What's Wrong With My Betta's Tail?

[Gootz]

I just noticed this on my betta's tail this morning.  Any idea what this is?  Fin rot?  None of my other fish are showing any signs of disease and the water parameters and everything else seems to be very stable.
 

 

[RCA]

Not sure, could it be an old wound that is healing?
How does it look today?

 

[Gootz]

Thanks for chiming in RCA.
 
I don't believe it's an old wound because I inspected him thoroughly when I got him.  Also checked him over frequently when I was trying to snap some pics and he didn't have anything wrong. 
 
The size of the wound is the same size and doesn't look like it's growing, so I think that's a good sign.  Let me know if you have any more thoughts or questions.

 

[RCA]

Have you done the stocking over every thing in your tank?  They say that if something snags the stocking then it will shed a Bettas fins, just wondering if you have anything in there that may have done so?  Plastic plants are bad for Bettas so hopefully you do not have any of those?

 

[Gootz]

I think I know what happened.  I think he rubbed up against one of the pieces of driftwood in my tank and just damaged his tail a bit.  I noticed him hanging out in and around it right around the time I noticed his tail, but didn't put 2 and 2 together until your suggestion.  I think I'm going to remove the carbon filter for a week and just dose the tank with a 1/2 or 1/4 dose of Pimaflex to help curb any infection of the wound.  What do you think?

 

[Wildbetta]

I don't think you need to dose meds for something like this.  Clean warm water is all that is needed to heal stuff like this.  Medicines ending in "fix" (melafix,pimafix,ect) have the reputation of coating and damaging the labryth organ so they are not recommended with bettas.  It looks to me like a small tear in your betta's tail and the driftwood is probably the culprit.  You might want to run a stocking over it to see where the sharp edge is and find a way to smooth it.

 

[Gootz]

Thanks for chiming in Wildbetta.  That makes a lot of sense.  I'll refrain from the Pimafix and just do a small WC to make sure the nitrates are lowered a bit (even though they're still in the safe zone @ 20-25).

 

[4064123]

I believe that is fin rot you can get medicine to treat the tank for that. Hope this helps!

 

[Wildbetta]

I disagree.  Fin rot normally starts on the ends and "rots" away the ends of the fins.  If it was fin rot that started from a rip in the tail there would be frayed edges to the place circled on the tail.

 

[4064123]

oh fish crazys right sorry its probably from scraping the driftwood

 

[Gootz]

Thanks, it was just a scrape from the driftwood.  It's starting to heal already.

 

[RCA]

Good to hear Gootz...one Happy Betta

 

[Gootz]

Thanks RCA!