Pretty New to Fish - Fin Rot?

[RedBunny]

Back story - My bf and I got our first Betta (Jim, named after The Office!) about 6 months ago. He's been happy in the 3 gallon aquarium we have for him, even making bubble nests.

Cut to a month ago, when I went out of town. My bf promised he would take proper care of Jim and keep his water changed. He really didnt. When I came home the water was really gross, almost smelly. I did a 100% scrub and change right away, two days ago. I'm certain Jim has fin rot but I'm not sure if its moderate or severe. I'm concerned it's severe. Here is a photo from an hour ago:

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk57/MagnesiumSulfate/image.jpg

Can anyone tell me how bad it is? Will the 100% water change help? I read about some medicine I can get him too. My poor Jim. Are there any other sicknesses he could have gotten from dirty water?

Also, since I'm new, did my 100% water change mean my tank isn't cycled anymore? Sorry for the newb question. :(

On a completely separate note, I wanted to get tank mates for Jim (after he heals of course) and had been planning on a few ghost shrimp. The fish store recommended African dwarf frogs though? They are cute but wouldn't two be too overloaded for my 3 gallon tank? I don't really trust fish stores, the first one told me bettas are fine in a 1/2 gallon, which I read is WAY too small. :/

Are there any other ways aside from shrimp that will make Jim's life more enriching for him?

Thanks and hopefully my questions aren't too silly.

[Zander]

You asked a lot of questions and I will try to respond to them.



Can anyone tell me how bad it is?

If you mean the fins, it doesn't look too bad at all. I've seen bettas 100% recover from far worse.




Can anyone tell me how bad it is? Will the 100% water change help?

Definitely helped. I'm not a fan of 100% water changes except in emergencies, but the water was cloudy and smelled bad so it definitely was one. I would have done it slightly differently (like a 50% change, wait an hour or two and then another 50% change, just to stagger it a little more). That being said, I'm sure your fish is much happier in the clean water.



Are there any other sicknesses he could have gotten from dirty water?


Could have gotten basically any disease you've ever heard of, but unless you see evidence of them then you shouldn't worry about them.



Also, since I'm new, did my 100% water change mean my tank isn't cycled anymore? Sorry for the newb question. :(


Do you have a filter? When you cleaned the tank did you change the filter/clean the gravel? If you didn't change the filter then you should be fine. If you don't have a filter or if you changed it and you cleaned the gravel at the same time then you may go through a mini-cycle. That would be just like a normal cycle but quicker and with less significant spikes. If you worried about a potential mini-cycle, about 4 days from now, bring a sample of your water into Petco or Petsmart and they will test it for free. Assuming you don't have a test kit of your own that is. Even if you don't have a test kit, are incapable of going to one of those places, and you're worried about it, then just change the water more often for the next couple weeks. Even if it was testing poorly that would be the correct course of action.

And don't feel dumb about the question. Much better to ask than to do the wrong thing.



On a completely separate note, I wanted to get tank mates for Jim (after he heals of course) and had been planning on a few ghost shrimp. The fish store recommended African dwarf frogs though? They are cute but wouldn't two be too overloaded for my 3 gallon tank? I don't really trust fish stores, the first one told me bettas are fine in a 1/2 gallon, which I read is WAY too small. :/


Dwarf frogs would be fine. A lot of people keep Bettas and African Dwarf Frogs together.

As much as I hate to see Bettas kept in such small containers, if you are good about changing the water I've seen them live a very long time in very small places. I would never recommend under 1 gallon though, and that's the low end. Ideally I would always say more.



As for your fish the best thing you can do is keep the water changed frequently. Keeping it as clean as possible is by far the best thing you can do. If you are determined to add some type of medication I would go with aquarium salt. But that is not necessary.

[RedBunny]

Yes, sorry for so many questions. :( I'm still fairly new and when this problem popped up it brought alot to my mind!

I did change the filter, I was worried it could have something nasty after such gross water, so I guess I can expect a mini cycle. Probably go to the store and get test strips and that cycling live bacteria stuff to help.

I'm relieved it doesn't look bad. I assumed the worst I suppose when I saw a chunk of his tail missing and that black stuff on the end.

Is 3 gallons really considered "very small"? I wasnt sure if you were referring to my tank size in that sentence. I read it was decent for a betta with no other fish in the tank. :( Jim seems pretty happy too. I heard that anything below 1 gallon is not acceptable, but upwards between 2-10 is good? So for our room size we thought 3 was good.

[Zander]

When I said "very small" I was referring to the half gallon you mentioned in the post I quoted. I've even seen people keep them in less than that successfully, though I wouldn't recommend it.

And yes since you changed the filter make sure to change the water extra frequently. Most of the beneficial bacteria that makes your tank cycled is in that filter, though some is in the gravel too so you haven't lost it all. When you took it out and replaced it with a new one you lost a lot of that bacteria. When you change the filter in the future I would recommend jamming the new filter cartridge next to the old filter cartridge (both in the filter at once) and waiting at least a week before you take out the old one (or until the new one turns brown). This will give the bacteria a chance to transfer over to the new filter before you take the old one out. The new filter turning brown is evidence that this has happened.

I will say I have mentioned this method on this website before and someone said that a week wasn't long enough. Though in my personal experience it is. It's the method I used to use when I only had a 10 gallon tank and nothing else and I measured frequently for ammonia spikes and never had one. Just telling you that so if you want to play it extra cautious you could wait longer.

[Indian Woods Angels]

I have found that a degradation of fins like this is due to all of the above content regarding filtration space water quality as well as improper diet. If you feed them only one thing for too long they seem to break down. Old age does this to them as well. But usually it's feed quality and lack of proper nutrition if you are doing all of the other stuff right. Betta pellets, shrimp pellets a touch of a frozen food, a bit of flake, a little freeze dried tubifex, these things will help with nice fins.