Diseases of betta fish: description, symptoms and treatment

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Cockerel fish (Betta splendens) will be a bright decoration for your home aquarium. It is not difficult to keep bettas, even a novice aquarist will cope with the care of a betta under minor conditions.

In order for the fish to please with beauty and he alth for a long time, you need not only proper care, but also the ability to distinguish signs of disease in betta fish and start treatment on time. Diseases in fish proceed quickly, often the clock goes by. Therefore, the sooner the treatment of the fish is started, the more chances there will be for recovery.

Types of aquarium fish diseases

If it seemed that something was wrong with the fish, you need to pay attention to the symptoms, this will help to cope with the disease. There are three types of problems that fish can get sick from, and treatment will depend on this.

• Water quality. Fish stay at the surface of the water, often breathe or even suffocate. They lose coordination and controlmovements, in severe cases, the fish fall to the ground and die. Symptoms come on suddenly and can spread quickly, affecting the entire aquarium population. It is necessary to test the water for ammonia and nitrates and change at least a third of the volume of the aquarium.
• Infectious diseases. They are provoked by pathogens (bacteria, fungi), cause damage to the fins, coordination of movements is disturbed, the fish are inactive and refuse to feed. Depending on the infection, skin symptoms appear: white spots, redness, flaking. Symptoms begin in one fish and gradually spread to the entire population. Affected individuals should be transferred to a separate quarantine tank and monitored for symptoms in an attempt to identify the disease.
• Invasive diseases. They are caused by parasites of animal origin. They can affect the skin of the fish, causing it to itch, the gills are also affected and breathing is disturbed. Or parasites settle in the internal organs of the fish, causing the gradual depletion and death of the fish.

Symptoms of fin erosion

One of the common diseases of betta aquarium fish is fin rot, due to which the fins of the fish are gradually destroyed, and it dies. Symptoms are not noticeable at first: a slight whitish clouding of the tips of the fins. Then the ends of the rays of the fins begin to fall off, the edges fall apart. In a severe form of the disease, ulcers appear, first the tail fin disappears, then the rest and the affected fish are destroyed.dies.

The cause of this disease of betta fish (and not only them) is a bacterium from the Pseudomonas group. It affects weakened, injured individuals or young fish.

The course of diseases of betta fish and their treatment directly depends on the conditions in which the diseased individual was kept. Often, fin rot occurs in overcrowded tanks where owners forget to change the water and monitor ammonia levels.

How to help the fish

As long as the bases of the fins are not affected, treatment is possible. It is necessary to transfer the affected fish to a separate aquarium and treat with medicines (use only one method):

• "Levomycetin". The tablet is designed for 20 liters of water. This solution should be used to replace 30% of the water in the aquarium every three days until the symptoms disappear.
• "Bicillin-5". The bottle holds 60 liters of water. From this calculation, a solution is made in which the diseased fish is placed for half an hour. The maximum course of treatment is 6 days.
• Potassium permanganate. The solution is made at the rate of 1 gram per 20 liters of water. Pour half of the solution into the quarantine aquarium, start the fish, after a few minutes add the remaining solution. So bathe the fish twice a day for a maximum of 10 minutes. Continue until full recovery.

If after a few days the fins begin to recover in the fish, the treatment is successful.

Ichthyophthyroidism

On the occurrence of disease and treatment of cockerel fishThe parameters of the water in the aquarium are strongly influenced. In bad water, fish have reduced immunity, they are more susceptible to diseases and die more often.

One of the serious diseases is ichthyophthyroidism or "semolina", caused by the parasite "ciliary infusoria". The main symptom is the appearance of whitish nodules on the body of the fish, similar to grains of semolina. The parasite is introduced into the aquarium with new inhabitants or plants that have not been quarantined. Sometimes a fish carrying a disease looks and behaves like a completely he althy individual, so quarantine for new residents is mandatory.

In this betta fish disease, the symptoms appear gradually. The fish begin to itch strongly on various objects and plants, then their appetite disappears. Unfortunately, white dots that help identify the disease do not appear immediately.

In its advanced form, this betta fish disease is very dangerous, the sooner treatment is started, the more likely it is to save the aquarium population. Unfortunately, some types of parasites are not treated.

Treatment

The development of the disease depends on the rate of transmission of parasites from sick fish to he althy individuals. Each ciliate produces about 2000 daughter cells, which then look for the next carrier. The infection cycle takes only 3-4 days.

It is better not to remove the affected fish, but to treat the entire aquarium at once. Before applying the drug, you need to replace part of the water, clean the soil and rinse the decorations and plants. This will reduce the level of ammonia in the water and help the fish move more easily.procedures.

For the treatment of ichthyophthyroidism, preparations based on malachite green with formalin and furatsilin (Antipar, Sera Omnisan + Mikopur, Tetra Contralck) are used.

It is necessary to accurately calculate the dosage of the agent used and in no case mix different drugs. They are quite toxic and strongly affect water parameters. Therefore, before each application of the drug, 1/3 of the water must be replaced.

It is necessary to provide additional oxygen and limit the feeding of fish. After all the white dots on the pets disappear, you need to remove the remnants of the drug. A massive water change will help with this: twice a day, 1/3 of the volume.

