# Is my betta sick? : ( Clamped fins? Please help!



## littlegreen (Mar 11, 2012)

Hello, everyone! As some of you may know, I have a lovely new (and young and small) little green betta named Caravaggio. Maybe day or so ago, he stopped spreading his fins out, and I'm wondering whether or not his fins are clamped. I've put in some pictures of him before, and now. The before pictures are much higher quality. I'm sorry I couldn't get nice pictures right now but I'm in a dorm room so good light is hard to find.

He's in a 1 gallon jar that's been about 75 degrees for the past day and that has 50-75% water changes every other day. On Monday he'll be moving to a 3 gallon filtered tank with a lovely new heater that will keep him comfortable. Last Sunday, he undertook a 5 hour car ride but he seemed to take it extremely well.

He still swims around actively, but perhaps not with quite so much energy as a few days ago. I've had him for about a week and a half. Last night I observed him simply floating up toward the top of the tank (horizontal, belly-down) before starting to swim again. I don't know if that's important or not.

Before pictures (taken last Saturday):

























Pictures I just took: His color is still dark green. He looks blue in some of the pictures because I wanted lots of light on him, and in some light he looks blue. I'm not sure whether or not he looks blue when stressed as well, but it's possible.

























Is he sick? What should I do? : (


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## MollyJean (Dec 29, 2009)

Could you please fill out this? I'll make it easier to figure what, if anything, is wrong. From what you said he could be cold or have his water PH could be off.

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)?


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## littlegreen (Mar 11, 2012)

Housing 
What size is your tank? 1 gallon
What temperature is your tank? 74
Does your tank have a filter? No
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? No
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Pellets/weekly bloodworms
How often do you feed your betta fish? Two pellets twice a day

Maintenance 
How often do you perform a water change? Every other day
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50-75%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Water conditioner/de-chlorinator

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

Ammonia: .5
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH: 7.8
Hardness:
Alkalinity: 

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? He no longer spreads his fins. His colors are possibly a bit duller.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? He's not quite as energetic, and he went through a phase where all he wanted to do was press his face to his thermometer and nothing else. He spends most of his time in his hiding spot. It's mostly just his fins that I'm worried about. : (
When did you start noticing the symptoms? A day or two ago.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how? No.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No
How old is your fish (approximately)? Probably not even a year. He's only 1.5 inches long.


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## MollyJean (Dec 29, 2009)

Alright, I see a few problems, and it could be any of them, or a combination of them. First off, he's cold. You want to be a few degrees higher, 78-80 is good. Which means you need a heater. But with a one gallon tank, but it's hard to find heaters designed for 1 gallon, and on top of that, he needs a larger tank. Even though he is small, it's better to stick to 2.5 gallons or more. With a 1 gallon tank, you need to do a full water change every day because ammonia will build up fast. I know the stores tell you betta can live in a tiny bowl, but it's not as true as you think. So your course of action would be bigger tank and heater right away.

But that's hard in the middle of the night, so you can just keep the water warm for him and he'll feel better. Some people recommend a heating pad, but you have to be careful with that, make sure there's a thermometer in the tank.


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## littlegreen (Mar 11, 2012)

I do have a thermometer in the tank. : )
A heater and a bigger home are in store for him on Monday. I've been trying to take really good care of him until then (I've been wrapping my insulated winter coat around the gallon jar he's in).

I really hope he's just cold! I had no idea that bettas needed so much until after I started researching them when I bought Caravaggio! I really should have done my research beforehand. : ( But I'm doing it now, so hopefully he'll be able to make it through until Monday.


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## littlegreen (Mar 11, 2012)

Thank you so much for your help! : )


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## MollyJean (Dec 29, 2009)

I'll cross my fingers for you.

When I got my first betta, I didn't have ANYTHING for him. I took a plastic baby bottle with a lid, filled it part way with warm/hot water and floated it in the little tank my betta was in. Just make sure the water isn't so hot he can hurt himself. If he's cold, staying close to that should keep him warm, but you have to keep the water warm, meaning frequent changes. Something tall and thin works best, but whatever you got. There are other ways to go about it, though. Just depends on the person.


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