fungus(?) on my new whip

[SLIMESLAYER10]

just as im about to put them in the main tank i see this... is it a fungus? if so how should i treat it, theirs also 3 others in the tank should i keep them in there?

[bekateen]

The white spots on the head?

[SLIMESLAYER10]

the tiny ones are air bubbles, the big lump is the one i just noticed. its a bit fuzzy in person

btw his lip is a bit red because they keep running into the glass at full speed...

[MarcW]

As you mentioned they are new, and the location of the injury, could it have been trying to hide behind a heater and got burnt, or in/under rocks or wood and got a scratch, which now has a minor infection?

Personally I would leave them where they are, and do a series of water changes before any other action, maybe start with a 50% change, then 25% per day for the following 2-3 days, and see if there is any improvement.

If it still appears the same or begins to get worse, I would then try adding something like API Pimafix, and report back if there is still no improvement.

My first course of action for anything like this would always be water changes (de-chlorinated at a similar temperature as your tank) and monitoring for a few days. This is mainly as I'm a hobbyist without expertise to diagnose fish diseases, I don't want to misdiagnose and treat for a non existent issue potentially causing other problems!

Good luck.

[msafdel]

It seems to have been injured and has infected! don't worry its a small wound. I saw often this problem in cactus plecos which constantly fights together but at a wider level and i use Chlorhexidine for cleaning and treatment.

Another point is that in my opinion your soil is not suitable for Whips because It may hurt them. use smaller and softer soil for them.

[SLIMESLAYER10]

thanks, ill try both of your guys suggestions, the gravel he is sitting on is only the front of the tank, theirs a large sand area they normally hang out on

[kvnbyl]

also they tend to panic when the lights go on if it has been really dark. my tanks are in the basement and i leave a light on all night because i have had fish bash into the glass and hurt themselves this way. cheaper to leave a light on. not tank light, just some light in the room. tank lights are best on a timer because they do need a day / night cycle

[SLIMESLAYER10]

theirs a window in the room and the lights go on at 12pm. they dont get to much of a shock

[SLIMESLAYER10]

... Not a good week so far. The infection on his head didn't get any worse which is a good thing, but i started treating with meds a few days ago and now hes lying on the bottom of the tank upside down. Still breathing, still moving but i don't know what to do. was i to late?

Edit: i added a extra air stone and bumped the heat yp a few degrees

[MarcW]

I'm going to sound a bit like a broken record, but assuming that's the response to the medication, or even if it's something unrelated I would do a large 50% ish water change. Then keep up with smaller ones for a few days and monitor things.

Just out of curiosity what medication did you add? Did you add more than one?

Are there any visual changes, e.g. redness, sunken eyes or stomach?

Good luck, hopefully it improves soon.

[SLIMESLAYER10]

I couldnt find the one msafdel recomended so i got Rid-ich plus. Fishstore recomended it as thats what they use. Put in the recomended amount. Theres no phisical changes i see, eyes are good and belly looks flat and the fungus is still there.

If this guy dies what should i do with the others? Would it be safe to put them in there future main tank or should id quarantine them longer?

[MarcW]

It would appear that the fish in question may have been weakened by something, maybe the fungus, whatever caused the fungus or possibly something else, internal parasites/worms perhaps. Then in its weakened state didn't cope with the medication well.

Did you make a water change, has it improved since then? I would suggest water changes as mentioned before and stop the medication.

I'm assuming the other fish are the same species, bought from the same place at the same time? If this fish doesn't make it, I'd quarrentine the remaining fish for another 4 weeks assuming they may have the same issue.

It might seem like a long time, especially as I suspect it was a physical injury with a mild infection, but the last thing you want is for all of your fish to get sick.

Good luck.

[SLIMESLAYER10]

The fish had already been dewormed so im guessing it was a wound from a rock or something and the stress of moving let the fungus grow.

I did a %60 water change plus those meds dont last to long in the water (24hrs) so the tank is pretty much med free.

The rest of the fish have small wounds on the tips of there noses from runing into things... Dumbasses, they seem to be fighting off infection and heeling pretty good though.

[MarcW]

Good to hear the others are improving, hopefully once out of quarantine they will have a bigger environment and get settled in your main tank. How is the original sick fish getting on?

[SLIMESLAYER10]

sick one just died hope thats the last casualty

[MarcW]

Sorry to hear that.

Hopefully it was an issue isolated to that fish. Sometimes we just lose some fish, and can't pinpoint the cause. I guess the stress of shipping/aclimitsation has a lot to do with it, causing them to be more vulnerable than they would otherwise be.

Good luck with the remaining fish.

[SLIMESLAYER10]

thanks marcW

[DHarris]

I recently ordered a pair of L27 Teles Pires. One arrived with a broken tail and some scuffs which resulted in similar growth like your whiptail.

Before trying all sorts of medications, I simply treated with aquarium salt for a couple of weeks which worked wonders. I'd give that a shot before more medicating.

Unrelated but I believe this species is much happier on sand than gravel. Mine loved to bury. If able, I might suggest switching out substrate when better.

[SLIMESLAYER10]

Thanks, i may try the salt if this every happens again. I read that whiptails hate salt and it can hurt them but who knows. Luckily the rest of the fish seem fine.

The gravel that there on only takes up a small part of the tank near the front, the rest is fine sand

[SLIMESLAYER10]

uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, the fungus was all gone and i was ready to put them in there main tank... of course 1 had to get sick along with a cory that was in the tank with it, And the real problem i have no clue whats up with them. the cory lost half the scales on one side of his body and his fins are looking chewed up and the whiptail has lost most of the scales on his tail and back and theres red spots... oh and the cory has a tad bit of fungus on the scaleless area. but its not dropsy, rest of the scales are flat and tank water is perfect.

anyone know a recipe for magic salt that cures all?

[MarcW]

That sounds like it could be a bacterial infection based on there being red spots, or it could be blood spots if the injury is deep.

Take a look at this thread on one of my fish : http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... =5&t=45569

It seemed to have a bacterial infection which I treated with api melafix, whether it needed medication I'm not certain but it healed well and is still doing well today.

Good luck.

[SLIMESLAYER10]

thanks marc. lets hope this works!

im pretty sure in at least 1 spot its blood but the others im not sure about.