is something wrong with my betta?

[daintree]

Hi all,

My tank's fully cycled - ammonia and nitrite are 0.0, pH's between 7-8, and the temperature's stable at 26. I do a 20-25% water change every week, using Tetra AquaSafe and Tetra SafeStart.

The tank's pretty heavily planted with Anubias, Java Fern, and Java Moss, among others. I've also got some moss balls and Salvinia floating on top. I dose with Tropica Premium Nutrition once a week.

I had a bit of a disaster with my previous Betta - he was fine one day, then suddenly turned pale and got clamped fins overnight. I moved him to a hospital tank and tried Interpet aquarium salt, but he didn't make it. I've since deep cleaned the tank and replaced him with a new Betta.

This new guy's been in the tank for three weeks, but over the past couple of days, I've noticed his fins are clamped and he's hiding away a lot. He still seems interested in food, though. I've checked for signs of disease or fungus, but can't see anything obvious. I'm stumped.

Could I have too many plants in the tank? Maybe the plant fertiliser's affecting him? His tank mates - 3 Pygmy Corys and some Zorchno Shrimp - all seem happy and active.

I'll try to grab a photo of him next time he comes out.

I'm really sorry to hear about your loss, and I hope we can get to the bottom of this. It seems like there's some kind of pathogen in the water, and when fish are stressed, they can't fight off things that would normally be easy to deal with. I think @coltin might be able to help us out, they know a lot about diseases.

The clamped fins you mentioned, I think you mean his tail fins are stiff, right? That's a sign of fin rot, which is pretty common in long-finned fish. It's still likely caused by a pathogen in the water, and it could even be something from your water provider.

[wyrmhide]

SafeStart isn't the same as cycling the tank, btw - I'm curious, how did you cycle yours?

[barnicle]

I'm really puzzled by this whole situation. You're not using any chemicals or perfumes around the tank, are you? Like, on your hands or wrists? I'm trying to think of anything that could be causing this, but it's just not adding up. Is it just the Betta that's being affected, or are the Corys showing any signs of stress too?

[coltin]

I think we're looking at poor water quality or an irritant in the water as the likely cause of clamped fins in this case. Fungal, bacterial, or protozoan infections are possible but less common, and usually, you'd see a single fin affected with a cream or white discolouration.

Can you confirm the water temperature is actually 26C, as read on a thermometer submerged in the tank?

If your ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH levels are all good, then we need to explore other potential sources of contamination. You mentioned using plant fertiliser - what type is it, how much do you add, and how often do you dose?

I think barnicle is on the right track with their suggestions. Do you have dedicated buckets for the fish tank, and are they used for anything else? Do you or anyone else use disinfectant wipes or hand sanitiser that could be getting into the water?

Are there any aerosol products like paint, perfume, deodorant, or hair spray being used in the room? Do you or anyone handling the tank have moisturising cream, perfume, or other chemicals on their skin?

What kind of filter do you have, and how often and thoroughly do you clean it?

[darkness]

Hi everyone, I'm really sorry for my delayed response - I wasn't getting notifications, so I thought the conversation had died down. I'll do my best to respond to each comment individually, rather than writing a long essay.