Betta Fins Not Getting Better.

I've had a Dragon scale betta for about 6 months now and this month his tail started tearing dramatically. Ive had the same plastic but soft plants in there since the day I got him, I had a coral place for him to hide but was afraid that was what he was getting torn up on. Its been a week since I've taken it out and the tears just seem to get worse. I read on another forum that getting betta fix will help him heal (it helped my other betta heal from a cut he got from a plant that shouldn't have been in there) but hes been on it for about 2 weeks (there have been water changes as well since you're supposed to do that after medicating and then remedicate if needed. He just seems to be getting worse and I'm getting frustrated. Hes in a 3 gallon has been for 3 months, water parameters are fine. I'm at a loss on how to help the little guy. Ive uploaded some pictures that show the progression from one tear to many. Thank you in advance

 

What kind of filter do you have? I know it's a bit of a weird question but I used to have a betta who kept getting sucked toward the filter which tore his fins a bit.

Also it's possible that he might be biting his own tail. Some bettas with longer tails bite off bits their own fins if the water flow is too strong or he's stressed

 

Here's his filter, the intake is on the back against the aquarium wall. If I don't leave a light on he'll see himself in the reflection and get stressed, but once I noticed it (I'm assuming that's where the first tear came from) I started leaving the light on when I leave for work. I don't know why he wouldn't be healing if that was why though. Thanks for the response!

 

That filter is too strong for a 3 gallon. I recommend a minI sponge filter or Penn Plax small world. You will want to get an air pump valve to control the amount of bubbles. I would do at least 50% water changes every couples of days.

 

It's the filter that came with the tank, it's meant for 2-10 gallon tanks so I assumed he'd be fine. Is there any way to lessen the flow of this one until I can get a different filter for his tank? Like I mentioned earlier he was fine until this past month, not sure why it would cause him stress now. I had planned on moving him into a separated 10 gallon but wanted him to heal up before hand. Should I start medicating again? Thanks for the reply!

 

It's possible that he got tired after constantly fighting the water flow. You can easily make a buffer for the water flow by placing a sponge in front of the filter, but the top half off a plastic water bottle works really well too. Just search up aquarium filter flow buffer and you should find a couple diy's that are prettier helpful.

As for the mediation part, it's not real necessary. Just keep the water nice and warm, that should help him heal faster.

 

99.9% of filters that come with small tanks are too strong for Bettas. What are your water parameters and temperature? In the last picture his fins look rough and I think beyond the point of using Bettafix. As far as medications, hopefully CindiL will be able to advise. Right now, do at least a 50% water change.

I don't see where the intake is on the filter - is it on the bottom? For the output, you could use a plastic bottle to cut down on the current flow.

ETA: I agree with WhatsUpGuys - Bettas get stressed from constantly fighting a current.

 

Hi, welcome to the forum

I see the tears. I would think its probably from the decorations or the plastic plants the way they are torn/split and not missing chunks (like if he was biting them). Do the nylon test, take a nylon sock and if it catches against the ornaments or plastic plants it will also catch a bettas tail which are fragile and thin to begin with. The only thing in my betta tank are live plants because of this.

You can help buffer the outflow of your filter though the way it is falling it may not be bothering him? You're the best judge. Does he get sucked towards it? Does the flow push him around alot? I prefer filters for bettas where you can re-direct or turn the flow towards a side wall etc.

You mentioned water parameters were fine. Do you have a test kit? Would you test your tank for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates and ph? What are your normal water changes like? how much? how often?

Betta fix has very limited uses, mainly for small cuts etc.

His tail doesn't look infected which is good. You could use a small amount of aquarium salt for a week or two. I also like Seachem Stress Guard instead of salt (NOT ApI Stress coat) to heal up fin tears. If you use aquarium salt you just dissolve 1 tsp per actual gallon of water you have in the tank. Replace it with water changes. Leave it in for a week or two and see if you start seeing new growth. It will be clear so you'll have to look closely.

If it gets worse after a couple of weeks you can use antibiotics but I don't think you need anything yet.

 

The intake is in the back against the aquarium wall he doesn't get pulled towards it at all. It was time to do a full cleaning of his tank so I did so this morning. I normally do 1/3 water change every week, but since hes been getting torn up I upped the change to twice a week, I started salt when I first noticed the tear since I couldn't get to the store for the betta fix for a few days, but nothing changed. The temperature was 78 degrees before I cleaned and it is 78 degrees now, so he's warm. Water Parameters were this before the change.
Nitrite- 0
Nitrite- 0
PH- 7.5
This test doesn't have ammonia on it, but the one from last week was normal. (My pet store was out of the normal ones I buy) I started betta fix back when there was only one tear, but I'm glad that there are other options. I have the water output pointing down but I could have it going straight out, I just had it pointed down because I thought it might mess with feeding. The plants passed the nylon test both times I did it (When I was trying to figure out what was tearing him up and when I cleaned his tank today). The consensus seems to be that its stress, but he just doesn't seem to mind the filter. Thank you guys for your replies!

