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Help! My betta fish is injured

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Sofi

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Help, my female betta was attacked by a rainbow shark and she isn't swimming, her spine is curved in a S shape when she tries to swim.
I put her in the shrimp tank so she can eat live worms from the bottom of the tank and some shrimp, (the tank is overpopulated by shrimp so don't judge me), I thought it would sheer her up, but she still in the same condition.
Can someone please guide me on what to do?, I don't want to loose her.
I tried to hold her and move her in the water for oxigen but she seems to get more stressed out when I do it, I don't know what to
 

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Did you actually see the rainbow shark attack the Betta?

There's not much to do except keep the tank clean and let the fish recover (assuming it's going to).

--------------------

Basic First Aid For Fish
Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. This removes the biofilm on the glass and the biofilm will contain lots of harmful bacteria, fungus, protozoans and various other microscopic life forms.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week. The water changes and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in. It also removes a lot of the gunk and this means any medication can work on treating the fish instead of being wasted killing the pathogens in the gunk.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens so any medication (if needed) will work more effectively on the fish.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration to maximise the dissolved oxygen in the water.
 
Colin_T said:
Did you actually see the rainbow shark attack the Betta?

There's not much to do except keep the tank clean and let the fish recover (assuming it's going to).

--------------------

Basic First Aid For Fish
Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. This removes the biofilm on the glass and the biofilm will contain lots of harmful bacteria, fungus, protozoans and various other microscopic life forms.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week. The water changes and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in. It also removes a lot of the gunk and this means any medication can work on treating the fish instead of being wasted killing the pathogens in the gunk.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens so any medication (if needed) will work more effectively on the fish.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration to maximise the dissolved oxygen in the water.
Click to expand...
Thank you, yes, it happened while feeding, they have been tank mates for the las 8 months with no trouble, the tank is big and are 3 fishes in it ponnyo (the betta female), sharky (rainbow shark), and a pleco.
 

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Colin_T said:
Did you actually see the rainbow shark attack the Betta?

There's not much to do except keep the tank clean and let the fish recover (assuming it's going to).

--------------------

Basic First Aid For Fish
Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. This removes the biofilm on the glass and the biofilm will contain lots of harmful bacteria, fungus, protozoans and various other microscopic life forms.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week. The water changes and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in. It also removes a lot of the gunk and this means any medication can work on treating the fish instead of being wasted killing the pathogens in the gunk.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens so any medication (if needed) will work more effectively on the fish.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration to maximise the dissolved oxygen
Colin_T said:
Did you actually see the rainbow shark attack the Betta?

There's not much to do except keep the tank clean and let the fish recover (assuming it's going to).

--------------------

Basic First Aid For Fish
Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. This removes the biofilm on the glass and the biofilm will contain lots of harmful bacteria, fungus, protozoans and various other microscopic life forms.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week. The water changes and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in. It also removes a lot of the gunk and this means any medication can work on treating the fish instead of being wasted killing the pathogens in the gunk.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens so any medication (if needed) will work more effectively on the fish.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration to maximise the dissolved oxygen in the water.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

The rainbow shark hit her in the Tommy with his head, I thought she was in shock, but is more worse.
the attached picture is from a last week video of them swimming as usual, is the first time this happened, we put more plants in their tank but it looks like that made him more aggressive towards the other tank mates, probably it makes him feel like the thank is smaller?, anyway, thank you, im unsure if she will recover, I tried to feed her blod worms but she isn't interested ☹️
 
The rainbow shark might have reached sexual maturity and is now staking out its territory. Anything entering its territory (especially during feeding time) will probably be attacked. You can help stop this by putting food in at both ends of the tank. The shark can go to one side and the other fish can feed at the other side. However, if the shark continues to cause problems you will probably have to rehome it.
 
Last edited:
Both rainbow and red tailed "sharks" tend to hit other fish when they are asleep. They're territorial and nocturnal. New aquarists buy them because of the dorsal looking sharklike, but they become problem fish in most tanks. Some individual fish are okay, but not many. You tend to find dead or injured tankmates in the morning, once the barbs/sharks mature.

You can rehome them them, or let them kill all their tankmates and live alone. A lot of stores won't take them back, and they can be a distressing choice if you know what they'll do in their next tank.
 
Oh dear, I hope he doesn't kill the pleco, he was the new fish in the tank. I'm so upset for my betta, I didn't wanted the shark.. was my partner who bought it against my will, we even argued on the fish store because of the shark, I knew this was going to happen...
Anyway, thank you all so much for the information.
 
