BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Fish Sore on Betta's head?

Hello all,

I have newly rescued a betta that had been badly kept (tiny tank, infrequent water changes, temp ~70C or less at night). He was hanging out at the bottom of the tank and not moving much. He had a big lesion between his eye and gill, white & stringy in the middle, red around the border (see pics below). I don't know if it is the result of an injury but it is possible.

I took him home & put him in clean, conditioned water w/ salt, initially treated with tea tree oil (bettafix). He was eating yesterday (got him the night before) and was somewhat active, but not today. He doesn't seem to be improving. I went and got some jungle fungus clear because it seemed that there were some streaks of mucus on him (transparent/white)a and there's another patch of bad looking skin on the side of his mouth (greyish-white).

He's now in new water with JFC- has anyone had a similar issue? What is it exactly? Is there any hope for him & do you know what the best treatment would be?
Thanks

-dvm

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Hi DVM.

That is great that you rescued him...was he at PetSmart or a pet store?

If he was living with other male bettas, it may be an injury (is that a male betta). Also, if he was sharing a tank it could be Ich (a parasite that is comparable to how fleas spread among dogs.) Pet stores sell Ich medicine.

BUT...it could also be caused by the ammonia from a dirty tank. It sounds like you know what you're doing, but I need to ask...when you said conditioned water...did you mean conditioned with a water softener for home use, or that you took the step of conditioning it for the aquarium. And when said "salt" did you mean human salt or aquarium salt?

Are you monitoring the temperature and making sure it doesn't fluctuate? Do you use an air filter, or change the tank often?

Hi Freestuff,

I can't really say where I got him from but, no he was not from a pet store.
He was kept in what I think was a 2 gallon tank (or less...), halfway filled with water, divided in 3 with two other male bettas. It is possible that at some point the bettas got in contact if the dividers were lifted. Oh, he's a male.
The ammonia is definitely a possibility, but he's been in clean water for 2 days, and it seems that the grey area in his jaw is new from today (I moved him next to a small lamp to see better and keep him warmer and then I noticed...). The salt is aquarium salt at the recommended concentration.
He is currently in a fairly small glass vase (I thought it would be easier for the frequent water changes & dosing medicine), maybe a 1/2 gallon. No heating but ambiant temperature is ~73F and he's next to a small lamp, probably raising it by a few degrees. Unfortunately I am new to bettas and I don't have a thermometer or a heater.
There is no filter, but I have been changing the water every day (maybe 80% change?), including siphoning out uneaten food/debris at the bottom. I use tap water with AquaSafe for conditioning.
Let me know if you have other questions. His condition did not look like any of the ick pictures I could find - I am pretty puzzled <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

I have not had experience with this exact situation but it sounds like you are doing things correctly. You may want increase the temperature if possible. Higher temps increase fish metabalism and thus increase healing rate. Consistency will also be important. If you can not heat the vase then get a thermometer and slowly increase the temp of water you add during changes. I would go 1'F aday untril you get near 80'. Unfortunately the temp will drop over night. Try relocating to a warm spot like top of TV or refrigerator this will help maintain a higher heat.

Good luck

I was reading through the threads here...

Im so happy that you rescued that lil guy (((pimousse))) and gave him a chance (I think he lucked into a good mom too). That was just so cool. Poor thing.

I'm new to Betta's too, Oct 18th, but I already never want to be without one. I wish we'd looked for one in need when we got ours (but I sure love the one we did get, really cool personality) but instead we looked for the healthiest. Never again though. I'll look for the Betta that needs the most help as I buy them through the years now...inspired by your lil guy. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

How is he doing?

Hi there,

He is doing better. After some research it was probably a columnaris infection. The wound on his cheek is now healed, and the jaw got much worse and now is better. He's been eating like a pig since day 3 and now is flaring when presented with a mirror. When he gets less scared of the camera I'll post more pictures!
Thanks for the help,

-dvm

That is such good news. The one eye in the pic you posted had such an expression! A sad/mad one I think. Eyes, on all living things, speak volumes imo. I bet his eyes have a much different expression now (look forward to comparing when new pics are posted).

I'm happy for him for the mom he has and I'm happy for you for the very grateful Betta you no doubt now have.

Namaste Dear One

Was at Walmart Supercenter recently. Found the Betta cups stacked and unstacked them. One of the unfortunate ones to have a cup stacked on top of his died. So too another. I carried both dead Betta to the manager and expressed how sad I was to see her (personalized it) Betta in such a sad state, that the other Bettas really need a water change and to be fed.

I asked if she could put up a sign telling customers NOT to stack the cups because they'll suffocate (wondering about those who would read that sign and stack them for fun...<sigh>). She actually seemed to care...

Anyway, the next Betta I buy will come from there <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />