What Is Wrong With My Betta's Fins?

HI everyone! I'm new to forum posting but I thought I would ask fellow Betta keepers for some guidance/advice.

I have had my Betta (Lupin) for about a year and 3 months now. When I initially bought him I had him in a 2.5 gallon tank. He has since been upgraded to a 5.5 gallon tank for his well being. While he was in the smaller tank, I believe he tore his fins on a rough plastic plant which I should not have had in there. His fins appeared quite ragged and torn. I believe he is a halfmoon betta but please correct me if I'm wrong. I received no information on him when I bought him from a local pet shop.

I read up on fin care and followed directions on doing regular water changes and checking ammonia/nitrate levels... He has been in his large tank now for more than a year and his fins haven't shown any signs of improvement. I was thinking he might have fin rot but I don't know if it's possible for him to even survive that long carrying the bacteria for over a year.

I went to an aquarium store to ask about the use of Melafix & Bettafix and I was advised against using those. The owner instead gave me an indian almond leaf and told me it should help.

It's been about 3 weeks now with still no improvement. What am I doing wrong? I don't want to make his life uncomfortable and I'm not sure if his fins are affecting him in any way...he seems to be happier and healthier than ever, still eating, still exploring with little rests throughout the day.

He lets me hand feed him which is really lovely...

What can I do to help him?

 

I'm not sure, but I think your betta has mild fin rot. I don't think you will have to use medication yet; stick with the basics: clean tank decorations, replace dirty filter media, check tank temperature (somewhere around 78-81), do frequent water changes, and check pH often.

 

I'm not sure, but I think your betta has mild fin rot. I don't think you will have to use medication yet; stick with the basics: clean tank decorations, replace dirty filter media, check tank temperature (somewhere around 78-81), do frequent water changes, and check pH often.

Thank you for the reply!
I was wondering, is it possible for him to have mild fin rot for over a year? I thought it became lethal in fishies?

 

From what I am getting so far, when you purchased the betta, it had fin rot and hasn't improved for a whole year?
If that is so, I don't think it is fin rot. That is WAY too long

 

That looks like fin rot to me. Sometimes it moves fast, and some times it moves slow. What's your water change schedule like, and what kind of filtration do you use? There are medications you can use that might help, but it's best to figure out the source and fix that first. Your LFS probably warned you against the Mela/Bettafix because some people think the tree tea oil in it is dangerous for bettas, but even if it's not (people argue both sides) it's more homeopathic than I personally like in a medication. The leaf lowers the ph in the water and that can be useful for fighting an infection and calming the fish, but there are antibiotics that you can use if it becomes necessary.

There is also the chance that he's a fin biter. It can be tricky to tell them apart unless you catch them in the act. Some bettas decide their fins are too heavy and will bite at them to make them shorter, or they just get bored and start self harming. I have a halfmoon that's a tail biter. I slowed his filter and moved his tank next to my desk where I spend a lot of time, and he improved a lot. He still relapses and takes a little nip every once and a while, but most of his fins have regrown.

 

From what I am getting so far, when you purchased the betta, it had fin rot and hasn't improved for a whole year?
If that is so, I don't think it is fin rot. That is WAY too long

I assume he may have had fin rot from when I purchased him... it just confuses me that after the normal water changes 20%-25% a weekly to fortnightly, and then 50% changes every few months. I check the PH and try to balance it out gradually to not stress him out. I do what I can and what I've been recommended but it still hasn't improved after well over a year. His fins tore about 2-3 weeks after I purchased him so his fins have probably been like that for most of the time I've had him.

That looks like fin rot to me. Sometimes it moves fast, and some times it moves slow. What's your water change schedule like, and what kind of filtration do you use? There are medications you can use that might help, but it's best to figure out the source and fix that first. Your LFS probably warned you against the Mela/Bettafix because some people think the tree tea oil in it is dangerous for bettas, but even if it's not (people argue both sides) it's more homeopathic than I personally like in a medication. The leaf lowers the ph in the water and that can be useful for fighting an infection and calming the fish, but there are antibiotics that you can use if it becomes necessary.

