# Betta fish fins not regrowing after fin rot...help?



## nicole213 (Jan 19, 2012)

My betta fish had fin rot about a month ago, losing nearly his entire bottom fin. His fins have been clamped ever since and his lost fin has not regrown despite a month of treatment with the bettafix medicine. It appeared that it was growing back for a time, his fins even started to relax a bit and he flared his gills at himself in a mirror but he has relapsed since then, his fins are clamped again and he will not flare at himself when I hold up a mirror. Any growth that was startd has stopped and he only has a little stub. This missing fin leads to strange swim patterns and as a result he just sits on the bottom of the tank and squeezes himself in between rocks at the bottom, only coming up for food and air and rarely swimming around.

Does anyone know of anything that might make his fin grow back or generally improve his condition?  he seems like such a sad fish.

Incase it matters, I have a 2.5 gallon tank. I clean 50% of the rocks/clean the dirt from the bottom with a tube/change 25-50% of the water once every three days.


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## Banicks (Aug 20, 2011)

Hi Nicole,

I strongly recommend ceasing use of Bettafix medication, there are natural alternatives that we can use to ensure there will be no damage a Betta labyrinth organ.

First the clamping – does your tank have a heater? If it is too cold for him, he may be clamping and it would also explain the lethargic behaviour. If you do not have a heater I strongly recommend getting one, it is a basic necessity for Bettas. Ideally tank temperature for a Betta will fall between 76-86’F, and remain stable through the day.

It’s possible levels of ammonia are remaining within your tank preventing a clean heal on his fins as well. For a 2.5g tank I recommend a 50% water change mid-week, and a 100% water change end-week. Both of these changes should involve cleaning decorations/substrate. For a 100% wc, you can temporarily house him in a jug or mug.

If you do not already use a water conditioner I recommend either Seachem Prime or API Stress Coat+, I personally use Stress Coat+ and found its properties very useful when Slevin was recovering from Fin Rot. This should be added to new water being introduced to the tank. Stress Coat has aloe vera to assist in fin healing and slime coat for further protection.

With this schedule and procedure in place, it will just be a matter of patience and time before you see him back to his normal fishy personality and even more time for fin healing. The important thing is to keep the water clean and the environment as ideal as possible.

Finally, does he still have fin rot, or has it cleared up?


Hope this helps.


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## emeraldsky (Oct 4, 2011)

Is your tank heated?


Sounds like he is too cold, fins will grow back more quickly in warm water and with a high protein diet.


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## nicole213 (Jan 19, 2012)

Yes, my tank has a heater and no, my fish no longer has fin rot. I will certainly try the Stress Coat+. Thank you so much for your suggestion!

At the moment I am feeding my fish betta buffet pellets and bloodworms. I give him four pellets for most days and two pellets and a bloodworm for two days a week. Does this sound like adequate protein for fin regrowth or would anyone be able to suggest any changes?


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## Banicks (Aug 20, 2011)

Sounds good to me Nicole. Just keep up with the water changes to ensure clean water and it will just be a matter of time for his fins to heal.


Keep us posted.


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