Betta Emergency

[natalie265]

Last night i found my CT betta, Edgar, tangled up in the java fern and the string it was tied down with. His fins were so tangled up that he was literally tied in knots and could barely move. I managed to free him, but only by cutting some of his fins. It was touch and go last night, but this morning he is doing better. Some of his fins are still in knots and it seems like it is making swimming a bit awkward for him. Should i cut these off or leave them as is? Edgar is my favorite fish and i'm really beside myself over this.

 

[ellena]

Eww, that sounds horrible, poor him and you for having to do it I would leave well alone to be honest and see how he fares. let the wounds heal with good clean water and maybe an indian almond leaf or a low dose of melafix.
Oh, and take out the fern!

 

[Lacuna]

I don't really know what to suggest, but it sounds like an awful thing to have happened. If you've managed to cut away all the thread then I would leave the fins alone like ellena said and see how they heal. How tangled are they? A picture might help.

I hope he gets better.

 

[natalie265]

Good news! The fins seem to have untangled themselves! Poor guy, it was really traumatic for us both! I did a big water change and, of course, removed the java fern and he seems to be doing fine.

 

[silverrabbit]

Glad he's ok - that's scary about the betta getting tangled in the line, I think one of my coconut caves has some one it holding on the moss, so i'm going to remove it now