BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Fish Very worried about betta

I bought my first betta fish last friday. I posted a few days ago that he wasn't eating, and he still isn't eating except for a little bit of dried bloodworms.
Today I looked at him and noticed he has a couple small holes in his fins, and now I'm really worried about him.
What could the problem be, and what could I do about it?

It may be stress. I would add some stress coat. Moving is very stressful for bettas and especially if they have been in poor conditions before-hand. Add a bit of aquarium salt too. I can't remember the dosage but it should say on the container. Just give him a few days to destress and see how he does. We are all concerened when we get our first one with making sure they have the best environment possible. Sounds like you have the makings of a great betta parent!! Keep us updated. Also, if you want something to research, finrot may be a possibility. Basically all you can do with that is provide good water conditions with frequent water changes and add stress coat.
Another thing, and you may have mentioned this in your other post, but does he have any toys in his tank or bowl that may have torn his fins? Plastic plants and rough textured caves can do this. My advice (in all this rambling) is to do frequent large water changes with plenty of stress coat. Good Luck!!
SC

Hi Yohko!
After replying to one of your other posts, I'm wondering about these holes...are they dark and look like they're wilted at the edges? Or are they clean tears? It might have been that pesky plastic plant that's the culprit. For your size of tank, just a pinch of aquarium salt will do. It does help to add water conditioner + stress coat with every water change. If you don't already it's very helpful to have a clean container of tap water on hand that has been sitting for a few days. You could have it all ready with the stress coat/conditioner in it. This is much more important for a tank this small to be prepared for an emergency water change. Let us know how it's going. FW <img src="/images/graemlins/fish.gif" alt="" />

I actually don't use the plastic plant that came with the kit, I have a red plant that's made of some soft fabric... I don't know, but it's not plastic.
I have stresscoat, but I don't use it, I use the stuff that came with the kit, the Betta Plus Bowl Conditioner by Nutrafin. I don't have aquarium salt, I guess I should get some of that today.
He has more holes in his fins today, but I don't know where they're coming from. The only other things in his tank are a clay pot from AC Moore and round glass stones.

Also, I have another question. Frequent water changes are beneficial, I'm sure, but I'm worried about my betta's stress level. I'm sure he likes the clean water, doesn't like being dumped out of his tank and scooped back in. I'm worried if that's stressing him out and causing the problem.
I looked at his fins again and they're definitely getting worse.

This is just my opinion here, but when my betta had fin rot and again with torn fins I just added the bit of salt and continued the once a week water change. I also didn't want to freak him out by scooping him out of there every other day. He hates water changes enough as it is. I have dealt with this a few times either from him biting fins or whatever and they have have always healed up nicely. (Until he sinks his fangs into them next.) Again, just my opinion please don't condemn me for being a bad betta parent. FW

FW- sounds good to me!

I wouldn't worry too much just yet. If you're using the Bettafix, sometimes it takes about three to four days to see any results. It will often look as if it's getting worse during that time, but by at least Day 4 of Bettafix, you should start seeing it at least stop getting worse. Basically, it will often look worse before it looks better---even if you're doing everything right.

Hi Yohko. Somehow I missed seeing this post the other day. I'm pretty sure that the conditioner that comes with the kit also has stresscoat in it. You could check the bottle, it should say on there. FW

I have yet another question.
On Wednesday, I noticed a thin film of something (scum?) across the top of the water, and I thought it was maybe from the clay pot I'd put in the tank.
I got aquarium salt, and I added it to his water when I cleaned the tank on Thursday, and I also took the clay pot out.
Yesterday I noticed the film was back again, and that Moe seemed tentative about coming up for air. I don't want to have to clean his tank everyday, so I'm trying to figure out where this is coming from. Is it the aquarium salt? Or is it the tap water I use? I'm not sure if there's something in the water around here that's causing it.

On a side note, I'm still trying to get my betta to eat something besides dried bloodworms. I heard from other people that it's alright to feed him only bloodworms, but I don't know how much to feed him if I decide to do this. Would it be like the flakes, where they say to give as much as he can eat in a few minutes once or twice a day?

Alright, thanks in advance. Sorry about all these questions!