 

How long did you do the salt for?

I'd make sure to get an ammonia test as soon as you can. I'd switch to the liquid test kits when you can as they are much more reliable.

If the tears do not improve or get worse you can treat with nitrofurazone found in many medicines. Let me know if you decide to go that route.

 

I used salt for about 5 days before switching to betta fix. The salt didn't make it better (I was told I should see improvement within 3 days) which is why I ended up moving to betta fix, since you're only supposed to medicate as a last resort. I'm going to a bigger city pet store tomorrow and I'll make sure to get the kit, and perhaps the medicine just in case it gets to that point. He's had the tears for about 3 weeks now, I just want them to heal at this point.

 

I wouldn't necessarily see improvement in 3 days, maybe 5 though I'd expect to see new fin growth depending on how old he really is (since you don't know how old they are at the pet store) and his general health. I see new fin growth in my young girls often over night so it really depends on their overall health too. Two weeks with the low salt amount I recommended can really help. After the first week you can reduce the salt to 1/2tsp per gallon. Or if you see Seachem Stress Guard pick that up, it targets the protein in cuts, tears etc and helps them heal.

Another non-antibiotic choice for later on if need be is API Fungus Guard (ignore the name) which is malachite green and acriflavine and is also good for healing fins. It has the added benefit of treating external parasites. Do you ever see him scratch on objects?

I think nitrofurazone is great to have in your fishy medicine cabinet, especially with bettas, so I'd pick it up while you're there in case you end up needing to treat later on. If they start looking glued together, or really decaying (which they're not at this point) or start disintegrating further then it would be a good idea to treat:
found in API Furan-2 or Tetra Fungus Guard, HikarI Bifuran or Jungle Fungus Clear tabs (this one is at Walmart). They all contain the same medicine with different marketing names.

 

They had everything but the stuff you listed, woke up this morning and the poor guy had clamped fins and was behind the filter. So I'm heading to the store to get the tabs since I'm confident they'll have stuff. He's lethargic and the ammonia is 0 the Ph is 7.4. I didn't test the others but can if need be. He was fine last night but he got ahold of the snails algae disk yesterday morning, we took it out as soon as we saw him eating on it. Is there anything I can do to help him?

 

If its bacterial the tabs will help him a lot, not only the fins but how he feels in general.

Do extra water changes for a week or two. Do 50% changes in between doses. You can do more than one four day round, do two for sure if he improves.

 

Update: I put half of a fungus clear tab in and after the water changed color he started swimming erratically and jumping out of the water, he's now resting at the top of a plant breathing heavier than he was before the tab. I also went into the pet store and ordered some other stuff you mentioned Cindy. Thank you everyone for your help with Aries.

 

Isn't one tab for 10 gallons? If so, a half of tab would have been for 5 gallons, therefore too much for a 3 gallon. You need to do a huge water change, ASAP.

 

It was closer to a third the way it split but I did a 1/3 water change anyways. He's laying on the gravel breathing heavy on his side, I'm assuming he's going to look worse before he gets better, he just looks really bad. Is it possible that when I cleaned his tank it started the cycle over again and that's what's stressing him out?

 

The fact you noticed his labored breathing right after giving the med, it's probably safe to assume it's the med causing his distress. His reaction to the med is not normal, unless he got too much. It has nothing to do with looking worse before getting better, in other words, he should not have responded the way he did with the correct dosage.

This is a very serious situation that might take his life. I don't mean to sound gloom and doom but his behavior doesn't sound good at this point.

 

In a 3G tank, it probably only holds about 2 gallon so you would only want to use 1/4 tablet. I'd just do enough of a water change so that much is left in the water.

 

Partycool how are things going with the tail?

 

Aries died Wednesday night around 11:30. He had seizures on and off from about 8 until then. I sat with him the entire time, not wanting him to feel alone. He fought it really hard but he was in so much pain he looked peaceful as he took his last breath. It's hitting us pretty hard considering he was fine on Tuesday, but I'd rather him go fast than to have to be in pain like he was. We have yet to dismantle his tank, but it's a step we're working on. We miss him quite a bit as he was our first Betta, but luckily we have two other bettas to distract us from the hole he left in our hearts. I hate to play favorites but if I had to pick he was the favorite of the 3. I wish I knew what took him in the end so we could avoid it for Perseus and Hercules, but it's still a mystery. Aries had a good six months with us, and in the end I'm glad we had the time we did with him.
Thank you guys for trying to help with Aries, he's no longer in pain and that's what's important.