Not sure if Betta has Fin Rot or Tearing

Hey everyone I just got my first half-moon betta fish the other day at petsmart and I would say his fins have looked like this since it got him. He seems to be an older fish. I currently have him in a 3 gallon half moon tank with a filter and I'm getting a heater today. I have two small artificial plants in the tank and one real plant. Basically as a beginner I have no clue if his fins are rotting from poor care before I got him or if they're torn. Please help.

 

You forgot to upload the picture.

 

Here are the photos! Thanks to anyone who tries to help.

 

Hard to say under that lighting but it does look as though there's some fin rot going on. It's mild though, regular water changes should be enough to help him heal on his own. He may also have nipped his fins a little but time will tell.

Is your tank cycled?

 

I'm buying test strips today so I'm not sure if my tank is cycled yet. I just put him in this tank yesterday and I got him on Saturday. Before putting him in I adjusted him to the water temperature. The water is also treated of course.

He seems very happy in this tank so far because I initially had him in a very small tank for the first day. He's swimming constantly and moving around a lot.

 

If you can afford the upfront cost, buy the liquid test kit rather than the strips. Price per test is waaay lower and you get more test options. Strips often don't include an ammonia test and are also not as accurate.

 

Oh okay depending on the price I might do that. Thanks so much for your help!

 

If you can afford the upfront cost, buy the liquid test kit rather than the strips. Price per test is waaay lower and you get more test options. Strips often don't include an ammonia test and are also not as accurate.

If you do go this route, the API liquid test kit is awesome and works super well for me.

 

I wanted to put a picture with better lighting in case anyone has something to add