Very Wounded Betta

[RandomWiktor]

I walked into Petco today to get a light for my aquarium that burned out. As always, I oggled the bettas. Well, I saw one that looked VERY bad, and upon close inspection... found another male in the cup! I freaked out and yanked an employee out of the middle of a sale and told her to separate them at once, then told the store I was taking the fish. As in "I'm taking this fish, bye." Heh.

Well, I don't know if he'll make it. He has almost no fins left, though is somehow swimming. His head, gill plates, and sides are RUINED. The injuries to his sides have ripped the scales off and look severe. The gill plate wounds are bloody, but superficial. His color has improved since I got him home, but his breathing is rapid and he is pretty clamped. So, if anyone has advice on what I can do, PLEASE give it. I have him in a very planted, well heated tank with tons of plants but no gravel for ease of cleaning (I plan on daily or every other day to prevent infection). No current or filter, and shallow. I've added salt, betta fix, stress coat, and a low dose of blackwater. Thank god I had water sitting overnight allready.

I will take advice from anyone on this. Links, personal experience, whatever; every little bit counts. I really want to save this boy! I would even be open to looking at fighting pages since I know they have experience with healing fight wounds. Anything would help immensely; I've deal with sickies, but not the wounded.

 

[Miss Dib Dabs]

Awww poor fella. I wouldn't use salt, it'll sting him like crazy and stress him more. Otherwise you're doing everything you really can. Keep him quiet and comfy and hope for the best! One of my rescue boys looks stunning now. But his gills were intact. That worries me the most.
Hugs,
P.

 

[Durbkat]

Thats horrible! Can you post a pic of this poor betta?

 

[RandomWiktor]

The tank is heating up as we speak. I did put in salt, but only a very small amount, because I know that it helps replace electrolytes. I can not give pics, because my camera is back at home. But basically, both gill plates (not the gills; they look ok) are bloddied, as is the base of his pectoral fin. His anal and caudal fins are almost non existant, and his dorsal is shredded all to hell. He has two deep, nasty cuts on his side, missing scales on his head, and generally looks like hell. =(

 

[Durbkat]

Oh ok. Well if you don't mind once you get your camera please post a pic

 

[wuvmybetta]

On some of the fighting sites the highest recommended aid is basically mud, and IAL. Since you might not have either of those handy, I would imagine that clean water and a pinch of salt will suffice. BettaMAX is fantastic and couldn't hurt, ya have any?

Otherwise, if you can get him through the night you should be good to go. I've bought a couple boys (vt's) before who were trapped with dead fish in cups (How can anybody do that?) and they pulled through like champs. I hope he makes it for you!! Try to give him something good to eat, mybe a bloodworm or two.

 

[RandomWiktor]

I have blackwater extract; that's the closest I have to IAL. Do you know where one would get betta max? What is it? Stores are open until 9:00!
I have blood worms, brine shrimp, neonatal crickets, and a few pellet brands. If he's up to eating, I'll feed him a mix of these for as long as he survives. I really hope he makes it; I just got some bad health-news recently, so if I can make him feel better, maybe I'll feel better.

 

[fobofobiac]

I really hope the little guy makes it. Poor thing. I'm sorry I don't have advice for your little boy but I would file some sort of complaint against Petco for containing them like that. I'm sure it was someone who didn't know what they were doing. Even though Petco is where we go for most of our fish supplies and where I got 2 of my bettas, they should still be punished for it. I wonder if the manager found out about it. I hope I never see that at my Petco cause I wouldn't have room to bring home a wounded.
Good luck with him!

 

[RandomWiktor]

Oh, I'm sure a customer did it, not an employee. The lady I dragged over to fix the problem said that it happens all the time. I very curtly replied that the store ought to watch the customers more closely (lol) then took the fish.

 

[Durbkat]

Yeah they should have some cameras and have people watch the cameras and watch and see if somebody trys to there fish in a tank. My lps has a camera in there fish section to make sure no body steals a fish or puts a fish in the tank. They also always have someone sitting back there watching the fish section.

