ok, so i recently got a new fish from a relative who couldn't keep it anymore.
i was giving it a good check over for any visible signs of disease or injury and noticed a small bump/lump on its side. it doesn't look like anything really nasty and so i was wondering if stress and small injuries from transport/travel can heal or show themselves in this way.
also i found a little white dot or line on its tail which i assume to be like a scar from a small rip...getting to the point, what can i do (other than keep optimal water quality) to help injuries heal properly?
goldfish injuries
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Of course optimal water quality, as you say.
Goldfish are very tolerant of salt, so you could add some salt to the water. As much as 1 tablespoon per 10 gallons is a light dose for them.
Melafix and Pimafix are good to reduce the chance of bacteria or fungi moving in on the wounds.
Goldfish are very tolerant of salt, so you could add some salt to the water. As much as 1 tablespoon per 10 gallons is a light dose for them.
Melafix and Pimafix are good to reduce the chance of bacteria or fungi moving in on the wounds.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
can fish bruise themselves?
since my goldfish decided to take a full speed dive into the tank she's got a little white spot on her head that almost looks like a missing scale...it doesn't look like a disease but the fishy equivalent of a bruise...
it isn't going away but it isn't getting bigger either...
since my goldfish decided to take a full speed dive into the tank she's got a little white spot on her head that almost looks like a missing scale...it doesn't look like a disease but the fishy equivalent of a bruise...
it isn't going away but it isn't getting bigger either...
moo
Fish can bruise themselves, and can lose scales when they bump into things.
a) Some fish startle and zip across the tank so fast they crash into the other end. They can kill themselves. (Bala Sharks are noted for this)
b) Fish can chase each other, or fish can startle and crash into decorations. If there is any rough texture to the decorations then the fish can scrape off some scales, or sustain deeper injuries. A shallow scrape but into the skin and will look clean and white. Deeper than that is into the muscle tissue, and may still be white, or some blood may be there. I would add salt, Melafix and Pimafix to a tank with a fish showing this white, flesh scrape, but move a fish with deeper injury to a hospital tank.
c) Fish can harass each other, and some fish get injured in the chase. Others get rammed by the aggressor. (I think some Cichlids do this a lot) This can result in internal injuries, especially a damaged swim bladder.
d) Fish can also bite each other. This often is fin damage, but larger fish can bite the body of smaller fish. Many fish fight by locking mouths, and the resulting damage can leave the lips and surrounding areas open to infection. Some fish species are particularly noted as being 'nippy'. They seem to target fins, especially longer fins. They can nip the fins back all the way to the body of their victim.
e) Fish can get caught in the decorations, especially tunnels, hollow rocks, fake (or real) tree stumps and similar small holes, then get hurt when they try to escape. This can result in torn fins, body scrapes or the fish can die trapped in these sorts of things.
Any of these injuries will need at least the 'extra clean water' medicine to help the fish heal. Adding some salt to the water can also help. Fish that are stressed or injured tend to not osmo-regulate so well.
Any injuries that result in minor skin scrapes I would add Melafix and Pimafix. NOT to Anabantoids, though.
Assess how the injury happened. Separate incompatible fish. Remove sharp decorations. Re-arrange the tank so the fish cannot repeat the accident.
Deeper wounds might call for isolating the fish and treating in a hospital tank. I have heard of using many human and air-breathing animal first aid procedures on fish such as Betadine (ONCE, do not repeat) and any of the petroleum jelly based first aid ointments (Not water based).
At the first hint of infection treat with antibiotics or antifungal medicines. Usually bacterial infection will show up as red around the edges of the wound, and fungi show up as white growths in or around the wound.
Swellings or growths may be any of several things. You might google some of these to get some pictures:
Lymphocystis
Tumor
Damaged tissue from an injury (usually does not swell, though)
Dropsy (Swelling may be abdominal, without the raised scales, or can be all over the body with the typical raised scales)
Other abdominal swelling might be eggs, constipation or some other reason.
a) Some fish startle and zip across the tank so fast they crash into the other end. They can kill themselves. (Bala Sharks are noted for this)
b) Fish can chase each other, or fish can startle and crash into decorations. If there is any rough texture to the decorations then the fish can scrape off some scales, or sustain deeper injuries. A shallow scrape but into the skin and will look clean and white. Deeper than that is into the muscle tissue, and may still be white, or some blood may be there. I would add salt, Melafix and Pimafix to a tank with a fish showing this white, flesh scrape, but move a fish with deeper injury to a hospital tank.
c) Fish can harass each other, and some fish get injured in the chase. Others get rammed by the aggressor. (I think some Cichlids do this a lot) This can result in internal injuries, especially a damaged swim bladder.
d) Fish can also bite each other. This often is fin damage, but larger fish can bite the body of smaller fish. Many fish fight by locking mouths, and the resulting damage can leave the lips and surrounding areas open to infection. Some fish species are particularly noted as being 'nippy'. They seem to target fins, especially longer fins. They can nip the fins back all the way to the body of their victim.
e) Fish can get caught in the decorations, especially tunnels, hollow rocks, fake (or real) tree stumps and similar small holes, then get hurt when they try to escape. This can result in torn fins, body scrapes or the fish can die trapped in these sorts of things.
