I have a betta in a 1 gallon tank whose fins are decaying and gills are bloated, is this fin rot?

Question

I will readily admit to having forgotten his bi-monthly tank cleaning and I feel terrible about it. I have since cleaned the tank, added fresh aquarium salt (the amount specified for recovery of disease) and added some BettaFix Remedy, which has served me well in the past when he came home from the store with parasites. I have had him for about a year and a half now, and am exceptionally fond of him. He has had bloat several times in the past, which the pea trick cures every time, but this is definitely NOTHING like bloat. I cannot tell if the base of his fin is red because he is a red fish, but he holds the fin very close to his body, eats only a little bit, his gills look completely out of whack. I can't be sure if he has the white gunk on his fins from fungus or not. Can a fungus eat away at fins? How do you tell? Please help?

Answer 1

A betta in a one gallon tank should have 30-40% of the water changed every week! That is too small and the fish waste and uneaten food will decay rapidly and produce high levels of ammonia.

Bettas are "tropical" fish and need 78-82 degrees to maintain a healthy immune system. They come from Southeast Asia (Thailand-formerly Siam[hence the name, Siamese fighting fish]) where the temps are usually in the 80's all the time.

In the wild, they live 5-6 years, in our "care", they are lucky to last 2-3 years. Kept in a small cold water receptacle, the temperature fluctuates rapidly with the day/night temps in your house. This compromises the fish's immune system, eventually allowing opportunistic diseases such as fin rot, ich, fungus and parasites to gain a foothold in his body. Just because someone said it would be OK to keep a betta like that, doesn't mean it is true.

If it is fin rot, there is a medication called MelaFix that helps regrow damaged fins and tissue. He needs good warm water, regular partial water changes to maintain quality water conditions and good high protein food (bettas are carnivores) to give him a fighting chance.

Good luck! Let me know how you make out.

Answer 2

he might have that fatal desease. go to bettatalk for details. sadly, if he has it, hes a goner. there is NO cure for the desease and the poor thing will perish. or...maybe it has the lifted scale thing where the scales r like sticking out and the fish is bloated. trust me--u DONT wanna see a picture of a betta with that desease. it sends shivers down my back just mentioning it--imagine having a fish WITH it!

Answer 3

I don't know anything about fish, but I found this.

It describes some of the symptoms you are talking about. Good luck:

http://www.clubjungle.com/uploads/pdf/fish_chart.pdf