PlanetCatfish.com

hey folks. i have a beautiful silver flecked southern bullhead I've raised from a baby. he's now 12in. in my 75gal. about a week ago he started swimming against the glass like trying to get out. then he started circling the top of the tank like a nascar driver throwing water everywhere! I'm surprised he hasn't jumped out! i checked water parameters and other than a trace of nitrate waters fine. my warmouth and pumpkinseed are ok also. today i noticed he has a 2in. gash on his side! the only thing that i can see changed is i gave away the 2 smaller cats that were his tank mates w/ him. could it be i gave away his girlfriend and he misses her? anyone on here see cats act this way? he is usually lazy. coming out and looking for food at lights out. now he's up all day and night frantically swimming at the glass. also any treatment suggestions for his cut? its deep enough i can see the pink flesh. could this be fatal? i know bullheads are tough but I'm worried about infection. ant input appreciated. thanks!

The only thing I can think of as to what caused the gash might be any rough, rock decorations he could get himself cut on, or (I highly doubt this) the spines of the dorsal fins of the other fishes.

I strongly recommend the use of API Melafix. If you have a smaller, quarantine tank you will be able to more economically and more quickly heal your fish. Be sure to carefully follow the product's treatment instructions; doing this will likely make for a more speedy recovery, and cause less stress on the fish (it's oil-based, and adding too much of it can possibly make it more difficult for the fish to breathe). If you follow the treatment carefully, it should heal the current infection, if any, in the open wound, and will promote the regrowth of the body's tissues.

I am not the most knowledgable on the use of fish medications here in the forum, and I hope others may correct me if there's a better method out there; I do however place great confidence in the use of Melafix.

I know bullheads are very, very hardy, and if you've caught this injury quickly enough, your cat shouldn't have too much trouble healing. I highly recommend the use of a quarantine tank, or possibly removing rock decorations and using some sort of a tank divider, just in case the other fish may cause problems.

I hope this really helps, and wish you the best in your treatment of your cat!

-Kaegen

I am dubious it could be caused by 2 missing tank mates.

IMHO, 75 gal (1.5'x4'?) is too small for a 1' fish. That could be the reason. Or, shooting in the dark, something might have triggered a spawning urge and he is trying to "migrate" to a spawning site. Sometimes an external parasite may cause something similar but that would not be for days, just every now and then the fish will swim wildly trying to get the parasite off of itself.

As for the wound, I'd not do anything if the water and filtration and oxygenation is good. If it develops redness = inflammation, then I'd think about what to do.

I am not the most knowledgable on the use of fish medications here in the forum, and I hope others may correct me if there's a better method out there; I do however place great confidence in the use of Melafix.