There is also the chance that he's a fin biter. It can be tricky to tell them apart unless you catch them in the act. Some bettas decide their fins are too heavy and will bite at them to make them shorter, or they just get bored and start self harming. I have a halfmoon that's a tail biter. I slowed his filter and moved his tank next to my desk where I spend a lot of time, and he improved a lot. He still relapses and takes a little nip every once and a while, but most of his fins have regrown.

Thank you for your response

I do 20%-25% water changes weekly to fortnightly depending on my schedule. I do 50% changes on odd months. I use the Aqua One Clearview 75 Hang on Filter with the flow turned on low. I believe it has a small carbon filter & a sponge as well. There's silk plants in his tank, as well as his log & some marimo moss balls. I have his tank in my bedroom because I love to interact with him and watch him explore. Last night I did notice he had a loose scale on top of his head so I'm hoping it hasn't spread to the point to severe fin rot. Do you recommend the use of aquarium salt and a QT tank to treat him?

 

Thank you for your response

I do 20%-25% water changes weekly to fortnightly depending on my schedule. I do 50% changes on odd months. I use the Aqua One Clearview 75 Hang on Filter with the flow turned on low. I believe it has a small carbon filter & a sponge as well. There's silk plants in his tank, as well as his log & some marimo moss balls. I have his tank in my bedroom because I love to interact with him and watch him explore. Last night I did notice he had a loose scale on top of his head so I'm hoping it hasn't spread to the point to severe fin rot. Do you recommend the use of aquarium salt and a QT tank to treat him?

Are you certain it's cycled? I know it might sound like a silly question after so long in the tank, but it's the first thing we need to rule out. Sometimes if you change your filter cartage or clean the filter with tap water, it can cause your nitrogen cycle to crash and start over. Any ammonia or nitrite showing up when you test would mean it's not cycled. Of the three, we're looking for only nitrates showing up.

Some people swear by aquarium salt, but it didn't do much for me when I battled fin rot. It could be a water chemistry thing, or the fin rot I fought was caused by a different bacteria, hard to know. It's probably a good place to start before resorting to antibiotics if you want to try it, though. I'd suggest being very careful with dosing and be sure to only add more salt with clean water. It doesn't evaporate and your filter won't clean it out, so it only leaves the tank with water changes and you never want it to go over the dosage for your tank volume.

Can you get a picture of the scale? Usually things have to get much much worse than your boy has it before fin rot turns to body rot (it has to kind of eat away all the fins until it gets to the body). He probably just has a little unrelated scrape, especially since it's his head, but it's worth looking at.

I don't think a QT tank is necessary if you're starting with salt, it shouldn't hurt anything in his display tank. I'd leave him be for now, since moving is stressful. If you need to go with a stronger medication later on, it might not be a bad idea, though.

 

Are you certain it's cycled? I know it might sound like a silly question after so long in the tank, but it's the first thing we need to rule out. Sometimes if you change your filter cartage or clean the filter with tap water, it can cause your nitrogen cycle to crash and start over. Any ammonia or nitrite showing up when you test would mean it's not cycled. Of the three, we're looking for only nitrates showing up.

Some people swear by aquarium salt, but it didn't do much for me when I battled fin rot. It could be a water chemistry thing, or the fin rot I fought was caused by a different bacteria, hard to know. It's probably a good place to start before resorting to antibiotics if you want to try it, though. I'd suggest being very careful with dosing and be sure to only add more salt with clean water. It doesn't evaporate and your filter won't clean it out, so it only leaves the tank with water changes and you never want it to go over the dosage for your tank volume.

Can you get a picture of the scale? Usually things have to get much much worse than your boy has it before fin rot turns to body rot (it has to kind of eat away all the fins until it gets to the body). He probably just has a little unrelated scrape, especially since it's his head, but it's worth looking at.

I don't think a QT tank is necessary if you're starting with salt, it shouldn't hurt anything in his display tank. I'd leave him be for now, since moving is stressful. If you need to go with a stronger medication later on, it might not be a bad idea, though.

Definitely not a silly idea! I'm so open to learning about how to properly care of Bettas and figuring out how to best help them if something is happening.

