KatFish

Thank you so much for the reply! I just ordered some off of Amazon and the expected arrival date is the 16th. I'm crossing my fingers that the UPS gods will let it arrive faster, as we have good weather at the moment! (and of course, I'm really wishing there wasn't a LFS that wasn't over 2 hours away by car..)

welcome to the group! as a (self)certified forever newbie myself, I can say that research and patience is super important- especially when you want to dive right in (no pun intended) into everything. And remember the great words of Cory: "Sometimes fish die, and there's nothing we can do about it." That was the hardest advice for me to take in this hobby because I get super attached- I think we all do, honestly- but you just have to remember! Do the research, try your best, and if it messes up? Try again! And always feel free to ask questions! This community is super nice!

So, as the title says, I'm thinking it's fin rot- due to my pictures as evidence (and watching a few videos to help give me some ideas on what to look for- including ACOs) Ponyo is a halfmoon double-tail male betta fish. and I don't have any other fish in the tank. My water parameters that I took yesterday: Ph: 7.2Ammonia: 0ppmNitrite: 0ppmNitrate: 0ppmKh: 40ppm / 2.24dKhGh: 25ppm / 1.401dGh Current (todays) Temperature: 76.8*F Ponyo isn't lethargic, and he's eating (I fed him yesterday after the water test- it was the routine day to feed him anyway) (I keep a log of when I do the filter changes, parameter recordings, water changes, etc. So if you have any more questions- please let me know) I got Ponyo on the 23rd of December, and here's how he looked then: (see 12.23.21 first brought home.jpg) Then on the 25th of december- through the 29th I noticed an odd algae bloom (which was weird considering there were no live plants- I used the correct amount of safe start plus I had cycled it for a day before putting him in.) and the gravel was bleeding. (I find out of course- this is common with the type of gravel that was bought for me. So- I removed it, water change, yada yada.) during this time, he wasn't eating, and his fins looked like this: (See 12.25.21 in the castle.jpg) I also removed the castle during this time, because I saw him get stuck and struggle to get out- so I now have this as a bookshelf decoration. After the 25th-29th, he started eating again, and he was swimming happily around the tank! I got him new plastic plants and the hollow rock hiding places (and made sure to clean with aquarium salt according to its instructions) There were no visible issues with the fins until I woke up yesterday morning (1.12.22) Which made me panic, considering such a drastic change (See 1.12.22 is this fin rot.jpg) So I watched the ACO's video, and did the water parameter test- and now I am wondering if it is either the Lava rock tearing at his fins, the plants, or maybe the parameters are way more off than I realize? Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Yay! More plants to add to my list of things I need! (We can just ignore the wallet crying and begging me to not add anything to the shopping cart!) Also I love the idea of a huge shoal- the wheels in my head are turning for trying to figure out how to make it work for an aquarium!

That's an awesome paladarium! If you make another one please keep me updated, because I would love to see it!

Thank you guys for the information! I had only ever heard of planaria from that video- so I'll absolutely be looking into more information on what you all are talking about! I hope OP has their issue fixed soon 🙂

That is such a smart idea! I've been using a small tupperware for this- but I might have to use a shotglass instead!

I agree- It's better to replace it than to have dead fish! If you have the supplies / time, you can always do what SerpaDesign does and recycle the old aquarium (take away the broken part obviously) and make something new. Here's a link to his channel! https://www.youtube.com/c/SerpaDesign

From your video they look kind of like what MD had with his snails at 11:49 in the video (I shared the video w/ the time stamp already linked, but just in case!) and it's called Pleneria. He calls them flat worms with an arrow shaped head. I'm not 100% sure if thats what you have, but they looked kind of like what you showed? give the video a watch and let me know!

I have asked him, and he has told me this: *bubble* / *bubble bubble* Which- when I translate via my totally magic powers I get: " he/him, or troublemaker. Whichever one gets me more attention."

Nice to meet you all! My name is Kat, I use she/they pronouns and this is my halfmoon double-tail betta named Ponyo! I've been a fish hobbyist off and on since I was a kid- with varying levels of success 😅- But this is my first time digging deep and getting serious! I am so glad to have found this forum, because I really do hope to make some friends! So my question to you all is:: What pronouns do you use? What's your favorite live plants for an aquarium? (if you have one) And your dream fish? (as in- unlimited budget for the set-up, etc)