will my betta die?

Question
hi, my male betta fish has been losing his tail. I went to google and they said he has fin rot. Im so scared about what will happen to squirt(my fish.) will he die and will his fins grow back please help me. im counting on it.                                                                                                                      Thanks,Ashley Matteson

Answer
Well, Ashley, fin rot is very common and not necessarily fatal. But, it's easier to prevent than to cure.

The most common cause of bacterial infection in fish is poor water quality. When the water quality goes down so does the ability of the fish to ward off infection. They get "stressed".

Betta's are usually kept in really small tanks/bowls which don't have a lot of water. This makes it really easy for the water quality to deteriorate quickly.

I would suggest that you change 50 percent of the water every day for 2 weeks and feed a little less for that period of time.

Make sure the water you add has been dechlorinated and is the same temperature as the water in his tank. Try to change the water a couple of hours after feeding.

If you have a larger tank/container available, you might want to try to transfer him to larger quarters.

Good luck to you and Squirt!

Chris Bushman
North Hollywood, California