Dead Betta...

[wigdean]

Had my betta for about 4/5 months now. Only problem he'd had was a bit of tearing on his fins, which was treated with esha 2000 and was visibly getting better.

Last night I noticed that he was swimming around the bottom of the tank and it seemed like he was trying to find somewhere to rest. I did think it was a bit unusual as he's usually the most active fish in the world until the lights go off. Anyway I've just switched the light on this morning and he was dead. The area around his mouth was full of white marks and when I netted him out the body was stiff (I dunno if that's normal?).

I have a couple of questions...does anyone have any ideas as to what could have caused this (water parameters are all fine btw) and would it be worth adding some esha to the tank and leaving it a couple of weeks before I purchase any new fish?

 

[kewskills]

sorry for your loss.
sorry, i don't know the answers to your questions.

 

[WILDER]

He had a bacterial infection with a secondary infection of finrot.
White mouths on a fish is mouth fungus called flexibaxtor columnaris.

 

[Lynda B]

I recently lost a male betta to old age and his body was stiff when I took him out. He was fine when I went to bed and, first thing in the morning, stiff. So, I guess that's normal.

If he was the only fish in that tank, I'd scrub the tank out completely, including decorations, before I put another fish in it. Use bleach and water to clean, and be sure to rinse very thoroughly before adding fish. I had a female with a bacterial infection in my sorority tank, took her out and placed her in the hospital tank, cleaned and bleached the sorority tank and no other fish got the infection.

 

[lilmisshertz]

This is some information I found that may help for the future:

Columnaris (mouth rot, mouth fungus, 'flex')
Symptoms
Early signs of this disease are greyish-white marks or patches around the mouth, or on the body or fins of the fish. These may appear thread-like, particularly around the mouth, giving rise to the incorrect name of 'mouth fungus'. Fins will deteriorate and sores may appear on the body. The gills may be affected, giving rise to bacterial gill disease. It may cause 'shimmying' behaviour in fishes like livebearers.

Causes
The disease is caused by the bacteria Flavobacterium colmnare, formerly known as Flexibacter columnaris. It has been refered to as 'mouth fungus' (even though the cause is bacterial), due to the whitish strands which may appear fungus-like. These are Gram-negative, rod shaped bacteria, which move by gliding across a surface.

As with many bacterial diseases, poor water quality is a major factor in triggering the disease. Sudden changes in conditions may also trigger it, and the disease is common in newly imported fish.

Possible cures
Anti-bacterial medications should cure this disease if used promptly. At later stages, the bacteria may invade internal organs, in which case only antibiotics may be effective. Several strains exist which vary in their virulence (how 'aggressively' they cause disease)..

 

[wigdean]

The white marks weren't there until the fish was dead though. So would it still be that?

There are 3 harlequins in the tank aswell btw, but they are only recent additions.

 

[ArauraDiscus]

water parameters are all fine btw
================

Hmmm please post the levels anyway? Just so we can be sure they were fine. And I'm very sorry for your loss. He's in fishy heaven now, which is one thing to be happy about I suppose.

 

[WILDER]

Ok.
Finrot can be a secondary infection meaning that something else could of been going off with the fish.
R.I.P.