# help...weird bumps on tail!?



## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

Help pretty please! My combtail betta has like pimples on the end of his tail fins. His water is crystal clear water, ph ammonia etc are normal. He's eating ok and acting normal. Yes I have a filter and all that fancy stuff. They are like orange bumps. I noticed them after I added his new decorations.


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

Also I he is 4 months old living in a 2.5 gal and I do a 75% water change a week and I treat the water with a dechlorinator. His tank temp is 75 F. The blisters on his tail are the same color as his fins but look as if theres clear liquid in the inside, like they can pop. I think this might be some sort of bacterial infection... im very, very scared please reply :'( :'( :'(


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## SillyCone (May 7, 2011)

take a photo of him if you can, that would be a great help.


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## Neil D (Apr 10, 2011)

Pics please. Have u tried to take him OUT of the tank to look at them? C if they look different out of the water.


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

Sadly I have literally tried for hours to take a pic, he keeps moving too much and they are hard to see in even a clear picture. I am stopping into petco and petsmart today for meds in case this is fin rot. Last week there was a split in his caudal. His fins are slighlty shorter and some look like they are stubby and wrinkly. Should I do a full water change, sterilize tank and all decor with hot water, then add aquarium salt to the new water!? He's my baby... I dont wanna loose him :"(

I found this similar thing online if this helps. This person had the same thing my betta does:










Posted 07 October 2009 - 10:03 PM
Hi everyone - I'm going to fill out the recommended form for fish problems below and am attaching pictures below that. I hope you'll be able to help me with my little betta! In advance, thank you!









*Tank size:*
1.25 gallons, unfiltered, unheated. (I am in the middle of a fishless cycle on a new Marineland Eclipse 5 for him)

*pH:*
7.6, the last time I checked

*ammonia:*
Approx. 0.15PPM. We have been unable to get it below this level in the bowl, and thus we're preparing the Eclipse for him.

*nitrite:*
0 at last testing, though not done that recently

*nitrate:*
0 at last test, though not done recently

*kH:*
Not sure as I don't have this test kit at home. An aquarium shop tested my betta's water 1-2 months ago, and the KH was something like 3.5 at that time.

*gH:*
Unknown

*tank temp:*
70 degrees. It was 72 about 1.5 weeks ago, but things have begun to cool down a bit in the city now, so it's just recently gone down to 70.

*Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):*
Over the past approx. 2 months, my betta has had a small bubble/blister appearing on his tail. It looks to be the same color as the fin tissue around it, and it almost looks as though the fin tissue had been inflated like a balloon at that spot. It is almost totally transparent on the outer edges and seems to be relatively clear inside. This bubble/blister appeared once about 2 months ago, lasted for about a week, then suddenly seemed to deflate, like a popped balloon, and disappeared from his tail soon thereafter. It was gone for a few weeks and has since recurred in nearly the same spot, deflating once and returning within a few days, which brings us to the present. It's a little more reluctant to go away this time, it seems. I have never seen parts of this bubble/blister fall off of his fin.

The only other issue my betta has been dealing with is shredding on his tail. For the past 3-4 months, his fin has shredded at the ends to varying degrees (only the tips, or spreading up 1/4-1/3 of his tail rarely and at worst), only to heal. After the inital damage to the fin, it never seems to degrade further and shows clear regrowth very soon. It heals and then becomes shredded again. I've never seen black edges nor cottony growth on his fins, but sometimes where the rays have broken off in the damage, the ends have appeared bloody. Having removed all possibly sharp ornaments in the tank, we are now exploring the possibility that he is biting his tail (fairly common in bettas). If you have any other theories, please let me know!

Other than that, my betta seems very normal. He is eating very well (2 Hikari pellets in the AM, 1 in the PM, pre-soaked in water from his tank) and begging furiously for his food. He seems as energetic as normal, wiggling around whenever someone is in view and building bubble nests now and then. I haven't seen any changes in his behavior. His color is good and his body and other fins are clean and healthy looking, as far as I can tell.

