Hehecherie Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 (edited) I bought this veiltail Betta 3 weeks ago; the 1st week I had him I noticed he had a 'hole' in his fin. Talking with other Betta enthusiasts I determined it to be Pinhole Fin Rot. I was advised to put him in quarantine in a solo tank for between 7-10 days. Within 4 days, it was healed, but decided to continue the full course of Quarrantine just to be sure.. On the 10th day, I noticed his tail fin looked ripped.. Could this be the fin rot? Could he have done this to himself?? Please help Edited January 27, 2013 by Hehecherie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNgo2006 Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 If it looks like tears (sharp cuts) than he is a tail biter, if it looks like it's kind of melting (dark edges or red streaks) than it is fin rot, unfortunately this is one of the cons of keeping betta especially longfin. Plenty of water changes, salt and IAL. Goodluck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wild Nut Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 That to me looks like he may be tail biting. The jagged/frayed ends looks a lot like the caudals of my biters. Pinholes can be caused by a male excessively flaring. Unless there is signs of infection I wouldn't be too concerned. Fin rot is usually caused by bad water quality or in already compromised fish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hehecherie Posted January 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 (edited) I thought I did see him chasing his tail when I was trying to get some pics of him.. BUT I didnt want to mention it until I knew :/ So thats definitely something I need to look out for.. Is there anything I can do for him if he IS a tail biter? Ive got a new tank ready to put him into- Just wanted peoples opinions.. Hes been in a tank with aquarium salts for 10 days and I read somewhere you should only expose them to the salts 10 days at a time.. So should I put salts in there?? Uploaded some more pics to show different angles.. I hope these help.. Thanks everyone Edited January 27, 2013 by Hehecherie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wild Nut Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 The way it is torn up between the rays makes me think it is tail biting. This male was a tail biter. He would sometimes make his tail bleed if he bit it badly enough. It's not really known why exactly some males decide to tail bite, but the most common explanations are stress (particularly if he is in full view of another male/female all day every day), misdirected aggression, 'boredom' and overly heavy finnage. If the reason is that he lacks stimulation or is being stressed by the constant visual presence of other fish, changing his environment around may be enough to stop it. However, some males are chronic tail biters. I had a couple and it put me right off ever owning HMs again. No matter what I did those males would bite their fins as soon as they reached a certain point in growth. They looked terrible and it must have hurt. In those cases, there isn't really much you can do but keep their water as clean as possible and feed them lots of high protein foods to encourage re-growth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hehecherie Posted January 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 Okay, Ill put him in his other tank that has fresh water and a filter, and see what happens.. He is currently is housed next to a tank with tetras, he seems to flare up alot when he notices them. Hopefully with this new tank where hes away from other tanks hell me good Thank you for the feedback Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hehecherie Posted January 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 Upon lifting the lid to feed the little guy Ive come across his first bubble nest hes made since being here Cant be a bad thing :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hehecherie Posted February 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2013 And again, approaching the tank, and his tail is now HALF GONE! DANG IT!!!!!!!!! Seeing as all the petshops in my area are flooded in, Ive bought some stress coat online.. He currently has an almond leaf in his tank, with a filter.. Ive been arranging his tank every couple of days, and Ive got him an exercise ball he 'plays' with twice a day for 5 mins each time.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wild Nut Posted February 1, 2013 Report Share Posted February 1, 2013 :censor: Tail biting will drive you insanity. Just when you think you have it nipped in the bud they go and rip off all their fins while you aren't looking. I never actually caught any of my tail biters in the act, it was like they knew they couldn't do it while I was around! As long as it is not looking infected, the best you can do is to continue what you are doing and hope that one day he stops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenton Posted September 15, 2013 Report Share Posted September 15, 2013 (edited) Hi all - I've got a tail biter HM and after having read all the suggestions online and here, I moved him to his own tank with pristine, AQ Salt and IAL-added water and no other fish of any species in sight. I keep him in low light, and well fed on frozen blood worm and shrimp, but he seems to enjoy a late night snack of fin :(/> His caudal is a mess. Seems my part-dragon CT got the same idea and has also been having a munch and now he also seems to have a mild case of fin rot. He has also been moved to an isolated tank free of stress with salt and IAL but being treated with Kanamycin as well. Edit: both guys have stimulus in their tanks. I've also stopped exercising them as both seem to run and hide from their own reflections. The CT still flares for all he's worth when shown a female. The HM has never been the same since he got tore up by a female in the spawn tank. I'm with Wild Nut - I'm over almost over the long fins males (except when I see my next must have CT ;)/>). Am I right in understanding that Plakats don't suffer from tail biting or fin rot? The thought of miniature CT's and HM's with the same colours and genetic possibilities sounds like a much better way to go... Edited September 15, 2013 by Brenton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bettarazzi Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 Try a 24-48 hour total darkness treatment. Completely cover the tank so absolutely no light. No need to feed during this time. Use much stronger IAL solution and add a tiny bit of salt. This treatment is meant calm to them down. They normally sleep when it's dark. He probably biting as he wakes up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenton Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 They are both still biting so I'll give it a go - cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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