Is My Betta Sick? Looks Like A Barnacle

Question
Hello> I have a  betta now almost a year old.
it is in a triangle betta plastic tank. I have always used tap water letting it sit out for a few hrs. to rid it of any chlorine. Im told by our town there is no chlorine in our water. Anyway one day I recognized "Angel" had what looked like a cut toward his tail(on his side).
It was white fleshy looking. When i went to change his water I noticed there were a couple of broken glass stones in the tank. So I presumed he had cut himself.Within a couple days it was almost completely gone. Now after about 2 weeks later that same area is getting bigger, bulging, and is totally blue in color. He is light pink with purple and blue streaks.His habits have not changed, but Im afraid he may have a disease! What do you think? Sincerely Cher(Upstate,NY)  

Answer
Hi Cher;

It is possible it is a tumor or something. Since he seems to act normally and eat fine I wouldn't worry about it being cancerous though. Many fish have benign tumors that they live long lives with. Watch it and if it becomes white or fuzzy or anything different you might need to use an antibiotic or fungal remedy for it.

To help keep infection away and hopefully keep it from growing any larger, make sure his water is very clean by changing his water at least once a week. This will keep his immune system strong. Also keep his water temperature as warm as possible to keep his metabolism going strong too. Hopefully you won't need to use medicine at all by keeping him healthy naturally.

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Chris Robbins

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