Mixed questions/concerns - SOS UPDATE

I figured instead of posting a new thread in a new section every time I have a question or concern about my bettas, that I should make one single thread to post them in so I don't have to keep searching all over the forums for the mixed subjects.


Right now I'm concerned about ALpha. First his anal fin got a long rip right down the middle. This happened after I got him some new plants so I took out what I thought was the offending plant and put a different one in. Then I noticed his tail had two holes in it, which today ripped through to the edge. I took out the other plant but I checked them for any snaggy places and I can't find any. The one plant had a plastic flower bud in it that I think caused the anal rip, but perhaps he could be nipping at his own fins? I know to keep the water very clean and I'm watching for fin rot, not too worried about healing it as I am how he got them in the first place.


Also his black turned to grey and his fins have gotten a bit bigger and the dark edges faded down into his fins, making them overall darker (pretty!!) and I noticed some of the end rays on his dorsal have double spikes on them.

Now here's another question about him....he was labeled as a simple Delta at the store. But from what I've seen we can't tell for sure how their fins will turn out till they are fully mature. I think his fins have a bigger spread on them since I got him and he seems like he could have some HM parentage in him...now I know he's more than likely not a full HM because of his top and bottom fins but look at his spread (below)...is it Super Delta??



This is a large gif I put together, the normal pic followed by the text of my questions/concerns. click on the thumbnail to see the full file. It IS a tad blurry but to see the extent of his finnage and damage thereof, he wouldn't stay still 'cause I had to put "fishy" (our VT) next to him so he would flare out completely.

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TBH he looks like a HM to me - he isn't flaring in that pic but his tail looks very full.

As for the holes... that's not great news. If holes appear in fins then it is almost certainly fin rot. This will appear in water that isn't optimal (0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, low level of nitrate), or if there is a bacteria present.

I think it'd be a good idea to start water changes every day, 80% at a time. Some people add aquarium salt, but I don't have any experience with using this.

F.Banks told me to use aquarium salt too but sadly I don't have any. I might be able to get some this weekend and I know the store has special fin rot/fin repair meds for a decent price that I'm looking to get. I DO frequently change his water, at least a little every day and I did a full change yesterday and will do another decent change tomorrow. the VT seems fine and they've been close to each other for a while now so I don't think it's a bacteria. I'll talk to the store professionals tomorrow while my son is in school.


And it would be REALLY awesome if he's a HM. His top and anal fins aren't even nearly identical, as I hear some types are, but not in his case. I kinda hope he's a HM. I've seen him flared more than that and it's CLOSE but not complete, making me think a SD, but he's also still growing so we'll see. :D

It doesn't need to be that the VT has it also. Might just be that Alpha's immune system is low for whatever reason (uneven temps, water stats that vary a lot, the stress from coming home). If his immune system is lower than normal, he is more prone to developing bacterial problems from water-borne things that wouldn't normally cause a problem. Having said that, I think bacterial finrot has either a black/white edging to it, so this might just be a simple water issue, which is easier to fix!

his dark edging is his natural color. I've seen SEVERAL Bettas (HMs especially) with the dark edging on all the fins. He's just pretty like that ^_^

Still...I'm gonna treat him for re-growing fins but if it gets worse to where it's obviously fin rot then I'll treat him for it. I honestly don't think it's fin rot...just a snag off a plant or something or, as J.Banks told me, he could have bit the holes in his tail then they continued to finish ripping through aggressive swimming. his anal fin rip is an obvious environment tear as the rest of the fin looks just fine and it happened all at the same time, not little by little.

i'm not seein pic in first post

but 99% of the time pinholes are a type of fin rot, other cause is excessive flaring.


tear and pinhole can happen overnight even if it's rot and no from biting or catching on decor.

If it's an accident cause you should be able to see regrowth within 4-5 days (see through webbing on the damage spots) if not then do treat for rot and keep water pristine

I know that's his natural colour, just mentioning what some fin rot can look like.

It is *really* unlikely that he bit holes - they usually munch off the ends. Fin rot comes on really quickly sometimes (and it happens even in well maintained aquariums) and it will just seem like bits are falling away before your eyes.

It could be that bacteria entered from the rip from the plant.

TBH if I were you i'd treat with finrot meds if he doesn't improve soon. Nat lost her boy after it started with similar holes and tears

Ahhh, ok. I'm keeping a VERY close eye on him and making sure my 5-year-old leaves him alone, lol. He has his own fishy to pester that is much older and resistant to such things. Alpha is still a babby in my eyes even though he's only a young adult.

I'll look closely for this clear fin regrowth you speak of. He comes to me whenever I come close to him and he seems to watch me and tries to follow me so I'll see if he'll flare enough for me to see well. His rose attribute doesn't make it any easier to see.

now I get the pic... watch the pinhole thats split through for it most.. once you see that showing growth then you can relax, if its really 'clean' tears etc it should show regrowth fast with a few water changes, I also agree with silver though... fin rot meds wouldn't go a miss just incase. Mild treatments are aquarium salt or myxazin

Now I see the pic, he's def hm lines and although flaring and still looking delta tail spread in that pic I think his tail is bigger than that. He's a lot of finnage to be a delta, see how he displays once he heals you might be surprised.

:D YAYS!!! I can't wait till he's fully matured!! He's just WAY too pretty to be a regular Delta.

