Fins

[DarkElf_Mairead]

My male betta seems to have white on the tips of this back fins. I can't take a picture, no way to put it up here, maybe I could this weekend I don't know. He shares a 5 gallon bowl with an albino clawed frog and two snails. It's possible that the white stuff is just crap from the bowl but I don't think it is. Anyone know what it is?

 

[ashleigh]

It is likely fungus- is it fuzzy or a discoloration? Are his fins irregular? is your bowl filtered? Are you changing the water frequently? Also the albinos are (at least the ones I have seen) are as you say clawed frogs- an african dwarf frog can be a fine companion for a betta in a filtered tank but a clawed frog is not. They get huge (far too large for a 5g container) and they eat fish. I woudl try to find him different accomodations, a different home perhaps if you cannot move him to a separate tank of his own.

 

[DarkElf_Mairead]

My frog is still to small to eat anything, and he seems to have a deformed back leg so he doesn't swim in a straight line real well. I kinda doubt he'll hurt the betta, but I do have another bowl he could live in if he does. My betta's fins have always been a littler raggy and irregular, and the white stuff mine be kinda fuzzy. It could be slime from the bowl, which is filtered but with the plants there's some dead plant matter and such, which is why I just bought snails. I added some stuff to the water which is supposed to break down slime and such. If it is a fungus, how should I treat it? And if I'm wrong will the treatment hurt it?

 

[Iggy]

Fuzzy generally means fungus. You could treat him with Jungle Anti-Fungus, which includes an antibiotic and it will not hurt him if you follow the right dosage and treatment.

You should do a full water change right away if your tank is under 5 gallons. Give the gravel a good rinsing.

I would keep the frog and snails out during treatment. In fact, I would suggest keeping them seperated for a few months just to make sure.

 

[ashleigh]

not necessarily but it won't help- I like the maracyn brand of medicine- I'm not sure which of them works for fungus though. I've seen other people recommend jungle brand too. Having a really clean tank is what will help him the most in the future- remove debris manually through water changes. Net out decaying plants when you see them. Adding chemicals and other animals is not really a good plan. I would say if your plants are melting, remove them all together and add silk plants.
edit- Iggy beat me- yes definately remove the snails and fron while you are treating, I didn't even think of that.

 

[DarkElf_Mairead]

One plant is in good condition, the other seems be sick, so I think I'll take it out. I use those bulbs you buy at Walmart and they grow. I just changed the water pretty good, but I could probably do better. Much of the white stuff seems to have gone away, so maybe it'll go away quickly with treatment. Thanks

 

[ashleigh]

good luck! really, you might think about silk plants- they look very real.

 

[DarkElf_Mairead]

Might not be a bad idea, keep the smaller live plant, give something for the snails to nibble on. I have plastic plants, but I think a silk plant would probably be better and safe. Thanks

 

[DarkElf_Mairead]

K I found a thingie of Jungle Fungus Guard, which is supposed to treat fin fungus (says so on the bottle) so I put my betta in a seperate 2 1/2 gal and gave it a dose. Then today I changed 25% of the water and gave it another dose like it said. It's only got the white fuzzy stuff in one little spot. Do you know how long it should take to clear up?

 

[ashleigh]

I don't, but it should say how long to dose, which I would think would be a good indicator. hopefully someone who has used this medicine will weigh in on this one.

 

[DarkElf_Mairead]

It really doesn't say. Though I think it's clearing up. The ends are still a little white but it's not the same, it's more like damaged fins or something. He's a little raggedy

 

[Iggy]

It should clear up completely in about 3 to 4 days. Continue dosage till he is completely clear of any cottony spots.

Jungle Anti-fugus also includes an antibiotic which will help cure the open wounds left by the fungus infection.

Keep following the directions on the bottle and everything should work out fine

 

[DarkElf_Mairead]

I think it's all clear, thanks guys