Does my betta have fin rot?

[lindsaylbennett]

I got my betta about 3 weeks or so ago, and was unable to cycle my tank before I put him in due to not doing enough research.
his water is perfect according to yesterdays test (0,0,0) as I cannot get the tank to begin cycling due to him not producing much waste.
when I got him his fins were a little torn up. he seemed to be healing after about a week and started gaining colour.
but the past 3 days or so his fins are looking really bad and scraggly. there’s no black spots, just really dark red which I think is just his colour.
I provided a picture from when he seemed to be almost healed about a week or so ago, and two from just 10 minutes ago.
i’m scared I did something wrong.
let me know what you think
could it be the hornwort I put in his tank?
the leaves feel pretty soft.. but there’s a lot floating at the top and some chunks planted in the sand, which he hangs out in quite a lot.
i’ve never seen him get snagged though
and this is happening all around his fins not just one area

 

[Ghelfaire]

It probably is. How often are you testing your water? How many water changes are you doing and what % of water do you take out?
Have you added bottled live bacteria? It might help your (now) fish in cycle.

 

[Fisch]

Welcome to Fishlore....Congratulationa to your beautiful Betta.
Bettas are sensitive in non cycled tanks, all zero parameters alone are not the ideal guideline. Even with the little waste he produces, water conditions may not be pristine.
Can you provide a bit more information how big the tank is, does it have a filter, does it have a heater? How often do you change water? You have a parameter test kit?
Having sent my own Betta through several fish in cycles.... I would do daily 10-20% temperature adjusted waterchanges just to keep the water quality at its best. If you use tap water, the general recommendation is to use Prime as dechlorinator and to detoxify small amounts of Amonia/Nitrites.
The bacteria growth will come in a bit slower, but the health of your Betta takes priority. I myself don't have experience with bottled bacteria, I let other members talk to the successful use.
Hope he will get better.

 

[lindsaylbennett]

is it a five gallon tank.
it does have a filter (although it’s not the strongest)
I do about 30% water changes every 2-3 days and I test the water daily.
I did take everything out and cleaned the tank as there were thousands of little hornwort needles at the bottom on the tank but I watched him the whole time and he seemed ok. he’s eating totally fine and making bubble nests.
but, that is when his fins started to get bad.
what can I do to help him
and it does have a heater and I use prime when I change the water
I also just purchased some stress guard

 

[Fisch]

You may want to try waterchanges daily for a week to see if it makes a difference. If you can get your hands on some Indian Almond leaves, the tannins darken the water a bit and are supposed to have some healing properties.

 

[lindsaylbennett]

okay.
if I do water changes daily, how much should I take out? 20%?
if he’s not improving in a week, could it be my hornwort in the tank. it’s pretty soft but I read it can snag their fins.
is he gonna be ok or is this like really serious