I've misplaced my nitrate/ammonia kit while moving house so I can't report on the exact levels but I'm assuming they're high which is most likely what's causing his unhealthy environment. I'll set off the the aquarium shop and purchase a new one and let you know (if need be) what the levels are when I find out. I'm assuming both levels are higher than 0 which could be why his fins aren't recovering.

I'll also do some in depth research on aquarium salt and what to do before I dive into it and do something wrong. As for the photo, he's moving around too much for me to take a good quality photo but last night the scale was hanging on still attached and as of this morning the loose scale is gone and has just left a little mark on his body. I'll keep an eye on it though and see what happens.

Thank so so much for your help so far. I really appreciate the time and effort you've taken to respond

 

Definitely not a silly idea! I'm so open to learning about how to properly care of Bettas and figuring out how to best help them if something is happening.

I've misplaced my nitrate/ammonia kit while moving house so I can't report on the exact levels but I'm assuming they're high which is most likely what's causing his unhealthy environment. I'll set off the the aquarium shop and purchase a new one and let you know (if need be) what the levels are when I find out. I'm assuming both levels are higher than 0 which could be why his fins aren't recovering.

I'll also do some in depth research on aquarium salt and what to do before I dive into it and do something wrong. As for the photo, he's moving around too much for me to take a good quality photo but last night the scale was hanging on still attached and as of this morning the loose scale is gone and has just left a little mark on his body. I'll keep an eye on it though and see what happens.

Thank so so much for your help so far. I really appreciate the time and effort you've taken to respond

No problem! This hobby has a steep learning curve and it's always scary when a fish gets sick. Exotic vets can be very expensive, and there is a lot of conflicting and confusing information out there. People here helped me a lot when I started.

If you think it's the cycle, then before using the salt I'd try upping the water change schedule from once a week to daily for a while (50% for a few days then 20-25%) and see if he improves. When the fins regrow, they start off clear and thin, so keep an eye out for that on the edges of his damaged fins.

And if you don't have any, I'd look for Seachem Prime at the store while you're there. It's a good water conditioner (dechlorinator) that helps give you a little cushion with ammonia by temporarily binding some of it as ammonium. It's safe to dose daily for the volume of the tank. I use an eye dropper, which are cheap and easy to find at the drug store, and use 2 or 3 drops per gallon. It can help you through a fish-in cycle if it's needed, and it's a good a water conditioner for your regular water changes once you're done.

 

No problem! This hobby has a steep learning curve and it's always scary when a fish gets sick. Exotic vets can be very expensive, and there is a lot of conflicting and confusing information out there. People here helped me a lot when I started.

If you think it's the cycle, then before using the salt I'd try upping the water change schedule from once a week to daily for a while (50% for a few days then 20-25%) and see if he improves. When the fins regrow, they start off clear and thin, so keep an eye out for that on the edges of his damaged fins.

And if you don't have any, I'd look for Seachem Prime at the store while you're there. It's a good water conditioner (dechlorinator) that helps give you a little cushion with ammonia by temporarily binding some of it as ammonium. It's safe to dose daily for the volume of the tank. I use an eye dropper, which are cheap and easy to find at the drug store, and use 2 or 3 drops per gallon. It can help you through a fish-in cycle if it's needed, and it's a good a water conditioner for your regular water changes once you're done.

HI there! Sorry for the late response. I stopped by the aquarium shop to pick up a new test kit (couldn't find any Seachem Prime at my local store but I'll pick some up online) and then had work until late in the evening.

I tested the Ammonia levels (NH³/NH4+) and they came back at 0ppm.
Nitrite NO2- came back at 0ppm & Nitrate NO3- came back at 5ppm. His pH level was 6.6 which is a little acidic but not terrible.

These results really suriprised me because everything seems to be in order. I'm not sure what else to do besides as you said, pick up some Seachem Prime & do frequent water changes. But if the Nitrates/Ammonia are all in check would the next step be to test out the salt?

Kindest regards!

 

HI there! Sorry for the late response. I stopped by the aquarium shop to pick up a new test kit (couldn't find any Seachem Prime at my local store but I'll pick some up online) and then had work until late in the evening.