*Volume and Frequency of water changes:*
30-40% daily changes with a full tank cleaning and 60% water change every 7-10 days.

*Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:*
only Seachem Prime

I tried treating him with a very light dose of Bettafix, but this did not appear to effect the bubble/blister which was present at the time. It did, however, seem to help his fins to heal a bit more rapidly than usual, as they were torn at the time.

*Tank inhabitants:*
Only my betta - he is alone in his vase.

*Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):*
The appearance of the blister/bumps

*Exposure to chemicals:*
None that I'm aware of. We're very cautious to wash our hands and rinse THOROUGHLY before water changes or feedings. We never use soap to clean his bowl. We're very careful not to spray any cleaner/perfume/etc. in the same room as the bowl.

NOTE: The photos below were taken in really low light, and the dark spots on his tail (the bubble is on one of them) are just natural patches of blue on his fins.

Resized to 98% (was 769 x 513) - Click image to enlarge








Resized to 98% (was 769 x 513) - Click image to enlarge
















I will try again later with a photo.


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## Neil D (Apr 10, 2011)

The last one is good. Beautiful fish! As a 1.5 gallon won't cycle, I wold go ahead and do a full water change and clean everything veery well. But as I've never dealt with something like this, I would wait for another persons opinion.


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

Lol its not a pic of mine but the photos show the blisters. I hope these go away... thank you for all the help so far. Im taking a water sample to petco and picking up several meds : )


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## youlovegnats (Feb 23, 2011)

I wouldn't get meds for this unless it's changing the fish's behavior. Just do a complete water change, and clean everything really well. If you want to use anything, use AQ salt and see if that doesn't help.


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

I know not to add meds! lol I just wanna pick up anything for fin rot or bacterial/fungal infections in case it leads to that. : ) I love my water baby and Im gonna be prepared  Luckily I have plenty of aqi salt


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## youlovegnats (Feb 23, 2011)

Use the salt instead. That usually clears it up. That plus clean water is your best bet.


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## SillyCone (May 7, 2011)

so the black end is it's normal colour, right?


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

So I journied to Petco today and found out the problem. I brought in a water sample of Ryu's tank. They did some tests and the ammonia is high which is causing the ph to be high and those blisters are likely to be ammonia burns, which can easily get infected and lead to fin rot. My other problem is since my tank hasnt cycled yet the helpfull bacteria cant settle with the filter. I picked up some Bettafix, Betta Revive, and Pimafix just in case. Forgot to get better testing strips...-_-

I isolated my betta in clean water with conditioner and a grain of aqua salt. I cleaned his tank with almost boiling hot water and all his decor. Cleaned his filter, added the water, water conditioner, and aqua salt. Im letting the filter clean any particles for an hour, adding my fish, then no filter for a few weeks. I will do a 20 % water change once a week. Does this sound ok!?


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## youlovegnats (Feb 23, 2011)

In a 2.5 gal you need to be doing more than that. I recommend 100% changes once a week and a few 20%-25% changes within that week as well.


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## Luimeril (Dec 29, 2010)

a single grain of aquarium salt isn't gonna do much. >3< in my tanks, i try to do 2 or more water changes a week. you need to use a teaspoon of salt, per gallon. i sure hope the bumps go away. :d i've never had actual bumps on my bettas. o.0


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

Im keeping him in a temporary container and its like a fourth of a gallon. so i think one grain is ok for that. I put 4 grains in my 2.5 gal.


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## Neil D (Apr 10, 2011)

In a 4th of a gallon, you should put a 4th of a Tspoon. A 4th of a gallon tank needs 100% change DAILY. Good luck


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## Larsa (May 6, 2011)

Thank you everyone for the help! I hope Ryu is ok. His tank is about 82 F but will cool to 78 F tonite. I hope that the warmer water with aqua salt will keep him cozy and heal him : ) I got NLS betta formula for my water babies. It taste better than the hikari stuff ( yeah I DID try a pellet of each XD ) so maybe his new yummies will help him feel better : P Thanks for the support!


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## Neil D (Apr 10, 2011)

Haha great! Keep us posted;-)


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