Exophthalmia in fish

With poor care, fish can develop a disease such as exophthalmia, or bulging eyes. First, the surface of the eye becomes cloudy or covered with a white film. One or even both eyes swell and pop out of their sockets. In severe cases, the fish may lose the organ of vision, which simply falls out of the eye socket.

When the eye of the betta fish is swollen, treatment of the disease should begin with improving water parameters. Change several times, use the "Ammonia-minus" preparation and reduce the feeding of the fish.

If the disease of the fish was caused by improper conditions of detention, clouding and swelling of the eye will soon pass. However, these symptoms of betta fish disease may be a sign of a serious bacterial infection and treatment will be different.

Systemic infections

If water changes do not help and other infected individuals begin to appear, the cause of the bulging eyes will lie in systemic bacterial infections, such as columnaria or vibriosis. In addition to bulging eyes, fish can become covered with a grayish coating that even affects the oral cavity. It is hard for the fish to breathe, it sways at the surface, the fins begin to disintegrate. These symptoms are visible in the photo of a cockerel fish, the disease of which has taken a severe form. If such diseases are suspected, treatment should be started as early as possible, they are quickly transmitted and can cause mass death of fish.

Bacterial infections are treated with antibiotics added to the water or applied directly to the affected parts of the fish. Treatment should be carried out in a common aquarium, it is useless to plant affected fish, the disease spreads too quickly.

To prevent bacterial infections, you can use an aquarium UV sterilizer, whose radiation kills most harmful bacteria, as well as parasites and unicellular algae. Of course, this does not negate regular water changes and soil maintenance in the aquarium.

Bone in males

One disease commonly affecting betta fish is bone disease caused by the parasite Ichthyobodo necatrix. The disease develops in stages, so only an experienced aquarist can notice the first manifestations.

At first, attached parasites affect the skin, the fish begins to actively itch. A gray coating appears, consisting of frozenfish cells and numerous parasites. They like to settle in the gills, gradually destroying their structure. Due to the increased separation of mucus, dense lumps are formed that protrude the gill covers and cause the fish to suffocate. When a fish has a betta swollen near the gills, the treatment of the disease becomes very difficult.

The affected individual should be transplanted as soon as possible. Treatment with a combination of drugs "Furazalidone" and malachite green is considered effective. The dosage recommended in the instructions must be observed, for greater effect, iodine can be added to the water in the proportion of 2 drops per 10 liters of water.

In severe cases, you will need antibiotic treatment, such as Bicelin-5 or Rivanol. Overdose of drugs is unacceptable, all the time of treatment you need to carefully monitor the level of ammonia and nitrates in the aquarium.

Dropsy

One of the complex diseases in aquarium fish is dropsy, caused by a viral or bacterial infection. It usually affects immunocompromised fish and can occur even in a he althy aquarium.

In this disease, the fish's stomach swells evenly, the skin on the enlarged abdominal cavity is strongly stretched, which causes the scales to rise. The fish completely loses its appetite, reddish ulcers appear on the body.

The disease occurs due to bacteria of the genus Nocardia, Mycobacterium and Aeromonas and very quickly affects other inhabitants of the aquarium. Treatment will be effective only at the initial stagediseases, seriously ill fish die.

Treatment is carried out with drugs containing antibiotics, nitrofurans and sulfonamides, which can be purchased at a pet store.

If a cockerel fish has a swollen tummy, it is not necessary to start treating the disease with antibiotics. If only one fish is affected, it may be a tumor that can occur in older fish. And in young animals, this can be a symptom of overeating, because their digestive system cannot yet digest large amounts of food.

Tuberculosis in fish

One of the fastest diseases of betta fish is mycobacteriosis (tuberculosis). The cause of this terrible disease is a tiny rod-shaped bacterium. Until now, aquarists have not been able to find a remedy to help cure fish from this disease.

The symptoms of the disease intersect with the manifestations of many other diseases, so it is difficult to detect in the initial period. There can be many symptoms:

• refusing food;
• changing the color of the coloring;
• exhaustion and lethargy;
• eyes darken and become bulging;
• scales peel off from certain parts of the body.

At the initial stage of fish disease, you can try to treat the antibiotic "Isoniazid" in a proportion of 300 mg per 60 liters of water. The treatment of the cockerel fish disease is carried out every day after a partial water change.

Unfortunately, often the treatment does not work and the fish die. It must be remembered that this disease is dangerous not only forfish, but also for humans. All manipulations with the aquarium should be carried out with gloves, protecting the skin from contact with contaminated water and fish.

What to do so that the fish do not get sick

Diseases of betta fish are much easier to prevent than to treat. Immunocompromised individuals living in an aquarium with unsuitable conditions are more likely to suffer. By following a minimum of rules, you can protect pets from infection and death:

• Regular water changes, remove food debris from the ground and monitor the condition of the filter.
• Feed your fish only quality food and avoid overeating.
• Recently acquired fish and plants must be quarantined for several weeks. For prevention, you can add a little table s alt to their water.
• Diseases such as tuberculosis can be transmitted through live food. Therefore, all live food must be disinfected beforehand.