I tested the Ammonia levels (NH³/NH4+) and they came back at 0ppm.
Nitrite NO2- came back at 0ppm & Nitrate NO3- came back at 5ppm. His pH level was 6.6 which is a little acidic but not terrible.

These results really suriprised me because everything seems to be in order. I'm not sure what else to do besides as you said, pick up some Seachem Prime & do frequent water changes. But if the Nitrates/Ammonia are all in check would the next step be to test out the salt?

Kindest regards!

Yeah, those are the numbers for a cycled tank! A well maintained tank like yours will cycle it's self after a few weeks if you leave the filter alone. He might have had a little bit of a rough ride while it did, but betta fish weather cycling better than most fish, and outside of the fins he sounds pretty healthy. The PH might be low because the leaf is doing it's job and releasing tannic acid into the water. You can test your tap water and compare the results to see. It's good idea to test your tap every few months even if everything seems normal because it can change a lot through the year and it's good to know what you're working with. If there is a big difference between the tank and the tap, smaller more frequent water changes might not be a bad idea for a while so you can avoid big swings that might stress him.

I would go ahead and start with a salt treatment and see if it helps him. After looking into it a bit more, it seems like a lot of people do recommend using a quarantine tank if you have something you can use. It's easier to do the large water changes that go with a salt treatment on a smaller set up than a larger one, so if you have his old tank somewhere still, that would probably make a good hospital set up for him. If you use one, I'd move his heater and a few of his fake plants with him, but leave his cycled filter and those marimo moss balls in his display tank and leave it running. Add a little bit of food to the tank after you move him out, this will break down and help keep the filter cycled while he's gone. Ideally we'd all have a cycled sponge filter for our qt tanks, but when you just have one small tank it's harder to keep one tucked away and running somewhere. Salt treatments require large daily water changes, somewhere around 80-90%, so ammonia shouldn't have a chance to build up during treatment.

There is a lot of disagreement in the hobby about how effective salt is for this kind of thing, but it's been done often enough by enough people that I don't think it'll harm him to try. Give it about a week and if you don't see improvement or it starts to look worse, you should stop and look into using an antibiotic. I can tell you what active ingredients to look for, but I'm in the US so availability and brand names of medication are often different here.

 

Yeah, those are the numbers for a cycled tank! A well maintained tank like yours will cycle it's self after a few weeks if you leave the filter alone. He might have had a little bit of a rough ride while it did, but betta fish weather cycling better than most fish, and outside of the fins he sounds pretty healthy. The PH might be low because the leaf is doing it's job and releasing tannic acid into the water. You can test your tap water and compare the results to see. It's good idea to test your tap every few months even if everything seems normal because it can change a lot through the year and it's good to know what you're working with. If there is a big difference between the tank and the tap, smaller more frequent water changes might not be a bad idea for a while so you can avoid big swings that might stress him.

I would go ahead and start with a salt treatment and see if it helps him. After looking into it a bit more, it seems like a lot of people do recommend using a quarantine tank if you have something you can use. It's easier to do the large water changes that go with a salt treatment on a smaller set up than a larger one, so if you have his old tank somewhere still, that would probably make a good hospital set up for him. If you use one, I'd move his heater and a few of his fake plants with him, but leave his cycled filter and those marimo moss balls in his display tank and leave it running. Add a little bit of food to the tank after you move him out, this will break down and help keep the filter cycled while he's gone. Ideally we'd all have a cycled sponge filter for our qt tanks, but when you just have one small tank it's harder to keep one tucked away and running somewhere. Salt treatments require large daily water changes, somewhere around 80-90%, so ammonia shouldn't have a chance to build up during treatment.

There is a lot of disagreement in the hobby about how effective salt is for this kind of thing, but it's been done often enough by enough people that I don't think it'll harm him to try. Give it about a week and if you don't see improvement or it starts to look worse, you should stop and look into using an antibiotic. I can tell you what active ingredients to look for, but I'm in the US so availability and brand names of medication are often different here.

Thank you so much for taking the time to give such in depth responses. Keeping Bettas is still a learning curve for me so it's so nice to have a wonderful fish care community.

