betta fish infected

Question
QUESTION: Hi there, I have a betta fish for a year. He got infected with fungus and bacteria (pea size/rear). I keep him in a small bowl. I tried many things, none of them worked. finally somebody adviced me to use pimafix and melafix combined. He got better but is not completely healed. He still has a small wound with fungus at the very end. Problem is now that he lost his rear fins, his color is dull and he is bloating eating bubbles. I am concerned thinking that probably he is too long on medication. What can I do? Any suggestions are very welcome. (I am changing the water /drinking water- every 3 days -water condition with AQUA PLUS)(I feed him pellets BETTA BIO GOLD. Help! Grace

ANSWER: Hi Grace,
I'm sorry your Betta is sick, and I will give you some good advice on how a betta should be kept.  Bettas get sick when kept in small bowls, and containers.  They are difficult to cure in such little water.
If you follow this advice, your betta will live a long, and happy life....

Bettas need 5 gallons of water to be healthy, and happy.
In their habitat the betta may live in shallow waters, but they have lots of room to swim.  
Keeping Bettas in small bowls, containers, vases etc, is cruel.  The Betta is one of the most mistreated fish on the market.
They need a heated tank.  Temperature should be 78-80 degrees.  They are tropical fish, and are cold under this temperature.  Cold bettas get sick, are miserable, and live unhappy lives. ( Always remember  when heating a tank, do this very very slowly..1 (one) degree every two days, as bringing up the temperature too fast would kill your Betta.)  The temperature should always be stable.  Fluctuating temperature is very bad for bettas, and any other fish.  
They should have a silk plant in their tanks, so that they can rest on the leaves  They also need a little tunnel or some knick knack that they can go through.   One teaspoon to five gallons of diluted aquarium salt may be added to his water, when a Betta is well.  
Aquarium salt helps them with stress, and helps with parasites.  However if a Betta is showing signs of a swollen tummy, salt should not be used.
They need a varied diet. This is very important.  Betta pellets one day, Betta Flakes the next, Daphnia the next, and bloodworms should be given once a week as a treat.
He should be given one well cooked frozen cooked pea a week, and on the day you give him the pea, he should fast.    
A betta is prone to constipation, and constipation leads to Swim Bladder Disease.  A frozen cooked pea a week keeps them from getting constipated.  Always remove the outer layer of the pea, and cut it into small pieces feeding it to your betta one piece at a time.
They should have 2-3 small meals a day, and not one big meal.  We must remember that their tummy is the size of their eye.
Example:  2 pellets for one meal.
Water changes are very important.  Water changes must be made every week without fail with a good water conditioner such as Aqua Safe or Stress Coat.  There is also a conditioner made especially for bettas.  If you do not have a filter, change all the water in his tank weekly.
Never put two bettas in the same tank, they will kill each other...male or female.  The Betta male is a loner.  Females can be kept together in a big enough tank, but they are also aggressive towards each other, and the tank should be at least 30 gallons with many hiding places.
When treated well, a betta can live up to 8 years, if you buy him when he is very young.  (Unfortunately we do not know their age when we buy them at the Pet Store which is why some bettas die two or three years after we have bought them.)
He's an intelligent little fish, and should be treated with kindness.
Too many vendors know nothing about the betta, and don't care...so don't give good information on how to keep them.
They are there to sell, and will say anything just to make a buck.  They send you home with your bought betta, telling you a small bowl is perfect, and bloodworms!  The poor customer thinks he has everything he/she needs, and then the fish gets sick, money is spent to cure him, and eventually the fish dies.   
This turns my stomach over.  Unfortunately there are no laws to protect fish.  
Bettas kept in small bowls, one gallon tanks, and vases, will get sick, and are very hard to cure in such little water.  They end up dieing, and
that hurts the person who has grown so attached to them.  They don't deserve to be treated this way.
This is how a Betta should be treated.  If treated this way, you will have your friend for a long long time.  I have bred them, love them, and know what is good for them.
If you have anymore questions, do not hesitate to write me.
Lynda


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hello again, thank you so much for all the information! I didn't know any of this except about the water conditioner. I have gone to Petco and Petsmart several times to ask about my betta fish and no one really helped. They told me to feed my betta fish once every 2-3 days and another told me to feed it twice a day and said worms are just a choice of another food. The really surprising part is that they told me that betta fish's love small bowls so I got the smallest of them all! I now feel cruel. My betta fish is getting better and seems to have no fungus left but the wound is still bleeding a bit, is this normal? How long will it take to heal? Also, should I keep him under the window so he will have a little sun or is this a bad idea? He has such a will to live I refuse to give up on him!
Thank you so much for all the help!
Grace


Answer
Hello Grace,
Bettas are miserable in small bowls, and starving them is not helping them.  They need good quality food to survive.  Feeding them bloodworms all the time is very bad for them.  Sometimes I wonder how some people can work in Pet Stores, and don't know what they are talking about.  Like I mentioned above, Bettas live in shallow waters but they have lots of room to swim.  His wound should heal, I would change his water again, and treat him with a good antibiotic.  "Tetracycline" or Furan 2"  Be careful not to overdose.  An antibiotic should help him.  Feed him every day two or three times a day.  Betta Pellets made by Hikari are very good for him, as they have the vitamins that the Betta needs.  2 pellets is one meal.
Don't put him in the sunlight, as the water temperature will rise, and drop.  Fluctuating heat is very bad for Bettas.  They should always be in water that has the same temperature, and the best temperature is 78-80 degrees.  We must be very careful when bringing temperature up.  This should be done one degree every 2 days, as bringing temperature up to fast will cause death.
Bettas do not like sunlight, they prefer the light of day.
I hope the little fellow pulls through, and that his wound will heal.
Lynda