Betta has white streak on forehead, help please.

Hi fellow fishkeepers.

Please could someone assist. I’m desperate at this point and completely unsure what the issue is.

My Betta has this strange white streak on his forehead. He’s been eating fine, though I noticed he did eject a pellet this morning. His activity is fine.

He may have a false ovipositor, as I can clearly see this isn’t white spot. He does have a single white spot toward his analfin.

I change the water 20% weekly. I feed pellet and frozen bloodworm.

The tank is several weeks old. We have 0 nitrites (except the occasional flair up which we deal with) and small amounts of nitrates. Ammonia is 0.

we’ve been dosing the tank with whitespot Interpet. The carbon has been removed from the filter for the purpose and t

the tank is heavily planted.


please, please advise.

 

Can't tell for sure, but looks like could either be fungal or knocked off a couple of scales bumping into something. The spot is way to big for "white spot" and there would also be several more spots if that were the case.

 

Come to think of it my molly has it too. After I raised the temp it kinda went away

 

I’m intending to offer baths with Melythene Blue and a combined treatment of Primafix & Malifix. I’m doubtful it’s parasitic, but do have Interpet parasite in case. I’ve also added cannapala leaves (may be wrong spelling) which I’ve heard is good for Betta.
In terms of more natural remedies, I’ve turned the temperature up to 27*c and will be conducting biweekly water changes.

I’m not a fool to believe this’ll stop something more severe like columnaris. Any further advice would be amazing.

 

Hi,

Methylene blue is good, and I use it for fin and body issues. I set up a bath in a clean container, fill it with a gallon of treated, heated tank water, and add 1 ml of methylene blue to it. Leave the betta in the bath for 30 minutes. Make sure you put the bath in a warm place so he doesn't get cold, or add a small heater to it, if you have an extra. This is one of my go-to treatments, along with aquarium salt. It does help fight fungal issues, so it is a good place to start.

I would avoid the melafix. I find that all it does is stink up the water, and the tea tree oil in it is not so great for bettas. I've never used pimafix before, so I can't really comment on that.

If your betta has columnaris, you will indeed see many more symptoms, and he will get progressivly worse rather quickly. If he seems ok except for that spot, it probably is just some kind of abrasion, injury, or maybe scale loss.

To spot columnaris, look for symptoms like lesions/ulcers, lethargy, more color loss, poor appetite, shredded and clamped fins, issues around the mouth, and gill issues. The lesions/ulcers usually show up within a day or so.

To treat columnaris, one of the things that is recommended is to turn the heat down to about 75 degrees. The bacteria loves heat, and hates the cool water. The most recommended course of meds includes kanaplex (kanamycin) and nitrofurazone, or a med that has nitrofurazone in it.

At this point, I think that the water changes will help a lot. And the methylene blue baths will help, too, along with the catappa leaves that produce tannins, which have some slight antibacterial and antifungal properties. And bettas do love tannin rich water. It's just that some fish keepers don't like the look of brown water, which is understandable!

Hope this helps! Keep us updated!

 

I’ve been bathing with aquarium salt and methylene blue daily. I think it’s columnaris. He’s bloating and, well, picture speaks for itself.

out of town but will be euthanising I think. Any opinions?

 

It looks like scrapes to me. Does he have a hide he could be scraping it on? Is he still eating good? Euthanizing seems kind of rash at this time.

 

It looks like scrapes to me. Does he have a hide he could be scraping it on? Is he still eating good? Euthanizing seems kind of rash at this time.

His mouth is white. See below.

 

Is he eating?

 

His mouth is white. See below.

Not trying to scare you but microbacteria could be a possibility

 

Is he eating

he’ll take a few pellets then spit some out. It’s clearly uncomfortable for him.

 

Here's a link to a page about columnaris, if that helps. If he were mine, I would try to treat him because certain strains of columnaris can be treated. But if he has gone past a point, then I would definitely understand you wanting to euthanize.

Columnaris Symptoms And Treatment | Freshwater Fish Disease and Health Forum

 

Here's a link to a page about columnaris, if that helps. If he were mine, I would try to treat him because certain strains of columnaris can be treated. But if he has gone past a point, then I would definitely understand you wanting to euthanize.

Columnaris Symptoms And Treatment | Freshwater Fish Disease and Health Forum

We have tried with Primafix, Aquarium salt baths and Methylene Blue daily. We’ve also been doing water changes and regular testing. Even added Capella leaves to contribute tannins to the water.

unfortunately I think we just got unlucky. I’ve purchased a quarantine tank for version 2 but obviously learnt a lot.

 

I know that it can be hard to find some meds depending on the country you live in. Euthanizing can be emotional. And I do believe in not making the fish suffer needlessly.

 

I know that it can be hard to find some meds depending on the country you live in. Euthanizing can be emotional. And I do believe in not making the fish suffer needlessly.

Good news. He seems to be improving. Began treatment with daily baths of Melythene Blue and Aquarium salt. He’s starting to improve. Some white left within his mouth but! I’m hopeful. He’s stopped ejecting food too.

 

He's a very beautiful boy!!! So gald to hear that he is getting better!!!!