Betta Sick for Several Weeks

[MRenee]

Hi there,

I've had a beautiful betta for about 8 months now. He's been doing great--had lots of fin rot when I got him, but recovered and is a super active little guy.

About two weeks ago I noticed some signs of fin rot. Nothing in his routine had changed. Switched to 25% water changes daily. Then all his fins stiffened and it seemed like he had swim bladder. Fasted for a few days and he was more active again, but no improvement on the fins--they're very shrivelled and stiff. Coloring is still good but he swims stiffly. He'll be active for about 20% of the day, otherwise is on the tank floor. He used to be active almost all day long. No visible signs of velvet.

3-gallon tank, filtered, heated, conditioned (78-80). All water levels testing great. Feed with freeze dried bloodworms or flakes, a little bit twice a day. Had a pothos and marimo balls in the tank, but I removed them when he first showed signs of not doing well.

Any help? I really love this little dude and hate to see him not doing well.

 

[FishFinatic77]

Have you been soaking the bloodworms before feeding? Maybe you could also switch to pellets instead of flakes. Flakes tend to cause bloating. As for the fins, could you post a picture and maybe a short video?

 

[MRenee]

No, should I? He'd been eating them happily for months... I use flakes about half the time and pellets the other half.

Sorry the photo quality is poor, I can get a better photo in the daylight.

 

[Essjay]

Dried bloodworms can absorb water inside the fish and swell up. This is why it is recommended to soak them before feeding, so they have already absorbed water before they get inside the fish.

 

[MRenee]

Dried bloodworms can absorb water inside the fish and swell up. This is why it is recommended to soak them before feeding, so they have already absorbed water before they get inside the fish.

Thank you, started doing that this morning. Any idea about the fins/lethargy though? He's super lethargic and largely just lays on the tank floor.

 

[MRenee]

Any ideas? I tested the water again today and all levels were ideal. No change in the fins, but he's definitely spending more time at the bottom of the tank, alternating with swimming around very excitedly for feeding time.

 

[lilmich]

This looks similar to what my Jasmine went through some time ago. I used aquarium salt 1g per liter of 1 tbsp per gallon and APIs fin rot meds for 1 week. I kept the salt on longer, and over several weeks the fins started to spread out and look less clumped together. It takes several months for them to regrow fully. Is he able to swim around properly when he does want to?

 

[MRenee]

This looks similar to what my Jasmine went through some time ago. I used aquarium salt 1g per liter of 1 tbsp per gallon and APIs fin rot meds for 1 week. I kept the salt on longer, and over several weeks the fins started to spread out and look less clumped together. It takes several months for them to regrow fully. Is he able to swim around properly when he does want to?

Thanks. Yeah, he can swim, though it looks a little stilted because his fins are so stiff. He's been at the bottom of the tank for most of the time this week, then in the last two days floating mostly at the top. Overall very lethargic, his color seems to be fading, especially around the face. Water levels are all still good, and I've been using instructed amounts of aquarium salt with every water change (1/2 teaspoon per gallon, every other day)

 

[lilmich]

How long have you been adding salt? I found they generally act lethargic whenever they feel unwell, so if we can fix the fin issue, he should perk up. I used interpet's fin rot meds. I don't know if that's easily accessible where you are, but if not there will likely be something similar.

 

[MRenee]

How long have you been adding salt? I found they generally act lethargic whenever they feel unwell, so if we can fix the fin issue, he should perk up. I used interpet's fin rot meds. I don't know if that's easily accessible where you are, but if not there will likely be something similar.

I have been adding salt proportional to the water changes on and off for 2 weeks. Never for more than four days in a row.