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View Full Version : Need help to ID wound on Discus



crayonchan
07-20-2019, 07:04 PM
Hi I've got a discus, it's been healthy, eating and completely normal all this time. And yesterday all of a sudden it was hiding, and upon closer inspection I saw that it's got this little wound on his head. It developed very suddenly (wasn't there in the morning, then was there in the afternoon).

My suspicion is that it just bumped it's head on something sharp (I have a lot of dragon stone in my tank) and has wounded itself. But I'm curious as to how it would've made this circular hole on its head.

I'm just hoping that it's not anything more sinister than that. Can you experts please have a look and let me know what you think, and what you would do?

Thanks!

LizStreithorst
07-20-2019, 07:15 PM
I think you might be right. I've never seen hole in the head look like that. If I'm right my suggestions are either you net the fish out and put an antibiotic ointment on the wound or leave it in the tank and just give it tons of good clean stable water. I always use the second option.

jeep
07-21-2019, 12:40 AM
Same opinion. This appears to be a wound as apposed to HITH if you're certain it developed this quickly. Clean water is the key, especially in a planted take where we don't know more info!!!

Mando
07-22-2019, 08:46 AM
I had my favorite discus jump out of the tank one day and got wounded much like your fish's wound. I just kept up with clean water and he healed. He has a permanent battle-wound (smaller than the actual wound) but he's back to normal with no ill effect.

danotaylor
07-22-2019, 08:57 AM
I am an RN and have had and seen many wounds were a foreign object has penetrated under the skin and remained there. As the body attempts to eject the foreign body it forms a capsule around it, fills it with fluid (sometimes pus if infected) and moves it towards the surface. Once ejected the base of the capsule is visible and looks shiny & smooth, very similar to what is shown in the images you posted. It looks like a piece of your dragon stone likely penetrated like a splinter and the resulting smooth round hole is the evidence of the fishes auto-removal of said object.
Some salt at 3-5 tbsp/10 gal for a 7-10 days will ensure that a secondary bacterial infection doesn't reslu