# Cotton Mouth Disease?? Please help!



## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Hi everyone! I have a beta named Simon. I've had him since December 11th and I bought him in a Walmart. When I got him he was very nervous and he's still like that to this day. He's a very loving fish as that I have a toy octopus inside his bowl and he loves on it whenever he feels the need to or when I put him back in his newly changed water. Anyhow, Simon has developed this white rash looking stuff on his back. Also, I'm sorry for such a huge photo, but you can clearly see it when it's bigger. Does anyone know what this could be? He's in very poor mental health due to Walmart I believe. I bought two more Beta's around Christmas and they seem to be happy/fine. Simon rarely builds a bubble nest.

He has his water changed roughly from 1-2 times per week (depending on whether it's really nasty).
He is very picky and doesn't eat nearly as much as my other Betta fishes.
Also, I'd been adding QuICK Cure to his water every day but I had stopped and since about 2 days ago he formed this "fuzzy" looking stuff (shown in the photo below of course) on his back.

He's living in the best home I can afford for him right now. What do you think?


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## Adastra (Jun 18, 2010)

You already gave us some of the details we need, but filling out this sheet: http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=49233will help us find the root of the problem. 

This looks like a bacterial infection. Did the fish previously have ich or velvet? Quick Cure is malachite green based, and it is for external parasites. It will not help with this kind of problem, so do not use it. It is likely that use of this medication along with living in a tiny container is what weakened his immune system enough to make him sick.


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Housing 
What size is your tank? About 1/2 Gallon. 
What temperature is your tank? It's room temperature. Unheated. :\ 
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? He has a take all to his own but I have two other Betta's that he occasionally sees in the tanks beside him.

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Pellets, tried bloodworms but he actually will not eat them, and flakes. I usually mix it up day by day.
How often do you feed your betta fish? 1-2 a day in very small amounts.

Maintenance 
How often do you perform a water change? 1-2 per week.
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 100%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Start Right to take care of the Chlorine. 

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? He wasn't in very good shape when I got him, but his color has weekend, his fins aren't as up and spread as they should be. He has a notable spot on his back.

How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Not really. He has always acted this way. When I bought him from Walmart he was always very jumpy and seemed frightened all the time. I thought this would pass and let him have his time but it never did.

When did you start noticing the symptoms? His illness, about a week ago. The spot, recently (2 days ago).

Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?
I think he may have had fin rot so I was using the QuICK Cure which stated on the label that it helped cure fin rot.

Does your fish have any history of being ill? I'm not sure.

How old is your fish (approximately)? I've had him since December 11, 2010. He looked to be a young thing. Just a little bit older than a baby.


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Also, if it's his personality, he is very lethargic. I have heated his tank up to the proper degrees a few times (my room actually stays pretty warm anyway), and he never seems to change. He doesn't swim around or make bubble nests. But today, when I changed his water, he actually seemed pretty happy/excited. He was swimming around his tank like he was in NASCAR (xD) and he has a toy Octopus that he absolutely adores and he went through the little hole that is in between the Octopus and the sign that the octopus holds. He didn't seem frightened or scared.


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Update: the infected spot has spread.


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## MrVampire181 (May 12, 2009)

Poor fella....change 100% of his water ASAP and begin heating the room.


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Hi everyone. I just added some Aquarium salt to his little tank. I'm PRAYING this helps as it has gotten worse as the day has went on. He doesn't seem to be feeling very well at all. =[


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

Sorry you are having problems...at this stage....

I would start making 100% water changes with aquarium salt 1tsp/gal and increase the aquarium salt over the next 30 minutes to total 3tsp/gal...make 100% daily water changes with the 3tsp/gal aquarium salt for the next 10 days
If you have tannins you can add-all the better-you can use either-naturally dried and fallen from the tree Oak leaf or Indian almond leaf or blackwater extract and in a pinch decaf green tea bags

I like to use a clean 1gal jug and pre-mix my treatment water-makes water changes and correct salt dosage easier and it allows the tannins to steep longer so the water will get darker amber colored (add dechlorinator if you normally use it)

You need a thermometer and monitor the water temp-I would keep the water temp in the 76F range for treatment and to check the water temp for the water changes-it is important to try and keep the water temp within a couple of degrees between new and old water so not to cause stress from sudden temp changes.

Hold food for now and then offer half feeding twice a day on day 3 of treatment and then every other day during treatment.

Good luck and keep us posted


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Hi everyone. I did a full water change last night. I've been keeping his water at around 82F but I'm trying to stablize it to around 78. His water is about 76F at the moment. I've been adding Aquarium Salt to his little 1/2 gallon tank. I woke up and noticed that his patched fungus has now spread. He just floats lifeless around the little tank and last night he was breathing very heavily. I will post another photo in the next post.


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

As you can see, it has spread rapidly over the past 24-28 hours. :[ 

I really don't think Simon will make it.


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

Here is a better photo:


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## DeadMemories92 (Dec 13, 2010)

RIP Simon. :'(


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## ACHVOY (Dec 19, 2010)

*So sorry*

Sorry to hear about you losing your betta  In the past I've had good luck adding uniodized salt (1tsp per gallon even if only one) to the tank and getting rid of fungus. Filtered tanks really help too. And live plants. 

You seem to be concerned pet owner! Do all the research you can before getting another! Again, sorry for your loss. :-(


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