I think I'll set up a QT tank over the weekend and have it run a few days just to get a cycle going and condition him to the water prior to putting him in completely. He is a quite sensitive fishie and gets a bit lethargic even after 20%-25% water changes. I make sure the water is the same temperature, add the appropriate conditioners like slime coat+ from API and a water conditioner appropriate for bettas, I also check the pH but even after all of that he still seems affected by the small water change.

I've had a look just before I woke him up this morning and his torn scale appears to be healing over. The 'wound' was white when the scale came off but now it's turned a more darker colour closer to his normal blue scale colour. Further inspection also shows he does appear to have a few transparent parts to his tail which I assume is some new growth, and the ends of his longer bottom fins are also not looking 'tangled' anymore...

I might keep up the weekly water changes and level out his pH gradually, and if the fins begin to tatter & tangle again I might start on the salt treatment.

I definitely don't think he's fin biting but I assume as you said, it's a mild case of fin rot. My other Betta Cupcake has the exact same water parameters give and take a few. He actually had perfect pH levels and nitrates/nitrites/ammonia levels were all at 0ppm (Blaqua - unfortunately passed away but was my first Betta who I had for almost 3 years). It has only been this one unlucky guy who has had to deal with what is presumably fin rot.

What ingredients should I be looking for for medications? If you have any recommendations of actual products I'm happy to look online for the product if my local store doesn't have it

Once again, thank you for your response <3

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to give such in depth responses. Keeping Bettas is still a learning curve for me so it's so nice to have a wonderful fish care community.

I think I'll set up a QT tank over the weekend and have it run a few days just to get a cycle going and condition him to the water prior to putting him in completely. He is a quite sensitive fishie and gets a bit lethargic even after 20%-25% water changes. I make sure the water is the same temperature, add the appropriate conditioners like slime coat+ from API and a water conditioner appropriate for bettas, I also check the pH but even after all of that he still seems affected by the small water change.

I've had a look just before I woke him up this morning and his torn scale appears to be healing over. The 'wound' was white when the scale came off but now it's turned a more darker colour closer to his normal blue scale colour. Further inspection also shows he does appear to have a few transparent parts to his tail which I assume is some new growth, and the ends of his longer bottom fins are also not looking 'tangled' anymore...

I might keep up the weekly water changes and level out his pH gradually, and if the fins begin to tatter & tangle again I might start on the salt treatment.

I definitely don't think he's fin biting but I assume as you said, it's a mild case of fin rot. My other Betta Cupcake has the exact same water parameters give and take a few. He actually had perfect pH levels and nitrates/nitrites/ammonia levels were all at 0ppm (Blaqua - unfortunately passed away but was my first Betta who I had for almost 3 years). It has only been this one unlucky guy who has had to deal with what is presumably fin rot.

What ingredients should I be looking for for medications? If you have any recommendations of actual products I'm happy to look online for the product if my local store doesn't have it

Once again, thank you for your response <3

If the fins are already growing back, that's a great sign! It means whatever you're doing has already been working, and the infection causing the rot is either already gone or has been fought off to the point where the fins can start to gain ground. I agree that you should probably hold off on treatment and see if he keeps recovering without it. Sometimes medication is harder on them than what it's treating. Don't be discouraged if he relapses a little, the new tissue is delicate and more vulnerable to damage and infection than fully formed fin tissue, but with patience it'll toughen up and fill back in.

If you want to have something on hand in case it starts to get bad again, I'd look for something with nitrofurazone (in a lot of medications, Jungle Fungus Clear, Furan-2 are both easy to find in the US, works best in a ph of 7.2 and lower) minocycline (found in Maracyn II, but can be tricky to find), or erythromycin (API E.M. Erythromycin). There are other antibiotics that will work, if you find something else I'd do a quick google and make sure it treats gram negative bacteria, and can be absorbed through the skin. Some medications are designed to be ingested in the fish's food, but that's used to treat internal problems more than something external like fin rot. Don't always trust the labels, fin rot is common so everything seems to claim to treat it.

