Q: RF wrote,
Hi Christie,
I recently bought a betta fish. It was the healthiest looking one I could
find but one of his fins is clamped. I don’t know why and like to cure it
if I can. On the previous site I could find clamped fins under the
Symptoms/illness & disease but now I can’t see that anywhere. Can you help
me out?
A: Clamped fins signal that something is stressing him. There is no
specific disease that causes clamped fins but it does indicate that
something isn’t right. Poor water quality is the number one cause of
betta illnesses. It’s possible that the water he was in before you bought
him contained toxins from his waste like ammonia. Depending on how long
you have had him these toxins could be building up in his current tank
too. If you bought him quite recently he may have experienced stress
from the acclimation process particularly if there were differences in
temperature or pH from the water he came in to the new water.
Despite what some manufacturers may print on their packages there is no
medicine that treats clamped fins. The best thing you can do is test
your water for toxins and do frequent water changes being careful to
avoid large fluctuations in temperature and pH. You should also be
vigilant for signs of disease. If symptoms of illness do appear then you
can reassess your options for treatment.
For now, clean water is the best thing you can give your betta.
Do let me know how things progress and congratulations on the arrival of
your new betta.
View Comments (4)
how do i test the water toxins ?
You can buy test kits that test for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate (the main toxins found in betta tanks). Check out our article on Top 5 Must-have Betta Fish Supplies.
Hey I just got my new betta a month ago now and he is still a baby (1 Yr old) and his anal fin is clamped togeather. he is living in a rather large tank with a light and a 3 stage filter how do I cure his Clamped fin?
i have a beta his name is io i got him from petco he was a baby hes so cute now he is full grown now like his sister cha cha she was a baby when i got her at the same time. I clean his bowl once a week and i give him slat to help him but its not working as much as i thought when i do change his water oh i smell a bad odder i don’t know how it keeps coming back i would do is try to boil hot water in the bowl and the gravel even that it still didn’t work. it keeps coming back is there a medication that can kill the bacteria in the gravel and the glass bowl and treat the fish at the same time i have a few older bates die from old age i don’t want to see my young fish die so early in his life. Any help would be helpful.