# fins stuck together



## mystee3 (Dec 28, 2011)

We lost a betta a couple of weeks ago. He started out with big beautiful fins and towards the end he would never spread them out. When he died, I ran out and got a new one before my son even noticed, cleaned out his bowl, and rinsed his rocks in super hot water. Now we've had the new fish for a couple of weeks and I notice that he never spreads his fins out anymore. I spent some time this evening watching him and it appears as though his fins are stuck together. No white spots, no fraying, etc. I'm going to go do another water change and boil the rocks this time, but is there anything I should be adding to the water?

He's in a one gallon bowl, I use spring water and put water treatment in there as well. No idea why this is happening, but I'm hoping to nip this in the bud this time.

Thanks in advance!


----------



## jCo72 (Feb 21, 2012)

Can you fill out these questions so people can try and help you better?

Housing 
What size is your tank?
What temperature is your tank?
Does your tank have a filter?
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration?
Is your tank heated?
What tank mates does your betta fish live with?

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish?
How often do you feed your betta fish?

Maintenance 
How often do you perform a water change?
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change?
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change?

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters?

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity: 

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed?
How has your betta fish's behavior changed?
When did you start noticing the symptoms?
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?
Does your fish have any history of being ill?
How old is your fish (approximately)?


----------



## shellieca (Jul 12, 2012)

Is the bowl heated? If the water is cooler than it should be that can cause issues. Although stores say Bettas are fine in small bowls they should be in at least a 5g tank, IMO. How often do you normally do water changes? I could be wrong, sounds like clamped fins & I believe that's usually a water issue but I've been fortunate not experience it so to sure. And you should be using a water conditioner if your not.

EDIT: oops missed the water treatment part. :-0


----------



## lelei (Apr 30, 2012)

Water changes are very important, but bettas do better with heat, in a one gallon bowl there is not really enough room for a heater, if you can do an upgrade for him, it would be better, with a heater, temp should be 78 deg. and you will need a thermometer to see what the temp is..if under 76 he will get sick, and clamp his fins, hold them tight to his body..look at the ventrals the ones that hang under his chin..neck..those are a 'Barometer" to tell if heis cold, if they are tight next to the body..he is cold..


----------



## mystee3 (Dec 28, 2011)

I can only answer a few of these at the moment since the bowl is in my sons room and he is sleeping. 

-I have a one gallon bowl
- Its not currently heated but we have a betta thermometer in there and we're within the proper range. In the cooler months i use a heater plate thing that goes under the rocks.
- I do not have a filter
- I do not have an aerator 
- He is alone in the tank

Food:
- I'll check the brand of pellets in the morning. One side has small pellets, the other side has larger "treats". 
- We feed him one or two pellets every other day. If he goes after it quickly, ill give him another.

MAINTENANCE :
- We change the water once a week, usually 50%
- I'll check the brand of water treatment in the morning.
* we had a film on top of the water the other day and again today. Should I be changing it more often than once a week?

SYMPTOMS :
- I noticed his fins aren't all spread out and flowing like they were when we got him
- His behavior hasn't changed much. Still eating, still swimming around but it doesn't look as east for him.
-I noticed this a few days ago, but today when i noticed it again, i thought this looked a lot like the demise of the last one starting all over again.
- I haven't started treatment. Not sure what to do.
- We just got him 2- weeks ago, so no medical history on him.

Thanks again!


----------



## Alcemistnv (Jan 29, 2012)

It could definitely be that the tank isn't getting cleaned enough...

I'd say a few cleanings a week should be better... 

I'll wait till someone posts the right percentages.


----------



## Tikibirds (May 26, 2011)

when you say stuck together, do you mean they look like they are glued together? Clamped fins are not always a sign of sickness. However they are usually the first sign that something is not quite right. Alot of times, it's something as simple as not enough water changes. 

Take a good, close look at him for a minute. DO you notice ANYTHING physically wrong with him - like fizzy patches, color loss, holes in fins, white dots? Also shine a flashlight on him or take his picture. Do you see anything that looks like gold flakes or dust? 

Unless you report back with further info - like you see spots or fuzz on him, I am going to say it's poor water quality. Even if it looks clean, there is still ammonia building up - not only from his waste but from every breath he takes. I suggest doing a 100% water change and clean out the gravel to get any uneatten food/poop out of the tank (that will also pollute the water). Add in the water conditioner and then slowly add him back. 

OldFishLady suggests 2X week water changes for small tanks. Do one 100% with gravel cleaning and one 50%. 

If it is caused by water quality, then this will solve the problem. 

Also, what decor does he have? I find some bettas are more stressed by big open spaces..does he have a cave or something to hide in? You can't put much in a 1 gallon but he should have at the very least a small hiding spot and a silk plant (or plastic, I just happen to like silk ones better). If you can upgrade to something bigger - like 3 gallons or so - that is even better (more swimming space, more decor and a 25 watt heater) but if not, you can make a 1 gallon work too. Just keep up on the water changes


----------



## Maura (May 13, 2012)

Feeding two pellets every other day really isn't giving him proper nutrition. Most people feed their fish twice a day, with the amount given varying according to the size of the fish.


----------



## mystee3 (Dec 28, 2011)

I'm uploading a small video clip of him swimming around and will also get a picture of when we first got him up somehow. I don't know how to describe the fins, except for a bad analogy about hairspray and getting caught in the rain, but I won't go there. Hopefully it's nothing and the frequent water changes will solve the problem. 

The people at the fish store told me to feed him a couple pellets every other day, or one pellet a day. What and how should I be feeding him?

As for the water conditioner, I'm putting Aqueon Betta Bowl Plus, or Spendid Betta Complete Water Conditioner. The brand of food is HBH Betta Bites and Betta Treat.

I'm doing a water change now and boiling the rocks to make sure they're clean. Fingers crossed. I'll also look for a larger bowl or a small tank w/filter and heater.

Thanks again!


----------



## mystee3 (Dec 28, 2011)

Here he is when we first got him:









Here is a picture of him now:









Here is a link to a video clip of him swimming. (I only put my hand near the tank to get him out of the corner so you could see him swim) Also, I don't keep him in front of the bathroom mirror, I only moved him in there to change his water and figured I'd grab a video clip before I did. 

http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y247/mystee3/Fish/?action=view&current=2012-08-12_11-36-25_193.mp4


----------



## Myates (Aug 2, 2011)

You've been given some good advice, so I'm going to sum it all up here in this one post to help you understand, so we can get him feeling better..



mystee3 said:


> I can only answer a few of these at the moment since the bowl is in my sons room and he is sleeping.
> 
> -I have a one gallon bowl
> This is a fine size of a tank- no issues on this
> ...


The best option right now for him is to do a 100% water change (if you haven't done one in the last few days), along with adding in the heater. 
Start feeding him daily with a good brand of food- normally have to go to stores such as Petco or Petsmart unless you have a very good privately owned store. Omega One betta buffet, New Life Spectrum (betta formula) are idea.. but check the ingredients on the back and look for meat/fish meal type of foods first, with wheat down on the list.

Good food, warm clean water will help perk him up greatly. If that doesn't work then you may want to go to a different place to find your next betta.. sometimes it can take a few weeks before an illness is shown to us that a new fish had when purchased.

Edit: Just saw you feed HBH.. it's not bad, but there is better out there, and the better is way better. So you don't have to change the food if you wish not to, but definitely the water and heater.. and make sure there are plenty of mental stimulation in the tank for him with plants and a cave.

Good luck to you and your little one.


----------

