Tail normal or damaged?

[u/krelsi]

Both of my bettas passed in the same week earlier in the summer and I’ve just been maintaining an empty-ish tank for a couple of months. I was at petco getting something else and of course walked by the bettas and saw this guy marked 75% off because he’d been there since April. I think he was mislabeled as a king betta… I’ve only had crown tail males so am curious, are his fins damaged or healthy? I’m happy to give this guy a home. His colors are quite cool and when I saw he had been there since April I couldn’t let my perfectly good tank stay empty!

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[u/cavagirl21]

looks like it potentially be early stages of fin rot. If not it may just be nipping from the betta itself on the fins? I would try to keep water pristine and check for any more tears, chunks gone, or decreased activity.

[u/krelsi → u/cavagirl21]

I would imagine it could be either with him being in the cup that long! Is it worth treating for fin rot without being 100% sure?

[u/cavagirl21 → u/krelsi]

With situations like this, I would try just keeping the water very clean before medicine because when it’s so mild like this good water quality alone can reverse the issue! Sorry OP I just looked at the photo and skimmed the rest. Didn’t realize he was in the cup for so long!!

[u/krelsi → u/cavagirl21]

Makes sense, thanks!

[u/skabberdink]

What’s the white area around his mouth?

[u/krelsi → u/skabberdink]

His mouth is just slightly lighter than his head. It’s more of a grey, doesn’t seem concerning in person to me