 

[RandomWiktor]

Well, so far he is integrating to the water very nicely. I've floated him for 20 min and have just added water from the tank. He's handling it like a champ. I'm worried about depth being an issue, but one of the plants is huge and right up at the surface, so he should hopefully be able to sit on it and breath over night. If he looks like he's having difficulties, however, I have a bubbler with adjustment gauge, so I can slowly aerate the water.
Keep your fingers crossed guys!
((Though, I must say, I needed another fish like I need a hole in my head, esp. with Synirr's girl coming. Oh well, the more the merrier.))

 

[RandomWiktor]

Sorry to double post, buuuut...
Guess who's sitting in his plant giving me a very weak, half hearted flare?

 

[Synirr]

Sorry to double post, buuuut...
Guess who's sitting in his plant giving me a very weak, half hearted flare?

Awww, thats so great to hear! I hope he pulls through for you

 

[wuvmybetta]

Sorry to double post, buuuut...
Guess who's sitting in his plant giving me a very weak, half hearted flare?

Very cool, you should be pleased with yourself
By the way bettamax aka "betta kool aid" is sold in capsules. It's a combination of methylene blue and vitamins. Always good to have on hand. Sorry I missed your post earlier, I must have left right after I posted.

 

[ral]

Okay, what we have here would be the type of wounds suffered in a fight, maybe a bit worse, since they were in cups.

I would add salt to the water. Not sure if he had any in the pet store, so at it gradually, eventually to a concentration of 1 teaspon per gallon. I would also add a general antiseptic to the water... or an Indian Almond Leaf.

Something I found on the web healing of fighters:

Medication:

Fighting fish are one of the toughest aquarium fish. Simple medicines are really all that is required in the fish room. However, always keep in mind that prevention rather than healing is the heart of keeping and training the fighter. Unlike the show Betta splendens, once the fighter is infected even from a very simple disease such as white spot or Ichthyopthirius multiflis, the trainer will down-grade that fighter to pet shop quality. One should know that the trainer already prevents the fighter from catching any disease since he keeps the fighter in dry indian almond leaf (or other type of herb) water during the separation stage, the essence of which has anti-bacterial properties. Most hardcore players always remark that they treat the fighter in the most natural way and avoid the usage of chemical solutions.

So, most medicines in use during the fighting fish training camp are simple and of a preventive purpose, they include:

*

Acriflavine solution 0.1%. Used on the fighter after battle. Just 2 drops for 50 cc., according to the medicine usage guide. It is also useful for the prevention of disease, especially of the female that is used for training purposes and may get wounded during training sessions.
*

Methylene blue. Used to prevent both fungi and bacteria in the training tank.
*

Multivitamin in water solution. Use one drop for one litre of water or according to the usage guide. Multivitamin very useful during hard training session, the fighter would consume a lot of vitamin and other mineral to strengthen its muscle and maintain its physical.
*

Salt. The effects of using salt are unknown. In general we use salt to soften water and supply mineral in the water.
*

Dry indian almond leaf. (Terminalia Catappa) or other types of herb. Dry indian almond leaf plays a very important role in the keeping of fighting fish. It is used to prevent bacteria, it refreshes the fish and is used as a remedy for fresh or infected wounds. It can cure pop-eye and is very effective, but use more indian almond leaf so that the water becomes a dark brown color. Only 3-5 days and the fish's eyes should return to a normal state. In the breeding field it is used to condition water to a pH 6 value or more acidic. This has been proven to maximize the number of males in breeding spawns.
*

Dry banana leaf. Dry banana leaf usage is similar to dry indian almond leaf but not as effective, though it is very good when curing pop-eye. The main purpose of using dry banana leaf is to soften the water so as to be more comfortable to the fighter. The trainer tears the leaf into lengthy pieces so the fighter can hide easier in the fish bowl.
*

Riverside clay. Use sun-dried riverside clay to soften the water and also to refresh fish that have been living in the aquarium bowl too long. It is best when keeping fish during the winter season, the clay coats the fish like a blanket in the cold weather. The breeder also puts riverside clay in the breeding tank for the natural production of tiny live food during the first few weeks of the fry's life.
*

Other types of herbs.

http/www.plakatthai.com/knowingyourfighter.html

Sorry to post again. But I would think, mild antibacterial (not antispetic... .sorry) and time will be enough.

He is weak so do what you can to keep his conditions healthy, as he is probably more sesceptible to illness. The wounds shoud heal over time.

Keep the water level low so he does have too much trouble reaching for air.