Any of these injuries will need at least the 'extra clean water' medicine to help the fish heal. Adding some salt to the water can also help. Fish that are stressed or injured tend to not osmo-regulate so well.
Any injuries that result in minor skin scrapes I would add Melafix and Pimafix. NOT to Anabantoids, though.
Assess how the injury happened. Separate incompatible fish. Remove sharp decorations. Re-arrange the tank so the fish cannot repeat the accident.
Deeper wounds might call for isolating the fish and treating in a hospital tank. I have heard of using many human and air-breathing animal first aid procedures on fish such as Betadine (ONCE, do not repeat) and any of the petroleum jelly based first aid ointments (Not water based).
At the first hint of infection treat with antibiotics or antifungal medicines. Usually bacterial infection will show up as red around the edges of the wound, and fungi show up as white growths in or around the wound.
Swellings or growths may be any of several things. You might google some of these to get some pictures:
Lymphocystis
Tumor
Damaged tissue from an injury (usually does not swell, though)
Dropsy (Swelling may be abdominal, without the raised scales, or can be all over the body with the typical raised scales)
Other abdominal swelling might be eggs, constipation or some other reason.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
Could be. Do you have Melafix and Pimafix? These are fine for Golds, and can help heal minor injuries. However, if there is some infection there are a couple of things you can do to help:
1) Remove the fish from the water and dab on some hydrogen peroxide or Betadine. ONCE ONLY. It can help to hold the fish still by keeping him in a shallow dish of tank water and handling him with a wet cloth with lots of stress coat on the cloth.
2) Then dab on some antibiotic cream that is based on petroleum jelly. Something like Neosporin.
3) Add antibiotics to the water or to the food.
If you think a fungus is getting started in the wound then adding anti-fungus meds to the water will help.
1) Remove the fish from the water and dab on some hydrogen peroxide or Betadine. ONCE ONLY. It can help to hold the fish still by keeping him in a shallow dish of tank water and handling him with a wet cloth with lots of stress coat on the cloth.
2) Then dab on some antibiotic cream that is based on petroleum jelly. Something like Neosporin.
3) Add antibiotics to the water or to the food.
If you think a fungus is getting started in the wound then adding anti-fungus meds to the water will help.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
I do not know if they are OK for Weather Loaches. I know not to use Melafix for Anabantoids (Bettas, Gouramis...) and I have read some controversy here about using one or the other with Loaches. I do not see many diseases in my tanks, so I have these, but rarely use them.
No, they are not to be added for food. They are an external medicine.
No, they are not to be added for food. They are an external medicine.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
ok, i've been treating the fish by itself with melafix for a while and there doesn't seem to be much improvement...although maybe (perhaps it's just my eyes fooling me) it seems to me that the injuries seem to look a bit more shallow if that makes sense...
how long should i treat a fish with melafix? should i get some pimafix as well?
how long should i treat a fish with melafix? should i get some pimafix as well?
moo
That is a long time for a fish not to heal. Original post was way back in April.
If Melafix and Pimafix do not help within a few days then there is something else going on.
I would look into some stronger medicine, perhaps Kanamycin or other antibiotic to rule out a low grade bacterial infection.
If Melafix and Pimafix do not help within a few days then there is something else going on.
I would look into some stronger medicine, perhaps Kanamycin or other antibiotic to rule out a low grade bacterial infection.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
I wonder if those are just normal color variations???
Are they swollen, fuzzy or in any way different from the orange tissue and scales next to the white areas?
The next thing that I would think of is minor injury that may have healed and the original color (orange) has not come back. Golds are noted for this sort of thing, but more often they turn black at the site of the injury for several months, then the black usually fades. (Google Melanphore migration for more info about black spots at the site of a healed injury)
My black dog has some white hairs at a site of an old injury. It sure may be possible in a fish, too. (well, not hairs... but pigment loss)
Are they swollen, fuzzy or in any way different from the orange tissue and scales next to the white areas?
The next thing that I would think of is minor injury that may have healed and the original color (orange) has not come back. Golds are noted for this sort of thing, but more often they turn black at the site of the injury for several months, then the black usually fades. (Google Melanphore migration for more info about black spots at the site of a healed injury)
My black dog has some white hairs at a site of an old injury. It sure may be possible in a fish, too. (well, not hairs... but pigment loss)
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
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