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Old June 5th, 2008, 02:09 PM
NewFry NewFry is offline
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Worried new mother of beautiful blue betta

Three days ago I rescued a beautiful betta from his cup in a petstore, being an uninformed fishlover I bought him a two gallon pitcher, some rocks, and a pirate head to keep him company. When I got home to do some research I discovered how much he really needs a filter/ heater/ larger tank. So I'm expecting a ten gallon with all the fixings Friday evening.

But I also stumbled upon betta diseases and now I'm wondering if he has finrot. He has a healthy appetite, loves blood worms, I'm keeping his pitcher heated with a light bulb right now, turning it on until it gets to 80 F then turning it off. I'm also changing his water 100% every other day until I get him a 10g all cycled.

I'm noticing a small thin patch starting in his tail, and his two most anterior, ventral fins have white tips. His dorsal fin has small, uniform red dots that I thought were a part of his markings. None of his fins have dark red or black edges though. Should I be worried, and if I buy him medication could I use it for prevention if he doesn't need it for a cure?
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Old June 5th, 2008, 02:27 PM
NewFry NewFry is offline
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I just noticed a tiny bit of black just licking the edges of his fins so i'm pretty positive it is early finrot.
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Old June 5th, 2008, 02:41 PM
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want4rain want4rain is offline
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i wouldnt worry about the actual temp as much as keeping it a constant temp. if you can keep it in a warm room instead of fluxuating the temp through out the day. you could try keeping a little aquarium salt in the water. just remember that salt doesnt evaporate. top off with fresh water before performing water changes....

and did you say you were cycling the 10g when it comes in?!?! i could kiss you. good for you for cycling the tank first!! very few, if any cycle their first (or even second) tank!! i know i didnt!!

fin rot is fairly common in stressed bettas. do you have a water quality test kit?? id highly suggest picking up one. they last forever, especially with just one tank. that way you can monitor his water quality and also of the 10g while it cycles. do you plan on fishless cycling?? it takes a pinch of food rather than a fish.

since you are doing daily water changes already, set the water out you will use the next day so you can be sure the temp is the same and the water has a chance to balance itself with the air. that could also be stressing him.

fin rot will usually clear up on its own if given the chance. i WILL say i had a betta once who just perpetually had fin rot. i had to keep aquarium salt in his tank.

keep us posted on your beauty!!

and do yo uhave some pictures?? once you reach a certain post count you shoudl be able to post some pics, not sure how many that is thought.

-ash
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Old June 5th, 2008, 02:51 PM
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want4rain want4rain is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NewFry View Post
I'm noticing a small thin patch starting in his tail, and his two most anterior, ventral fins have white tips. His dorsal fin has small, uniform red dots that I thought were a part of his markings. None of his fins have dark red or black edges though. Should I be worried, and if I buy him medication could I use it for prevention if he doesn't need it for a cure?
i did not address this at all!!

look very very closely at his fins, does it look like his BODY is white or that there are little white fluffies or even salt looking spots ON his body?? do the uniform red spots look anything like blood under his skin?? bettas typically have red spots, especially certain colors. this isnt unusual, just wanna make sure it doesnt look like its UNDER his skin.

few things i keep on hand are-

Jungle brand anti bacteria food
Jungle brand anti fungal food } never know when you need them!!!
Jungle brand anti parasite food

aquarium salt
epsom salt (yep, same stuff you use in the bath)

its actually pretty good you have a sort of hospital tank for you fish now. that way if he ever gets sick, you can medicate in the QT (quarantine tank).

oh and keep some peas on hand for constipation!

-ashley
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Swift Tribe-
Chris- Husband, 04/30/77
Cailyn- Daughter, 07/05/99
Jeffrey- Son, 03/24/06
Alex- Son, 03/25/09
Mister- Black LabX, M, 08/06(?)
The Shadow Stalker- Gray Tux DSH, M, 04/04
The Mighty Hunter- Black Tux DSH, M, 04/04
Baby Girl- Tabby DMH, F, 12/03(?)
Frances- Tortie, DSH, F, 2007(?)
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  #5  
Old June 6th, 2008, 11:48 AM
NewFry NewFry is offline
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Wow, thanks for all the info!!

I do have a water test kit I test the water before I put him in it, and pH is ~7.8 with no nitrites or ammonia. (this is before I put him in it of course)

Should I test the water he's in if I clean his tank everyday?

Definitely not gonna put the little bugger in there while it's cycling, not the first time I do it anyway, lol. I'd be too scared that I would mess it up and kill him.

Peas? Really, lol If he'll get them down, I bought him blood worm treats and now he barely wants anything else.

Spots I can't really tell if they are under his skin or not, they are fairly distinct on his blue dorsal fin, but on his red fins I don't notice any. They seem to be flat and not bumps.

I don't notice any white spots, but its hard to tell because it looks like his red fins have flakes of blue in them. The white on the tips of his fins looks more like a lack of colour rather than a fungus or something. Actually now i think his whole large, ventral fin might be turning white, the tips are a light pink.

No pictures yet, but once I get my tank set up (hopefully a week or two from today with some Biospira) I'll for sure take some

Thanks for all your help!!
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Old June 6th, 2008, 12:07 PM
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want4rain want4rain is offline
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i used BS once, i shook it like mad, added half in the morning straight to the filter, rolled the foil backup, stuck it in the fridge and added the rest the next morning. had it totally cycled within 4 days. what little it had to take care of after that was minimal. i did not do WC's while it was working and the nitrites stayed below .05ppm as did the ammonia. barely detectable. make sure you have him IN the water for a few days before adding the BS though. you need food for the bacteria when you dump it in.

my real big concerns are septicemia and culmnaris. look both them up and see if it looks like what your fish has or if its just plain fin rot.

if you really wanna go all out, you can also catch small soft bugs like fruit flies or larva like mosquitoes and feed him that. try to get pellets in if you dont have any variety in his other foods. peas are great for constipation. as is epsom salt!

i woudl really hop on getting the antibacterial food and feed him only pellets over the next week or so. if it looks like the redness is clearing up, go back to your super foods when his redness either clears up or shows itself to being part of his natural color.

oh yeah and test his water before you change it, then you will know how high the levels are getting. maybe you need to do WC's twice a day. probably not but its always good to kjnow for sure.

id feel better if i could see a picture of him.

oh and i picked up one of these a few years ago for my kids.... i shamelessly use it!! put a little tea bag between the fan and the cup, works great for getting little tiny bugs.

-ashley
__________________
Pastafarians Unite!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8z1buym2xUM

Swift Tribe-
Chris- Husband, 04/30/77
Cailyn- Daughter, 07/05/99
Jeffrey- Son, 03/24/06
Alex- Son, 03/25/09
Mister- Black LabX, M, 08/06(?)
The Shadow Stalker- Gray Tux DSH, M, 04/04
The Mighty Hunter- Black Tux DSH, M, 04/04
Baby Girl- Tabby DMH, F, 12/03(?)
Frances- Tortie, DSH, F, 2007(?)
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