Treating my betta's fin rot

carlrs wrote:
Mac Cool wrote:
Tynk:
Keep a close eye on the other fish it was housed with. He got that
bacterial infection for a reason and until you figure out the *why*,
you may not be done with it.
Are you keeping up on regular water changes?
Were there any new fish added without quarantining them?

Good info. Yes I had added fish to the tank. Here was the sequence of
events...
1. Bought a 4G Biorb for my betta who was in a .5G tank my wife had
bought for him.
(I found out after the fact that people seem to hate these tanks but it
seemed perfect for the betta and probably would have been if I had left
him alone)
2. After a couple of weeks I decided to add some fish, so I added two
rasboras and a panda cory, didn't know about quaranting yet.
3. Cory died within hours and I thought maybe it was a fluke. Changed
the water, washed the bowl & contents with hot water and replaced fish.
4. betta got sick the next day, I separated him and treated both tanks
with Jungle Clear (which in my defense does say for fungus and bacteria
on the label) and he died late that night.
5. Two rasboras died two days after with no signs of infection or rot.
Another rasbora was swimming in a spiral motion so I took him back to
the pet store and they said they would try to save him. I changed half
the water but did not retreat with Jungle Clear.

I figured the other rasboras would die but they didn't. So far they
appear healthy and strong but so did the others right up until they
died. The rasboras that are alive don't seem to have much of an
appetite. They nibble a bit but not much. I've been feeding them once
per day. I plan to change 20% of the water in a few days.

I just checked the water quality and everything was fine except Nitrites
which are starting to rise again so I added a conditioner made by Prime
to remove ammonia and detoxify nitrites and nitrates until I can do
another partial water change.

--
Mac Cool

Prime is an excellent choice for nitrite de-toxifying, but you need to
make sure your tank is cycled properly. I would consider adding filter
media from an established aquarium.
I also would consider a Spirulina Flake that has Spirulina as the #1
ingredient such as Spirulina 20.
http://www.americanaquariumproducts....ina20Food.html
This is easier to digest and more importantly helps the immune system.
Make sure you also have a kH of at least 80 ppm, even for rasboras as
research has shown that calcium is important for proper osmotic
function and disease resistance.

As for treatment I have differ with this statement
" Most seasoned hobbyists will say the same. Never treat with medications that you don't know about; don't know what you are treating for, and for no reason. That's wise advice."
I have been professionally involved in this business for 27 years (hard
to convince some at groups like Freshwater Aquarium), and if you fish
have been dying and your water parameters are generally good, something
is wrong. How do learn about anything but by trying it out,
researching, and following others advice? That is why no one learns or
will label some products as trash without even trying them. I have
tried and researched and followed others links out of respect to see
what I can learn.
I often have seen similar problems with rasboras and tetras and
achieved results with Kanacyn (more gram negative) or erythromyacin
(more gram positive) and I have combined both in severe cases.
As I posted earlier Pimafix can be useful and so can the very new
treatment of usnic acid (found in Usnea Lichen) that many arrogant
aquarists still are not familiar with.
Also as I stated earlier, calcium and electrolytes are important for
your fish' recovery which is where regular wonder shells of the
medicated wonder shells shine (the medicated can be used as a
preventative which is where I use them a lot in my business, but not
constantly as no med should be).
Prophylactic treatment is also wise when new fish are introduced with
safe meds (best in a hospital tank when possible). I would also note
that I have observed Aquarisol work for treatment of Neon Tetra
disease (as well as Naladixic acid).

The bottum line is to make sure ALL your water parameters are correct
from ammonia to kH to even Redox, with the parameters are reasonably
good yet your fish are dying, you need to treat with the proper meds
and perform regular small water changes.

For more Medication info (including Usnea):
http://www.americanaquariumproducts....edication.html

Carl
http://www.americanaquariumproducts....formation.html
http://aquarium-info.blogspot.com/

Another note is to consider the methylene blue (mebromine works too)
baths, they are effective intitial treatments and have the advantage of
not being in your display tank. Methylene blue will also help with some
internal infections, especially infections of the blood.

Carl