Betta Fish, possible fin rot? Need help

[Reya]

Hello, I am a new betta fish owner and while doing a bit of cleaning in my betta's tank today I noticed his back tail fin looks tattered and pieces are missing. It wasn't like that yesterday and I'm pretty worried.



This is what his fin looked like a few days ago:



Looking back on pictures from when I first got him about a month ago his fins look very different.



Is this fin rot? What can I do?
He is currently in a 3 gallon tank with a heater and filter. He also has live plants and a coconut shell cave.

 

[FreshyFresh]

Welcome!

If you don't have a test kit to measure for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate in PPM, best thing is to mail-order one. Most of us use the API master test kit. Read up on nitrogen cycle.

Given it's a new setup, I'd do daily 50% water changes on it and use a good dechlorinator product like seachem prime or safe and monitor your betta until you know the tank produces nothing but nitrates.

I'd stay away from meds the pet store may want to sell you unless you're 100% sure of what you're treating for and the effects of the meds on the overall tank.

 

[fishorama]

I'm not sure it's fin rot. Until you get your own test kit, take a water sample to your LFS & get actual numbers or at least a "range". "OK" is not acceptable, make them show you, write it down & post it here.

FreshyFresh is right, when in doubt of a fish's health, water changes are the very best first step. In such a small tank daily or every other day is not difficult.

I like it that you have live plants,...they will help a bit with water quality & not damage fins like plastic can.

What are you feeding him? He "seems" to have a small bump near his vent (poop chute opening). He may be slightly constipated, not uncommon in bettas. If you eat frozen peas (we do!) you might thaw 1 & squish out the guts. Break it into betta bite-sized tiny bits & see if he'll eat 1-3. That can help with constipation...but they do need a protein food too, like pellets or flakes. So alternate small feedings may help.

I know there are many fin types of bettas these days but I don't know if "white fin tips" are 1 of them. He may be just fine. But monitor his water, change it often & keep us updated.

 

[Orcca]

Hello, I am a new betta fish owner and while doing a bit of cleaning in my betta's tank today I noticed his back tail fin looks tattered and pieces are missing. It wasn't like that yesterday and I'm pretty worried.

View attachment 222710

This is what his fin looked like a few days ago:

View attachment 222711

Looking back on pictures from when I first got him about a month ago his fins look very different.

View attachment 222712

Is this fin rot? What can I do?
He is currently in a 3 gallon tank with a heater and filter. He also has live plants and a coconut shell cave.

I would recommend getting a water tester which will tell you the ammonia, Ph, Nitrite, Nitrate, etc. My opinion is that you should get a bigger tank, but I am going to assume it could be ammonia burn? Do you do weekly water changes? If you don't, then that should help. Do a 50% water change and try not to use tap water. If you use tap water, then put in something that will balance the tank. I use Easy Balance PLUS by Tetra which helps with the water after a 70% water change. (I like to do bigger water changes) Sorry about your little guy, hope he gets better!

 

[myswtsins]

Yup, yup and yup to everything said already. Need those test kits/results. Water changes (WC) and more water changes is an excellent first defense here. What is your WC schedule? Is the tank cycled? (as in nitrogen cycle)

I can see the white tips starting in your "few says ago" picture. It could be fin rot or fin loss or something else entirely. So let's try to get a bigger picture before medicating. Can we see the whole tank setup please?

Feeding de-shelled peas once in awhile is actually a good practice with Bettas because they are so prone to being constipated. Soaking the pea with a tiny bit of garlic helps encourage his appetite and boosts his immune system too. What and how much do you feed?

What kind of filter do you have? Is it a strong flow? Strong or direct flow can damage Betta fins and increase stress. Putting a sponge over the filter intake can also help reduce stress from the sucking action.

I commend you on having a decent sized, heated AND planted aquarium for your Betta. Most new fish keepers don't start off that well so good work! Now let's get him all better.

 

[Reya]

Yup, yup and yup to everything said already. Need those test kits/results. Water changes (WC) and more water changes is an excellent first defense here. What is your WC schedule? Is the tank cycled? (as in nitrogen cycle)

I can see the white tips starting in your "few says ago" picture. It could be fin rot or fin loss or something else entirely. So let's try to get a bigger picture before medicating. Can we see the whole tank setup please?

Feeding de-shelled peas once in awhile is actually a good practice with Bettas because they are so prone to being constipated. Soaking the pea with a tiny bit of garlic helps encourage his appetite and boosts his immune system too. What and how much do you feed?

What kind of filter do you have? Is it a strong flow? Strong or direct flow can damage Betta fins and increase stress. Putting a sponge over the filter intake can also help reduce stress from the sucking action.

I commend you on having a decent sized, heated AND planted aquarium for your Betta. Most new fish keepers don't start off that well so good work! Now let's get him all better.

I do a third water change once a week. The tank was not cycled before hand. I was not expecting to have a betta fish, basically my mother was given him as a gift with a half gallon tank and he was always laying on the bottom of it, so I tried to get him into a larger and better suited tank as soon as I could.

This is his whole tank


I feed him TetraBetta, three pellets a day. I've tried feeding him flakes on occasion as well but he won't eat them, just spits them out.

