Gill parasites in betta? Help!

[Ash Paws]

So my male crowntail betta has been pretty inactive lately, laying at the bottom of the tank or on the amazon sword plant. He still eats and frequently goes up for air. I haven't noticed any pineconing or major swelling either.

One thing I have noticed is that his gills look different, there is a significant black flap escaping from the operculum.
Here is a photo:

I didn't capture it very well but the symptoms seem very similar to gill flukes. Any advice please!

Ash

 

[Colin_T]

The black flap on the gill cover is a bit of skin that the fish use to seal their gills when eating. It is normal and all fish have it. think of it as a rubber seal around the edge of a window to helps stop drafts sneaking in

However, if your Betta is sitting on the bottom sulking then something is not right. Have you checked the water quality for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate & pH? If yes what were the results?

If you don't have test kits then take a sample of water to the local pet shop and ask them to test it. Write the results down and post them here.

In the mean time do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate.
Make sure the temperature is correct, it should be 24-26C (75-79F).

How long has the tank been set up for?

Does the aquarium have a filter and if yes, how often do you clean it and how do you clean it?

How often do you normally do water changes and gravel cleans, and how much water do you change?

How often and what do you feed the fish?

 

[Ash Paws]

Thank you so much!

Yes I plan today to go buy a test kit or take a water sample to the pet store.

We have had the tank since April.

The tank has a Silenstream filter. I change the cartridge about every 3 weeks to a month. However, I may do it more often like every 2 weeks.

I do water changes once a week, ciphoning about 30 or 40 percent of the water out. This is going to sound terrible, and please forgive me, but I've never done a gravel clean before. I plan to get a gravel vaccuum because whenever I try to clean the gravel with a plastic pipe the rocks clog it.

I feed my betta mostly pellets, normally 2 or 3, at night. He lives with five neon tetras (that we plan to move to a 10 gallon soon) that eat flakes, sometimes he will take some of the flakes, sometimes he ignores them.
Sometimes I'll swap the pellets out with frozen bloodworms or something like that.

 

[Colin_T]

Try to get liquid test kits rather than paper strip test kits. The liquids ones are more accurate. Check the expiry date on any test kit, medication or water conditioner before you buy it. Try to keep the kits cool and dry when you have them, and don't buy any test kits, medication or fish food if they are stored in a warm area, (ie: a fish room). Heat causes them to go off faster.

When you get a gravel cleaner, just get a basic model like the one in the following link. Use the gravel cleaner every time you do a water change.
https://www.about-goldfish.com/aquarium-cleaning.html

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Do not throw the filter pad out. You can cut a small slit along the bottom of the filter pad and tip the black granulates out and throw them in the bin. This is carbon and not necessary. It also absorbs chemicals and when full does nothing. Then squeeze the pad out in a bucket of tank water before putting the pad back into the filter.

The following link is from YouTube and shows how you can add filter materials to your filter to provide more filtration area. You use a rectangular sponge and a round sponge with a hole through the middle. It's preferable to use both to maximise the filtration area but even just adding the round sponge to the intake tube will make a big difference. To clean these extra sponges you simply squeeze them out in a bucket of tank water every couple of weeks. But don't do them for the first 6 weeks after you get them because you can disturb the bacteria trying to grow on them. After they have been in the filter for 6 weeks, you can wash them every couple of weeks in a bucket of tank water.

Your filter develops a colony of good bacteria that helps keep the water clean and free of ammonia and nitrite. It usually takes about 4-5 weeks for the bacteria to develop to sufficient numbers to keep the water clean. If you replace the filter pad, you get rid of the good bacteria and cause water quality problems.

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Right now I would do a 75% water change each day for a week and see if the fish looks better after that. When you get the gravel cleaner use that to do the water change.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

 

[Ash Paws]

Hi, thank you.

I never really thought that was necessary, to modify the filter, but it does seem really important so thanks.

I think Pence is just too far gone now to help. He is sitting at the surface, by the thermometer, probably gasping for air.

He is pretty old though, about two years or so, and it is going to be very hard when he dies but not a total shocker.

I'm still going to get a test kit to make sure the water is still safe for the tetras and the mystery snail I have. Thanks for all your help.

 

[Colin_T]

Do a big water change and see how he goes. Bettas are labyrinths and naturally breath air from the surface so it is natural for him to be just under the surface.
A couple of big water changes will probably make him a lot happier

 

[Ash Paws]

Okay, but this is different. He is twined around the thermometer and staying at the top, when he normally just zips up, gets some air and goes back.

I will try the water changes.

 

[Ash Paws]

Sorry to double post, but I did a water change, it was probably 60 or 70 percent. Before I did the change, Pence started zipping around the tank which is really normal for him, and he seems to be doing better now.

 

[Colin_T]

Good to hear that he seems better

Just keep an eye on the water quality because ammonia and nitrite kill more fish than anything else. If you get an ammonia or nitrite reading, do a big (75%) water change immediately

 

[Ash Paws]

We are taking a sample to the pet store today.

Since I'm maxed out with the tank/fish capacity, I think the nitrate levels got kind of "off." When pence gets better I'm going to separate my neon tetras and move them to a 10 gal.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Colin_T]

You're more likely to have nitrites due to replacing the filter pad every few weeks. To keep nitrates low have some floating plants like Water Sprite in the tank and do big 75% water changes and gravel cleans each week. Then you should be able to keep them all together

 

[Ash Paws]

I did a gravel clean with a vacuum i just bought and it works really good. The gravel is a lot cleaner now. I hope my snail gets enough food now!

The water sprite sounds cool. I already have an Amazon sword and something I think is "water hyssop". (bacopa caroliniana)

I also just got the water testing done at the LPS.

The ammonia is 0, yay!

I didn't see what the reading was for the nitrate but it was at a good amount. It will probably get absorbed by the plants sooner or later and come out on the next water change I'm doing next Sunday.

 

[NickAu]

Can you please post a better close up of the fish and leave it full size, I want a closer look at his gills and abdomen.

 

[Ash Paws]

Sure thing:

(If you're wondering why he is hanging upside down like that, I have no idea but he does it all the time and gets out perfectly fine so no worries)

 

[NickAu]

Hi

Ok his belly is not bloated, as for the gill thing I have no idea as I cant see it clearly.

But

(If you're wondering why he is hanging upside down like that, I have no idea but he does it all the time and gets out perfectly fine so no worries)

That is not normal, I have never seen a betta do that.

I want to see what Demeter and Essjay think before giving more advice