We have a 29 gallon tank with a sorority of bettas that have been newly added. They are doing well, but one of them has just today developed some sort of issue where the scales on her head are standing up. It is not dropsy; she has no other pineconing. We are going to treat it as a possible parasite, but we have to be careful due to having lots of shrimp and snails in the tank. Has anyone encountered something like this before? My only other thought was that it could be some sort of injury, but I’m not sure how she could have done it. Here are the best pictures I could get since she won’t hold still.

Not sure what she has, but I'd take her out and quarantine her in a 1-5 gallon container, bucket or anything as betta's can breathe from the atmosphere. Medicate her there, and perhaps a very light dose of medication in your main tank or not to protect the snails and such.

Could this possibly be a breeding thing?

That fish has something major going on.Take it out and quarantine it like Jimmy123x said.The loss of color in the scales (if there are any)on the sides is far from normal.I wouldnt rule out dropsy even given the fact the pineconning isnt all over the body.

Thank you for the responses. There is actually no discoloring or missing scales on the sides. That’s just her flapping her fins and being a poor photo subject (and me a poor photographer). We got some parasite treatment that is supposed to be safe for the shrimp and snails so we are going to treat the whole tank.

It has also occurred to us that this may just be an abrasion as we have observed her trying to get herself stuck in the shrimp feeding tube.

Personally I don't allow snails in any of my tanks. Slow moving living things provide easy haven for parasites.