CherrySparkles
New Member
Hi everyone - I'm going to fill out the recommended form for fish problems below and am attaching pictures below that. I hope you'll be able to help me with my little betta! In advance, thank you! 
Tank size:
1.25 gallons, unfiltered, unheated. (I am in the middle of a fishless cycle on a new Marineland Eclipse 5 for him)
pH:
7.6, the last time I checked
ammonia:
Approx. 0.15PPM. We have been unable to get it below this level in the bowl, and thus we're preparing the Eclipse for him.
nitrite:
0 at last testing, though not done that recently
nitrate:
0 at last test, though not done recently
kH:
Not sure as I don't have this test kit at home. An aquarium shop tested my betta's water 1-2 months ago, and the KH was something like 3.5 at that time.
gH:
Unknown
tank temp:
70 degrees. It was 72 about 1.5 weeks ago, but things have begun to cool down a bit in the city now, so it's just recently gone down to 70.
Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
Over the past approx. 2 months, my betta has had a small bubble/blister appearing on his tail. It looks to be the same color as the fin tissue around it, and it almost looks as though the fin tissue had been inflated like a balloon at that spot. It is almost totally transparent on the outer edges and seems to be relatively clear inside. This bubble/blister appeared once about 2 months ago, lasted for about a week, then suddenly seemed to deflate, like a popped balloon, and disappeared from his tail soon thereafter. It was gone for a few weeks and has since recurred in nearly the same spot, deflating once and returning within a few days, which brings us to the present. It's a little more reluctant to go away this time, it seems. I have never seen parts of this bubble/blister fall off of his fin.
The only other issue my betta has been dealing with is shredding on his tail. For the past 3-4 months, his fin has shredded at the ends to varying degrees (only the tips, or spreading up 1/4-1/3 of his tail rarely and at worst), only to heal. After the inital damage to the fin, it never seems to degrade further and shows clear regrowth very soon. It heals and then becomes shredded again. I've never seen black edges nor cottony growth on his fins, but sometimes where the rays have broken off in the damage, the ends have appeared bloody. Having removed all possibly sharp ornaments in the tank, we are now exploring the possibility that he is biting his tail (fairly common in bettas). If you have any other theories, please let me know!
Other than that, my betta seems very normal. He is eating very well (2 Hikari pellets in the AM, 1 in the PM, pre-soaked in water from his tank) and begging furiously for his food. He seems as energetic as normal, wiggling around whenever someone is in view and building bubble nests now and then. I haven't seen any changes in his behavior. His color is good and his body and other fins are clean and healthy looking, as far as I can tell.
Volume and Frequency of water changes:
30-40% daily changes with a full tank cleaning and 60% water change every 7-10 days.
Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:
only Seachem Prime
I tried treating him with a very light dose of Bettafix, but this did not appear to effect the bubble/blister which was present at the time. It did, however, seem to help his fins to heal a bit more rapidly than usual, as they were torn at the time.
Tank inhabitants:
Only my betta - he is alone in his vase.
Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):
The appearance of the blister/bump does not seem to directly coincide with the addition of something, but in the past few months we've added:
Hagen sealed gravel in a dark purple color
Hagen Marina faux rock betta arch decoration
a second small purple betta plant (identical to the one he had when we first got him)
Exposure to chemicals:
None that I'm aware of. We're very cautious to wash our hands and rinse THOROUGHLY before water changes or feedings. We never use soap to clean his bowl. We're very careful not to spray any cleaner/perfume/etc. in the same room as the bowl.
NOTE: The photos below were taken in really low light, and the dark spots on his tail (the bubble is on one of them) are just natural patches of blue on his fins.
Tank size:
1.25 gallons, unfiltered, unheated. (I am in the middle of a fishless cycle on a new Marineland Eclipse 5 for him)
pH:
7.6, the last time I checked
ammonia:
Approx. 0.15PPM. We have been unable to get it below this level in the bowl, and thus we're preparing the Eclipse for him.
nitrite:
0 at last testing, though not done that recently
nitrate:
0 at last test, though not done recently
kH:
Not sure as I don't have this test kit at home. An aquarium shop tested my betta's water 1-2 months ago, and the KH was something like 3.5 at that time.
gH:
Unknown
tank temp:
70 degrees. It was 72 about 1.5 weeks ago, but things have begun to cool down a bit in the city now, so it's just recently gone down to 70.
Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
Over the past approx. 2 months, my betta has had a small bubble/blister appearing on his tail. It looks to be the same color as the fin tissue around it, and it almost looks as though the fin tissue had been inflated like a balloon at that spot. It is almost totally transparent on the outer edges and seems to be relatively clear inside. This bubble/blister appeared once about 2 months ago, lasted for about a week, then suddenly seemed to deflate, like a popped balloon, and disappeared from his tail soon thereafter. It was gone for a few weeks and has since recurred in nearly the same spot, deflating once and returning within a few days, which brings us to the present. It's a little more reluctant to go away this time, it seems. I have never seen parts of this bubble/blister fall off of his fin.
The only other issue my betta has been dealing with is shredding on his tail. For the past 3-4 months, his fin has shredded at the ends to varying degrees (only the tips, or spreading up 1/4-1/3 of his tail rarely and at worst), only to heal. After the inital damage to the fin, it never seems to degrade further and shows clear regrowth very soon. It heals and then becomes shredded again. I've never seen black edges nor cottony growth on his fins, but sometimes where the rays have broken off in the damage, the ends have appeared bloody. Having removed all possibly sharp ornaments in the tank, we are now exploring the possibility that he is biting his tail (fairly common in bettas). If you have any other theories, please let me know!
Other than that, my betta seems very normal. He is eating very well (2 Hikari pellets in the AM, 1 in the PM, pre-soaked in water from his tank) and begging furiously for his food. He seems as energetic as normal, wiggling around whenever someone is in view and building bubble nests now and then. I haven't seen any changes in his behavior. His color is good and his body and other fins are clean and healthy looking, as far as I can tell.
Volume and Frequency of water changes:
30-40% daily changes with a full tank cleaning and 60% water change every 7-10 days.
Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:
only Seachem Prime
I tried treating him with a very light dose of Bettafix, but this did not appear to effect the bubble/blister which was present at the time. It did, however, seem to help his fins to heal a bit more rapidly than usual, as they were torn at the time.
Tank inhabitants:
Only my betta - he is alone in his vase.
Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):
The appearance of the blister/bump does not seem to directly coincide with the addition of something, but in the past few months we've added:
Hagen sealed gravel in a dark purple color
Hagen Marina faux rock betta arch decoration
a second small purple betta plant (identical to the one he had when we first got him)
Exposure to chemicals:
None that I'm aware of. We're very cautious to wash our hands and rinse THOROUGHLY before water changes or feedings. We never use soap to clean his bowl. We're very careful not to spray any cleaner/perfume/etc. in the same room as the bowl.
NOTE: The photos below were taken in really low light, and the dark spots on his tail (the bubble is on one of them) are just natural patches of blue on his fins.
