Malakai the betta. I'm worried. =[

I just switched Malakai into an Eclipse about a month ago. It's a 6 and a half gallon with a bio filter and I absolutely love it! Plus, it has a light which keeps him a little more active during the day. He's almost three years old, so I'm getting a little worried he won't live much longer, and it's noticable he has slowed down some. He has had popeye for about a year and fin/tail rot his whole life. It will not go away. We have tried everything, and if you want to know how far I've gone to try and heal my little guy I drove as far as Oregon State university to consult with a man who helps run the Oregon Aquarium. Nothing has worked. :( We even took him out and got a slide from him to look at under the microscope. Not much help. :(

I feel awful for him. His eyes look horrible and his fins are not nearly as pretty as they should be. I bought him sick, so I knew darn well that I had a sick fishy to care for, but I didn't expect it to last nearly as long as it has. I wish there was some way I could heal him, because who knows, he may have another 3 years left in him! :D I really love this guy. It may sound silly, because he's just a wittle fish, but he loves me too! If I call his name he will swim to the top of the tank. He won't come to the top for anyone else. I'm his mamma. :D

So anyway, I went out about a month ago and bought him this new Eclipse system and he absolutely loves it! I've noticed he's a lot happier having more room to swim. My bf thought I was nuts spending almost 150 bucks on a new tank, plus live plants, new decoration tree stump, etc. My live plants are doing great btw. I was under the impression that bettas do not make enough waste for live plants to thrive without food, but let me tell ya, this one plant I have has grown three times the size it was when I first got it. In fact, today I will be cleaning the tank and I need to take that sucker out and prune it.

So, now that I have this new tank, I was thinking about trying the meds on him again and seeing if that may work. I have noticed that his eyes look a little less swollen, perhaps from the tank being filtered and oxygenated now?

Please help. I really love my little guy. :)

More info, as to not comfuse anyone. When I first got him he was a lone fish, and has never been with any other fish, ever. Right now, he lives with a snail, and that's his only friend. Before the eclipse he was kept in a 2 gallon bowl, with a hiding area and two fake plants. He did not have popeye when I first got him, but he did have very badly injured/ripped fins. His water is always treated and he gets his tank water cleaned/cycled often...I'm paranoid he's going to die! :( We also do reguarly water checks for amonia etc. At first I thought it was from an excess of amonia, but it checks out good everytime.

The pop eye began about a year ago. But since nothing new (except water) was added to the tank how did he get popeye? His is fed betta bio gold, and on occasion given some small flakes and blood worms for variety. His tank has never been heated, but our house is usually around 65-70 degrees.

Oh and I thought his fins were possibly injured from the fake plants, but we took them out for a few months and no change at all. Course, now he has real plants.