I'll get some treatment ASAP and keep up with water changes very frequently and let you guys know if I see any new finnage.

mine too, he has his tail damaged and I'm worried it's getting worse...

Momo - do you know what your water stats are for ammonia and nitrite? Maybe do some big, regular water changes every day... even just this can help fins grow back

Yeah, like for me I dunno what the levels are but I keep an eye on the visible water quality and how much they eat and change a lot and often. Over here the test strips are outrageously priced. The best deal I found were 4 strips for about 8 bucks....my son and I can spend less than that on dinner at BK. And when I want to test more than once a day, 4 strips for that price just won't cut it.

^ just for future reference so you know (if you didn;t already, sorry if you did!) that you cannot "see" the water quality deteriorate - water can look pristine but can have high levels of nasties

Yeah I know that but I see a lot of transparent-looking stuff floating around, even just after a 100% water change with a good rock cleaning.

silverrabbit wrote:Momo - do you know what your water stats are for ammonia and nitrite? Maybe do some big, regular water changes every day... even just this can help fins grow back

I have no idea what my water stats are, but i often do 50% water changes (every 3-2 days) and 100% on sundays or saturdays, but now that you said that, i'll try to change the water more often, at least until his tail gets better. Thanks

I see a LITTLE bit of re-growth on the oldest rip (the one on the Anal Fin) and there's nothing new/worse so far so I truly think it WAS the plant I had in there. He seems very active. I took some video of him swimming around earlier to see about his fin type, as he rarely fully flares. I put the VT next to him again to get the best chance of a full flare, but again the VT hid in his plant and Alpha didn't pay him much mind and just did his usual observation of the side of the tank....I think he's still getting used to his home not being small and round, lol.

ok now I'm super-worried. I found my son DUMPING the pelets into Alpha's tank!! I took a skimmer and got as many out as I could that way (alpha stayed in the plant in the corner) but there were too many. I set up the vase he used to live in, poured in treated water from my jug that I keep on hand, and plopped Alpha in there. Needless to say he was obviously stressed from the food rain and transfer. So I cleaned out his tank thoroughly till I couldn't see any more pellets and then some then put whatever treated water I had left in there (1gal) then poured gently Alpha and the water he was in (again, "new" water) and he was zipping around, so incredibly stressed! I'm worried the stress of it all might kill him. I'm not bothering to put his tank back where it goes till he's good and calmed down....right now he's slowly gliding across the surface and it's hard to tell how he'll do. I examined him to make sure he didn't have any new wounds and his body seems to be fine for the moment. I just hope that stress won't kill him...he's too young yet!!

EDIT: He just swam at full speed into the thermometer and seemed stunned for a moment then flicked back into the plant He's not looking good! Should I put an extra drop of stress coat in there???

I'm no expert, but your son shouldn't 'own' that fish if he's going to do something like that to it! I'd confiscate it from him until he learns better, otherwise he'll kill him!
Adding a drop of extra stress coat shouldn't do any harm, I recommend adding it to your HM's tank as well to help with repairing his fins.

If you can't afford a full test kit, I'd say it's worth at least getting ammonia and nitrite tests, as they're the two main harmers that can only be controlled by very regular large water changes if you don't have a filter.

He doesn't...he owns the VT and he's in my room with my fish (separated of course). It was my fishy that was harmed, the one with the rips. He's not allowed in there but snuck in while I was cleaning the kitchen He's had two full water changes in the last 3 days and one part change, about 50%. I'll add in an extra drop if it won't hurt him. He skits quickly away if he sees me though and I don't want him stressing anymore.

Does he look very bloated? Be careful as he may have eaten quite a few pellets so he could get constipated/bloated. I'd not feed him for a few days and keep him somewhere quiet and dark. Hope he pulls through ok!

Yes he is VERY bloated. I checked 5 times to make sure his scales weren't sticking out.

I heard they could go quite a few days without eating anything so I'll wait a couple days and if he doesn't deflate even a little bit then I'll give him a pea to help him along. He seems to be coming back to his regular self little by little, so I no longer think stress is as much of a concern, but being blocked from all that food.....yeah....big concern there. I also think a lot of them were eaten before they were soaked through so they could have expanded after being eaten. He almost looks like an eggy female, lol. Reminds me of those birds who die from eating dry rice. >_<

Hi Mesatalia!

You could get a privacy device thats cheap and easy to install with just a
few small screws. Just mount it high enough so he can't reach it. $2 or $3. I'll price them tomorrow as I'll be at a hardware store anyway! Don't want him doing w/c's when your back is turned!

he tears those things down, lol he already broke 3 different ones we had but I'm putting the food up where he can't reach them but there's nowhere high to put the fish for there's no shelves on any walls here.....too many renovations stopped 1/2 way done, lol. but I scared my son earlier so he should know better now. he's 5 and should be able to understand. Alpha is acting much better...if he can digest all that I think he'll be fine for the long run, lol. Thing is I spotted another hole in his fin so I'm gonna go get some fin rot meds plus fin healer at the store after I get paid tomorrow. he should be fine after that I think.

Evidently some take movement worse than others. Just try and be as gentle as possible and he might get used to it. It doesn't seem to bother my older one, but I haven't moved the younger as of yet.

Please get the meds because I should be getting things off to you soon. I appreciate the offer and all, but its handled. Trust me!

I know its hard worrying about the fish all the time! Hopefully things get better and you can relax a bit. Catch your breath!