Bitten Tail

[PrairieSunflower]

Woke up this morning, turned on the tank light and.... Riley has attacked the far end of his tail.    All the growing he has done since I bought him is now gone on that end and only a few streamers are left.
 
I've read others post about their doing this but I still have a few questions...
 
1) WHY would he do that?
 
2) Is it likely Riley will do this again?

 

[Blondielovesfish]

Have you checked his water parameters? It's possible that something was wrong with the water and it stressed him out.
Could there be anything other than poor water that could stress him out?
 
He may of been bored, would it be possible for you to put a ping pong ball in his tank? Another way could be to change things around in his tank.
If it was boredom and you don't do anything about it, then it's likely he will do it again.
 
Apart from that, there's really nothing else I can think of to suggest. Just make sure to give him lots of clean, fresh water which will hopefully help speed up the healing of his tail.

 

[PrairieSunflower]

I am due for his weekly water change today anyway, so will be going that in a couple of hours.  I am going to trim some of the plants.  We often have toys placed next to his tank to look at.
 
I have been putting his ping pong bad in every other day and he only ever looks at it.  I think it is too big and have been trying to think of something smaller.... I might abduct the lego ball my kids have... if I can find that.
 
My kids like to come and watch him often too since he is so nice and responsive to everyone.

 

[Mamashack]

I agree - check the water parameters first. If they are ok he may be needing some company. I've got amano shrimp in with mine. They are big enough and strong enough to get out of the way if my betta gets too close which he sometimes does as he's got scales growing over his eyes.
Just keep the water fresh and add Indian Almond Leaves if you don't use them routinely - I add half of one every other water change. They do bleed into the water making it the colour of weak black tea, but I rather like that. They are meant to be soothing and calming both physically and emotionally.
If you don't like the look of the leaves there's something called Betta Spa I've seen RCA mentioning it to some members tho I haven't used it myself.

 

[PrairieSunflower]

I will get some almond leaves.. I imagine I will have to find them online somewhere as pet shops around here are quite useless!

 

[Mamashack]

Got some of mine on Ebay - can get small medium or large - I was given large ones from the guy I bought my betta from so I cut those in half for my 30L tank. If you want more impact and with torn fins you probably do, I'd put a whole one in.
Seems you can also get it in small bags but I have no knowledge or experience with those.
http/www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html;jsessionid=03C3844E319A4EDD375749B8BE6A708E?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=indian+almond+leaves&_nkwusc=indan+almond+leaves&_rdc=1

 

[PrairieSunflower]

Will check that out, thanks!
 
His water tested fine... he must be bored or stressed... though I think it must be bored as he doesn't flare much anymore like when I bought him... so surely that means more relaxed.
 
I did a water change today, trimmed his plants and swapped his ornament for an arch.  I am quite sure he enjoyed me faffing around in his tank!

One question... when I get the leaves... do I put it in the tank and just leave it there or take it out after awhile?

 

[Mamashack]

Personally I leave mine in there and haven't removed one yet as it doesn't appear to have affected the water parameters as they decay, but I know some people who remove the old ones when they start to decay and add new ones at that point.
You might find this helpful:
http/www.indianalmondleaves.com/aquariums.php

 

[Wildbetta]

Tail biting is one of those issues that is hard to determine why it happens.  I have experience tail biting with a couple of my boys before.  One of them was a beautiful DT who if I was even one day late to do his weekly water change, would shred his gorgeous tail.  The parameters were always spot on and didn't seem to have any real impact on why he did this.  It seemed to be more of a routine sort of issue.     I have a boy right now that bites his tail down because he is so severely rosetailed that it makes it easier for him to swim when he "trims" his tail.  The main thing to worry about is keeping the tank warm and very clean to keep from having any kind of infection set in.  
 
Things you could do is to set up brightly colored objects outside his tank and change them around often or changing things around in his tank.  The ping pong ball only seems to really work with some bettas and not with others.  I don't readily advise adding tank mates for a remedy for tail biting just because it is hard to say how it will make him react.  Some bettas do good with added tank mates - giving them something to "do" and others it will cause them to stress and bite their tail more. 

 

[PrairieSunflower]

Hmmm... that makes it tricky!  Do you suppose doing two water changes a week (small ones) could maybe be a benefit?
 
I found that little lego ball and it turns out it sinks, so no use.  LOL
 
Riley can also see the tv from where his tank is.  My children love putting their toys next to his tank for him to look at, and he can also see the fish in the next tank which he no longer seems to care about.
 
I've had him about a month, I think, and he has grown since then, in tail size as well as body... so I was thinking maybe that is what it is.  I've not seen him take issue with anything at all other than a shadow moving to the left of his tank... upset him for a few days when I got him and he only flares a couple time per day (for seconds) at it now... mostly in the evening when the light changes.  Otherwise, he seems busy swimming around and looking for the whole day.

 

[Wildbetta]

The water changes probably won't hurt anything if you want to try that way.
 
There are some bettas that bite their own tail and have no issue whatsoever that could fix it.  They are happy, entertained, and healthy.  This makes it the hardest to understand why they do what they do.  Some just decide they like their tail a certain way and trim it to their liking, kind of how we do our hair and nails.  Although it looks "bad" as long as you keep his tank warm and clean it shouldn't become a true health concern.

 

[PrairieSunflower]

Eureka moment!  I think Riley might not have bitten his tail afterall... possibly.  He was going around the side/top of the tank and stopped by the filter to get a piece of food and the tip of his tail got sucked into the side of the filter where the two halves click together!  I am now thinking maybe that happened during the night and it ripped off....  now... problem is.... how do I cover that up... if I move the filter at any other angle so he can't hover near that bit then the current ends up too strong for him.

The little line above the fish's head, that is where I saw his tail get sucked in... how can I make that not happen again?
 

 

[Blondielovesfish]

Do you have a bit of sponge you could put over that crack? You could attach it with some cotton or fishing line.
Another alternative is to put some pantyhose over the filter, although I'm not sure if that would help it or not.

 

[Mamashack]

I have that filter for my betta tank and have no problem with it but having said that mine is a plakat with shorter finnage. Are the two parts of the filter definitely back together in the right place as I've just looked at mine and there's no obvious gap. If it is as it should be the only thing I can think of is the hose over the top but that would prevent fish waste from being pulled in and isolated. Never thought about putting sponge around the gap - filter floss would be a good alternative as it is not too deep.

 

[PrairieSunflower]

My filter is fully clicked into place, and unlike the photo, the bit from the bottom that clicks into the rectangular hole at the top only cover about 3/4 of the space.
 
I have some cotton thread, I shall see what I can secure there.  I don't have extra sponge or pantyhose.  Maybe I can find some mesh or something that is small enough.