her. Maybe you are facing the same problem with an infection Sushi had before you brought him home.
Take the castle out ...see if there is any change. Keep up the water changes.
Nitrates are 5.0?

Bedraggled

OMG..Yes..The water in that death cup was very very nasty.. I was very careful getting him out of it and putting him in his new home. There was a ton of rotting food and mess in it. I do believe there were even planaria in it as well, as I have seen a few tiny, thin white squigglies in his aquarium. I saw him eating a couple of them. Yes, nitrates are just under 5.0..the color is so hard to tell, but obviously darker than 0.

Phinny12

5.0 is ok for nitrates. There should be some nitrate at the end of the cycle. I am guessing that he had the finrot as a result of the water conditions in the "Death Cup". Poor little guy. You should proceed to medication at this point..Maracyn & Maracyn 2 , like Lucy said Use together to treat both gram + and Gram -...and daily 25% Water changes with water conditioners. Once you can get his condition stabilized his fins will grow back fairly quickly.
It will be a daily routine but I am sure you will pull him through Bedraggled!
Keep us up on his progress.

Amanda

Poor Sushi
My betta Vlad, who just passed, had a pretty bad case of fin rot when I got him. He healed up nicely...then he became a tail biter!!
He drove me nuts! lol.
But all in all, it is pretty easy to treat, and they tend to bounce back quickly. Bettas are a tough fish.

Bedraggled

Thanks everyone for all the good advice and reassurance!! Poor little fellow.. I wish I had a before picture to post, so you all could see how pretty he was. I will take a picture tonight and post it so you can see what his fins look like now. That way we can keep up on his progress. Thanks again!!

AlyeskaGirl

I moved my fish from a 20 gallon to a 50 gallon and not even two weeks went by and I lost my firemouth and pictus catfish. First the catfish was actin weird then all his fins and tail became frayed and then he had a white stringy growth on his long whiskers that then moved to his head area and had foggy eyes. Dartin around the tank at first. It happend so fast that I couldnt save him. Had him for about 5 yrs. Then my firemouth started actin weird, but he didnt get any stringy growth, got slightly frayed fins/tail and got thin, then died. It was a female firemouth, had her for awhile too. Never did research what it was that killed them. My Jack Dempsey survived and a silver dollar. But jack was darting around the tank, so I started doin some more water changes and that seemed to help. He is fine now. But it was a new tank, I got anxious and moved them over too soon. Should of gottin a few goldfish to get the cycle goin first. Oooops!!! All in all is that it can be nerve wracking when ya' got sick fish. But the funny thing is is that I moved them from one house to a new house and they survived that just fine. Hmmmm....

pamelakt

I have the same problem. This morning I noticed Hamish's fins are looking ragged - I already treated him for his top fin being ragged, and now it seems the others are following the same way. I don't understand why they get this, I've had Hamish at least 2 months now, his amonia levels have always been at 0 on every test I have ever done and I buy him the best of everything. I'm not impressed!!

Should I put him on the Myxazin again? Should I add aquarium salt? On my last water change last week I already added StressCoat+. I don't understand why it says this is caused by stress or poor water quality, Hamish's water is perfect on every test and he hasn't had any major changes since I got him to stress him. He lives like a little king! He doesn't have any food waste because I always watch him eat his pellets & help him find the ones which have floated along. I even leave a lamp on for him when I go out so he isn't in the dark!! He's spoilt rotten, why would he have this?

Phinny12

It annoys me when people say that they get Bettas because they are such low maintenance fish...they are not low maintenence.. I spend more time on my Bettas than I do on my 55 Gallon Tank!

Phinny12

Pam, has your temperature in your tank fluctuated recently for any reason? I am sure your water conditions are perfect, maybe a change in temp or some other scource of stress caused Hamish to get finrot.

pinkfloydpuffer

Soooo true!!!
They call them 'hardy fish'. I think it's just because they live through so many illnesses! Seriously, bettas get sick all the time it seems. But my other fish are all just peachy...

Bedraggled

Sushi made a big bubble nest yesterday, so he must be happy despite his poor fins. Today is the first day that he actually does not look worse..no better really, but no worse. Perhaps he is getting ready to turn the corner for the better.

Phinny12

Great News Bedraggled.. I am keeping my fingers crossed for Sushi's recovery!