How do I treat a stubborn bacterial infection in betta fish?

Question

I have a very sick betta fish. I am certain he has a bacterial infection (red streaks, fin rot, eyes are bulging a little, gills are red and inflamed). He will not eat the medicated antibiotic food made by Jungle Labs. He will eat his normal food however (Hikari pellets).

I am treating him with Maracyn-Plus by Mardel. It’s a broad spectrum antibiotic that works on gram positive and gram negative bacterias. It has Bio-spheres that attach to the fish to help it heal. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be helping. Mardel Labs says not to combine Maracyn-Plus with any other antibiotics due to how it’s delivered (the Bio-spheres). I am wondering if I should add or switch to Maracyn-Two but don't want to make matters worse. From what I understand, Maracyn Two might be a better medication given his symptoms and the fact that this medicine is also absorbed by the fish.

The ammonia levels in his three gallon tank are low and his mini-heater is keeping the temp at 80 degrees. I don’t know about nitrate/nitrite levels. I was doing many water changes, but not since I started the Maracyn-Plus three days ago.

Answer 1

Try adding an airstone/aerator to his tank at a very low level (only a few bubbles a second). It will make it easier for him to breath - all the medication in the water can actually make it hard for a betta to breath, and you want to make things as easy for him as possible.

Keep up with the Maracyn treatment. In addition, add some aquarium salt with each water change - you can find it at any pet store specifically for freshwater fish. That should help with the bacterial infection as well as the fin rot.

Poor little guy sounds like he's got a lot on his plate :( I certainly hope you can help him get through it all!

Good luck!

Answer 2

I would do a large water change and throw some activated carbon in the filter overnight, then start with a combination of Maracyn + Maracyn 2, as this will be very effective against both gram positive and gram negative infections, both of which it looks like youre seeing.  Also, you should not be seeing ANY levels of ammonia-- more frequent water changes would be very helpful.

Answer 3

i would try using aquarium salt in his water.