my betta has fin rot...??? swollen gills?

Your Betta has Gill disease. You should change his water no less than every other day. All of it. There is no need to keep any of the water because a jar can't cycle!

The symptoms of gill disease :

One or both gills will not close all the way (look at betta from the top it is easier to see it then), gills may look red on the inside (inflamed) or not, in the last stages, the betta may be gasping for air, unable to breath and ultimately die.

To treat this you will need to purchase a antibiotic such as Ampicillin. In the case of nitrate poisoning, add one drop of methylene blue in betta’s jar. Remember to keep your Betta in clean water at all times.

I would also recommend getting him a tank at least 2.5 gallons that comes with a filter. Betta's are tropical fish and need to be kept in water that is between 76-82 F. If they aren't kept at the correct temperature they will lose color and be less active.

Follow up: Velvet is a parasite that is hard to spot unless you grab a flashlight and shine it on the top of the fish. If the fish looks like rust or gold is sprinkled on top of it then it has velvet. A betta with velvet will act sick, so look for clamped fins, scratching against rocks/gravel/tank, loss of appetite, loss of color etc...

I would get some meds at the store and treat him as though he has fin rot. There are many strains of fin rot out there so even though it may not be textbook like you say it may still be a form of the disease. I have treated fin rot in other fish successfully using maracyn plus. I'm not sure if that is safe for bettas or not though. Otherwise a more natural medication is melafix but I have heard this isn't good for bettas because it coats their labyrinth organ (which is what allows them to breathe air at the top of water). I would google some betta sites and see what they say are safe meds for bettas. I don't fully trust the big pet stores to give accurate info about meds. Good luck and I hope your bettas fin gets better soon.

Swollen gills? Does he look like a pine cone? If yes it could be Dropsy. If it is, I'm afraid there is nothing you can do. But Dropsy typically does not cause redness. It might be a water ph issue. Take a sample from his tank and bring it to the pet store or a fish store. They can test it to see if the water is too acidic or basic.

Cleaning his cage every three days may be too much for a betta. They don't urinate as much as goldfish and don't need the water changed that often, once a week or every two weeks (depending on tank size) should saffice. Are you using water conditioner? If not, USE IT. It protect them from chemicals in tap water and from hurting themselves if they rub against the pebbles.

Betta fish have gills because that is how fish breath, they don't have lungs.

When you change his water are you changing all of it or part of it? Partial water changes are usually best. Using a water conditioner.

Have you taken a sample of water to be tested.

You may also be overfeeding. I feed once a day or feed less if I'm feeding twice a day. Bettas are pigs and it will make the water bad if there is too much food left in it.

I hope he pulls through for you, I hate losing my fish.

I had some fin rot, but took out all my live plants and the problem stopped.

My Betta is in a 3 gal. tank with a small outside filter so he's kinda spoiled. I do partial changes every couple of weeks.

To be brutally honest, I would say turf the Betta and start again. Learn/research as much as you can about starting and keeping a healthy aquarium and healthy fish. Visit wetwebmedia.com or search for "tropical fish care" and/or "fresh water aquariums". Good luck.

Awww sorry to hear about you'r fishey, but he is just a fishey. He may die, just a get new one. I had two beta's in a split tank and i overfead one and it died and the next week for no reason the second one got puffy and died.

Hes on his way out. If hes turning grey he is gonna die very soon. Sorry.

oh. mine did the same thing, make sure ur putting water de-chorifiers or sumthing in.