You might want to add a little extra biological media to you filter, too. If you end up needing to use medication you'll need to remove the carbon cartage from you filter for a while. Carbon will absorb the meds before they can work, so you don't want it in there until it's run it's course. Having a little more surface area in there with some good bacteria on it will help avoid a mini-cycle when the cartridge is removed. Sponges, ceramic rings, new clean plastic pan scrubby things, lots of thing will work for breeding your good bacteria on. Just slip some in where ever it'll fit in your filter. It'll take about a week to colonize the new media, after which it should be safe to remove or swap out the cartridge if you need to.

I hope he keeps healing on his own! It's really best if they can fight it off themselves, but it doesn't hurt to be prepared if things take a turn.

 

If the fins are already growing back, that's a great sign! It means whatever you're doing has already been working, and the infection causing the rot is either already gone or has been fought off to the point where the fins can start to gain ground. I agree that you should probably hold off on treatment and see if he keeps recovering without it. Sometimes medication is harder on them than what it's treating. Don't be discouraged if he relapses a little, the new tissue is delicate and more vulnerable to damage and infection than fully formed fin tissue, but with patience it'll toughen up and fill back in.

If you want to have something on hand in case it starts to get bad again, I'd look for something with nitrofurazone (in a lot of medications, Jungle Fungus Clear, Furan-2 are both easy to find in the US, works best in a ph of 7.2 and lower) minocycline (found in Maracyn II, but can be tricky to find), or erythromycin (API E.M. Erythromycin). There are other antibiotics that will work, if you find something else I'd do a quick google and make sure it treats gram negative bacteria, and can be absorbed through the skin. Some medications are designed to be ingested in the fish's food, but that's used to treat internal problems more than something external like fin rot. Don't always trust the labels, fin rot is common so everything seems to claim to treat it.

You might want to add a little extra biological media to you filter, too. If you end up needing to use medication you'll need to remove the carbon cartage from you filter for a while. Carbon will absorb the meds before they can work, so you don't want it in there until it's run it's course. Having a little more surface area in there with some good bacteria on it will help avoid a mini-cycle when the cartridge is removed. Sponges, ceramic rings, new clean plastic pan scrubby things, lots of thing will work for breeding your good bacteria on. Just slip some in where ever it'll fit in your filter. It'll take about a week to colonize the new media, after which it should be safe to remove or swap out the cartridge if you need to.

I hope he keeps healing on his own! It's really best if they can fight it off themselves, but it doesn't hurt to be prepared if things take a turn.

Sorry for my extremely late response!

His fins still appear to be repairing and there are more new fins coming through as I've watched him over the past few days. I've done water changes every 2 days to promote some more healing in him which seems to be working well.

On the other hand though, he's been exceptionally lethargic as of the past 2 days so I've stopped the water changes to not stress him out. He's just sitting on the bottom of the tank not doing much, or hiding away. My other Betta who has the exact same filter and water parameters (give or take his nitrate levels were a little higher) is absolutely thriving.

I wonder if my potential fin rot betta is just so ill because of where I got him from? My newest and most active Betta came from a proper aquarium store/specialist and I've never had a happier and active Betta, whereas the potential fin rot Betta came from an average pet store.

I'm not sure what to do... his breathing appears laboured sometimes and is really quite inactive. He's still eating and swims around every now and then but is mainly just on the floor of his tank, or hiding in his log.

 

Sorry for my extremely late response!

His fins still appear to be repairing and there are more new fins coming through as I've watched him over the past few days. I've done water changes every 2 days to promote some more healing in him which seems to be working well.

On the other hand though, he's been exceptionally lethargic as of the past 2 days so I've stopped the water changes to not stress him out. He's just sitting on the bottom of the tank not doing much, or hiding away. My other Betta who has the exact same filter and water parameters (give or take his nitrate levels were a little higher) is absolutely thriving.

I wonder if my potential fin rot betta is just so ill because of where I got him from? My newest and most active Betta came from a proper aquarium store/specialist and I've never had a happier and active Betta, whereas the potential fin rot Betta came from an average pet store.

I'm not sure what to do... his breathing appears laboured sometimes and is really quite inactive. He's still eating and swims around every now and then but is mainly just on the floor of his tank.

 

Sorry for my extremely late response!

