My Beta got a head injury and is always puffing out his gills what do I do?

Question

My beta was burrowing a hole and I think a rock cut his head.That or he got cut on his plastic tree that my mom wont let me remove.

Answer 1

The gill puffing you are seeing is called Flaring and all Bettas do that, it's totally normal.

For a cut in his head, the first thing to do is keep his tank and the water really clean. Change some water every day to help that. If you see the spot getting white and fuzzy looking then a fungus has started and you should treat that with fungus medications.

If it gets swollen and red looking, there could be a bacterial infection and that would require some antibiotics from the pet store.

If you can keep his water really clean odds are good it will heal up without either of these problems.

Best of luck

MM

Answer 2

How serious is the injury? Is it a deep gash?

You need to remove any sharp rocks or trees in the tank. Keep in mind these things could slash up your betta pretty badly. Why won't your mom let you remove the tree? Bettas have very delicate fins and can get cut VERY easily. Generally, as a rule of thumb, I don't put anything inside my bettas' tanks that isn't completely smooth.

Add some blackwater extract or Indian Almond Leaf to your water, and half a teaspoon of aquarium salt (not table salt) per gallon. The blackwater extract or the leaf will help to soften the water, likening it to that of the betta's natural habitat and making him more comfortable and less stressed so the healing process can begin. The salt will act as a preventative to keep the wound from becoming infected. If you wish, you may also add Melafix, which promotes regrowth. However, I recommend you only start Melafix if you see no improvement within a week. Generally, the less medicine there is in your betta's water, the better.

Answer 3

if you go to any pet store and ask for medication that treats injured fish that will work or it will maybe heal because i had a fish that was basically torn in half and it got healed from that medication

go to aquarium fish .net it is the best

Answer 4

maybe the best thing is to put him to sleep if he appears to be in pain. bring him to the vet,they might be able to tell you what to do.