# Sick Fish, Unhappy Mom



## Mom2Fish (Nov 5, 2005)

Hello everyone! I have a pink and lavendar betta named "Fish" who I purchased back in August. These past three days, he's spent ALL of his time hiding in the lower corner of his tank, inside a artificial rock formation and not eating. Today, after a full tank cleaning (I always do partial but it needed to get it cliean) I noticed that his two small fins next to his gills are almost transparent and he has a "hole" through the fin underneath his belly. He also has a small area on his side that appears to be raw. He appears to be somewhat grey from underneath his mouth and chin. He is very listless, struggles to make it to the surface for air and isn't interested in his food. He never comes to the surface much anymore and if he does, it's only in the corner he's staying in so I rarely see him for a second or two before he goes back into his area. He used to enjoy his reflection in a small mirror but even that hasn't piqued his interest. Any advice would be really appreciated as I really love this little guy and want him to be well!


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

is he by himself or are there tankmates? He could be the subject of bullying


----------



## Georgia Peach (Sep 23, 2005)

does the raw spot look like an ulcer?? I just had a lab die from what sounds like the same thing. He was acting the same way your betta is accept he would come out to eat from time to time. From what I could gather researching online, its a bacterial infection.


----------



## Mom2Fish (Nov 5, 2005)

It does kinda look like an ulcer, yes! He is the only fish in the tank and today, since the full tank change yesterday, he seemed a little more active although not by much. Any ideas of what kind of treatment I should be adding to his tank?


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

i used to be on a mostly betta forum and they all used Melafix as treatment for most injuries


----------



## Mom2Fish (Nov 5, 2005)

Thanks fishboy I'll give it a shot! Appreciate it!


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

go to www.fishjunkies.com it's a slow forum but has alot of focus on bettas and alot of betta breeders as members


----------



## Mom2Fish (Nov 5, 2005)

Thanks again! I just bought the Melafix. How much do I use for a 5 gallon tank? (I [email protected]%# at converting ML!!)


----------



## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

I hope that get's better soon.

My cousin paradise fish had that, it grew really big and it looked like someone took a knife to it.

It got about 2inches long and turned bright red, a couple days later it died.

Might not be what your betta has but I thought i'd share.


----------