His fins still appear to be repairing and there are more new fins coming through as I've watched him over the past few days. I've done water changes every 2 days to promote some more healing in him which seems to be working well.

On the other hand though, he's been exceptionally lethargic as of the past 2 days so I've stopped the water changes to not stress him out. He's just sitting on the bottom of the tank not doing much, or hiding away. My other Betta who has the exact same filter and water parameters (give or take his nitrate levels were a little higher) is absolutely thriving.

I wonder if my potential fin rot betta is just so ill because of where I got him from? My newest and most active Betta came from a proper aquarium store/specialist and I've never had a happier and active Betta, whereas the potential fin rot Betta came from an average pet store.

I'm not sure what to do... his breathing appears laboured sometimes and is really quite inactive. He's still eating and swims around every now and then but is mainly just on the floor of his tank, or hiding in his log.

Just to check, is your new water the same temp range as the tank water? How different is the PH between the two? He might be stressed from minor swings in parameters. You can probably slow the water changes down a bit, or switch to smaller ones and see if that improves his mood. Your tank is cycled, so the need for a super heavy water change schedule isn't as urgent as it would be if it wasn't.

Did you only see this behavior change once you upped the water changes? He might just be in a bad mood because of them. My crowntail usually sulks for a few hours to a day after a water change. Your boy sounds a little more stressed than that, but some bettas are bigger drama queens than others.

If he's still eating and his fins are healing then his outlook is still pretty good!

 

Just to check, is your new water the same temp range as the tank water? How different is the PH between the two? He might be stressed from minor swings in parameters. You can probably slow the water changes down a bit, or switch to smaller ones and see if that improves his mood. Your tank is cycled, so the need for a super heavy water change schedule isn't as urgent as it would be if it wasn't.

Did you only see this behavior change once you upped the water changes? He might just be in a bad mood because of them. My crowntail usually sulks for a few hours to a day after a water change. Your boy sounds a little more stressed than that, but some bettas are bigger drama queens than others.

If he's still eating and his fins are healing then his outlook is still pretty good!

The water is the same, I know they get extremely sensitive with colder water and stop eating but it's always at a steady 26°C/78°F... The last recorded pH I have from yesterday evening is 6.8 for the lethargic Betta and 7.0 for the lively Betta.

I feel like he has always been a little like this. He rests a lot and then swims around a little and rests again. He hasn't lost any colour and his lost scale has healed over too so it all looks positive besides his behaviour. When his resting his body isn't curling either so I don't suspect he has ammonia poisoning,

I was thinking of feeding him a pea and fasting him. Perhaps he isn't digesting properly from eating ...

-sigh- so much to learn about these little fishies! It makes me wonder how people keep their bettas in tiny bowls with no filter or heat and they survive for longer than they should in those conditions.

 

The water is the same, I know they get extremely sensitive with colder water and stop eating but it's always at a steady 26°C/78°F... The last recorded pH I have from yesterday evening is 6.8 for the lethargic Betta and 7.0 for the lively Betta.

I feel like he has always been a little like this. He rests a lot and then swims around a little and rests again. He hasn't lost any colour and his lost scale has healed over too so it all looks positive besides his behaviour. When his resting his body isn't curling either so I don't suspect he has ammonia poisoning,

I was thinking of feeding him a pea and fasting him. Perhaps he isn't digesting properly from eating ...

-sigh- so much to learn about these little fishies! It makes me wonder how people keep their bettas in tiny bowls with no filter or heat and they survive for longer than they should in those conditions.

Fasting and feeding a little bit of pea certainly won't hurt him. Some bettas are just less active than others, though. Long fins are heavy, so long fin bettas tend to seem lazier than short finned. If you don't have any, try to add a few things near the surface that he can kind of lounge on. My Halfmoon loves Brazilian Pennywort, he tucks himself in between the large leaves and surveys his territory with minimal effort lol.

Bettas are actually pretty hearty for fish, or they wouldn't last a week in those bowls. Sadly, a lot of people just assume they only live a few months and keep buying a new betta when the last one succumbs to the bad conditions. If they didn't fare as well as they do for as long as they do, people might be quicker to catch on that something was wrong.