Colin_T said:
The rainbow shark might have reached sexual maturity and is now stacking out its territory. Anything entering its territory (especially during feeding time) will probably be attacked. You can help stop this by putting food in at both ends of the tank. The shark can go to one side and the other fish can feed at the other side. However, if the shark continues to cause problems you will probably have to rehome it.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much, I tried what you suggested, it seems to work.
 
MaloK said:
:mad: If he was my Partner...

He would have needed an operation for a fish stuck in the throat...
Click to expand...
That is how I feel now, plus sad 😔
Will ponyo have more chances to recover if I put her alone in a tank? I'm following Coling T advice, but I wonder if it will affect my shrimp colony.
 
Gary has a good point on the nocturnal activities of the sharks, Your poor betta will never have the time to realize what happened.

She seems in really bad shape and there's good chances the shark doesn't see it has a menace for the moment, but if she recovers the problem could resume instantly.

She is certainly not a menace for your shrimps colony at the moment. You can leave her there (if she's in that tank). there not much more you can do more than separate her from the shark, Leave her alone and provide great water quality.

If she was in perfect shape before the attack, I fear she sustained spine damage. If the situation doesn't evolve soon. I would consider euthanasia to put her out of misery 😥
 
😢😢 she was In great condition before the attack, she is currently in the shrimp tank, yes her spine is in a S shape when she tries to swim, she change spots in the tank but she is super lethargic, I don't know how to feed her now, she doesn't try to eat the blackworms in the shrimp tank, I tried to give her frozen blood worms but no success...
I don't want her to die of starvation, the baby shrimp are too fast for her to catch 😩, when should I consider euthanasia?, and how?.
Thank you
 
If the symptoms remains severe and persistent, chronic suffering resulting in poor quality of Life. But if she persist on trying to do her normal activities and is maintaining her body upward, I would wait a little.

But if she starts laying on her side too much, that would be the signal for me.

Most aquarist are unanimous to use clove oil to euthanize fishes. It's a heartbreaking decision to make, but sometimes, is the most humane option for a suffering pet.

With an empty gallon jug, cut out the top of it so it's wide enough to put a fish into it easily. Then fill it up halfway with water from the same tank your fish is in and add the fish to the jug.

Mix 3 drops of clove oil into 1 cup of water. better use a container that can be closed and shake very well, Once you've mixed the clove oil and water thoroughly, add it to the gallon jug with the fish in it. Within a couple of minutes you should see your fish get "sleepy".

When you see this, you can go ahead and add another 3 drops mixed with water to the jug. Wait another 2 - 3 minutes and add another 3 drops and observe. Continue to add this way until she is no longer breathing. The amount of clove oil you'll need will vary from fish to fish. Wait 20 minutes to make absolutely sure that she has passed.

The key is to introduce the clove oil gradually, in order to avoid your fish noticing what is going on during the process.

I'm so sorry you have to go trough this. I hope she makes a come back.
 
MaloK said:
If the symptoms remains severe and persistent, chronic suffering resulting in poor quality of Life. But if she persist on trying to do her normal activities and is maintaining her body upward, I would wait a little.

But if she starts laying on her side too much, that would be the signal for me.

Most aquarist are unanimous to use clove oil to euthanize fishes. It's a heartbreaking decision to make, but sometimes, is the most humane option for a suffering pet.

With an empty gallon jug, cut out the top of it so it's wide enough to put a fish into it easily. Then fill it up halfway with water from the same tank your fish is in and add the fish to the jug.

Mix 3 drops of clove oil into 1 cup of water. better use a container that can be closed and shake very well, Once you've mixed the clove oil and water thoroughly, add it to the gallon jug with the fish in it. Within a couple of minutes you should see your fish get "sleepy".

When you see this, you can go ahead and add another 3 drops mixed with water to the jug. Wait another 2 - 3 minutes and add another 3 drops and observe. Continue to add this way until she is no longer breathing. The amount of clove oil you'll need will vary from fish to fish. Wait 20 minutes to make absolutely sure that she has passed.

The key is to introduce the clove oil gradually, in order to avoid your fish noticing what is going on during the process.

I'm so sorry you have to go trough this. I hope she makes a come back.
Click to expand...
It breaks my heart thinking about doing it 😰😢, she isn't laying on her side so I can keep hope for her to recover, she is trying to catch some baby shrimp, when they are close to her mouth, I hope for the best, I have her since she was very young without any colour, she was pink, I really want her to survive, thank you.
 
Continue to offer regularly small amount of frozen food as close to her mouth as you can. if not on the nose.
 
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