The filter I have came with his tank, I believe it's a strong flow, it doesn't seem to affect him in the majority of his tank, but it will push him if he swims directly beneath it (though he doesn't often).

 

[Orcca]

I do a third water change once a week. The tank was not cycled before hand. I was not expecting to have a betta fish, basically my mother was given him as a gift with a half gallon tank and he was always laying on the bottom of it, so I tried to get him into a larger and better suited tank as soon as I could.

This is his whole tank
View attachment 222713

I feed him TetraBetta, three pellets a day. I've tried feeding him flakes on occasion as well but he won't eat them, just spits them out.

The filter I have came with his tank, I believe it's a strong flow, it doesn't seem to affect him in the majority of his tank, but it will push him if he swims directly beneath it (though he doesn't often).

Good tank set up! I would try to see if he could eat flakes, my bettas seem to do better on flakes and they seem a bit more interested in flakes anyways. It does seem like it could be fin rot, but just see if he will eat flakes. Does he ever lay against the filter when he gets stuck in the current? Sometimes that can rip the fins off and cause issues with the fins.

 

[Reya]

Good tank set up! I would try to see if he could eat flakes, my bettas seem to do better on flakes and they seem a bit more interested in flakes anyways. It does seem like it could be fin rot, but just see if he will eat flakes. Does he ever lay against the filter when he gets stuck in the current? Sometimes that can rip the fins off and cause issues with the fins.

I have tried giving him flakes before, but he either doesn't eat them at all or simply spits them out. Maybe if I tried a different type of flakes he might be interested.
No I've never seen him lay against the filter, I've only seen him pushed down by the output of water from the filter, never sucked in by the current of the intake.

 

[Orcca]

I have tried giving him flakes before, but he either doesn't eat them at all or simply spits them out. Maybe if I tried a different type of flakes he might be interested.
No I've never seen him lay against the filter, I've only seen him pushed down by the output of water from the filter, never sucked in by the current of the intake.

So I have been looking a few things up and it could be fin rot because fin rot can be caused by not eating enough. You can take everything out of the tank and rinse them off (and the rocks) with hot water. There are treatments for fin rot, like Betta Fix, which most people recommend for bettas with fin rot. I can show you a good website that I found a lot of information about fin rot, how to prevent it, and how to treat it. I have never dealt with fin rot before, and thought you could possibly find some info on that website. Since I am sort of new, I cannot post the Url, so I will tell you the name of the website. It is called Betta Fish Center, and the links you click on is Betta Fish Center >> Betta Health >> Care and Treatment of Fin Rot.

Hope this website helps you!

 

[myswtsins]

First of all, great job answering all my questions in one go! It may sound silly but that really helps move things along instead of going back and forth. Since you seem to really want to learn how to better take care of your new Betta I might give you more info than you want. lol

I do a third water change once a week. The tank was not cycled before hand. I was not expecting to have a betta fish, basically my mother was given him as a gift with a half gallon tank and he was always laying on the bottom of it, so I tried to get him into a larger and better suited tank as soon as I could.

Once you get your test kit you will be able to monitor the water conditions and that will tell you how much and how often you need to change water (by monitoring nitrates) but 30% once a week is a really good start. But right now, especially because it wasn't cycled and he is sick I would suggest daily WCs. You have provided a much better home for him *claps*. Do you use a dechlorinator/conditioner additive? Which kind? Something like Prime will work as a dechlor and neutralize ammonia, nitrite and nitrates while the tank is cycling. Do you suck out the "gunk" from the bottom when you do WCs?

I feed him TetraBetta, three pellets a day. I've tried feeding him flakes on occasion as well but he won't eat them, just spits them out.

Sorry to tell you this but that food is horrible. Bettas are so prone to digestive issues and disease that a good quality food is essential. If you look at the ingredients you will see x meal, x gluten, x flour etc which are OK at the very end of the list (least included) but not at the top (most). Things like fish or shrimp meal are the very bottom of the barrel scraps too, look for krill meal or herring meal, something with a name before it. As a everyday staple I'd recommend New Life Spectrum Betta. It is more expensive but it is WAY better for him, the smallest size will last a very long time and he will have less health issues saving you money (and stress) in the long run. 3 pellets is a bit light on feeding but not bad for now with an uncycled tank but long term aim for like 5-10 pellets a day, preferably broken in 2 or more meals. As a treat you can give him things like bloodworms (dried, frozen etc.) and peas. Some people also like to fast Bettas 1 day a week. As you get to know the Betta you can determine if you want to do this, nothing wrong with it.

The filter I have came with his tank, I believe it's a strong flow, it doesn't seem to affect him in the majority of his tank, but it will push him if he swims directly beneath it (though he doesn't often).

Any adjustments to lower flow? There are ways to divert the flow for bettas but I can't tell what kind of output it is to give suggestions.


If it truly is fin rot then the method described above is a good coarse of action but rinsing everything in hot water will reset your cycle completely as it will kill all the beneficial bacteria. Just keep that in mind is all. Diagnosing disease is incredibly hard, particularly over the internet, so most of us experienced hobbyist will be VERY hesitant to straight out say "this is what it is, do this to fix it". Best we can do is give you as much info as possible and in the end you decide the proper course of action. Have you done a WC or 2 since this thread started? Any changes in his appearance or behavior?