Laying on Bottom - Sick?

[Phillydubs]

Just awesome !!

That white dude that was on the door step is such s nice fish would have been a pure shame to loose him like that

[Clawhammer]

Thanks Phil, I agree, he is beautiful, it was very tough to see him struggle so much. He is doing great now, eating like normal again.

[Clawhammer]

My Leopard has developed a white bump between its eyes over the last few days. I noticed it was originally three small white bumps. Any idea what this could be (HITH?)? This is one of the 2-3 discus I have yet to see eat. He is still a little darker than normal, the tankmates have mostly gone back to their normal colors.

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[Clawhammer]

Bump (the post about the bump). It is more of a small hole now. I think it may be closing up on its own because of the large water changes, but should I also be treating with Metro?

Also, I noticed one of my discus pectoral fins and anal fin are foggy / opaque this morning. Is this from slime sloughing (not sure that is possible on fins) or could it be related to something else?

[Clawhammer]

Hopefully no opinions means this is no big deal, but can someone confirm? The white bump seemed to go away and a small hole took it's place. This morning the white bump was back. Here is a pic. I don't think this is just a pimple. Should I be medicating with Metro?

Thanks.

IMG_1146.jpg

[Phillydubs]

Looks pimpleish to me... Are you still doing big water changes?

You say it was a growth then gone and a hole, now another growth?

Does it look open? Infected? Does the fish seem off base?

[Clawhammer]

Yes, still doing the large water changes.

The behavior and appetite of the fish are a little subdued but its hard to say if this is related to the bump. It actually started as two tiny white bumps now that I think about it. They went away and left a couple small holes. Since then there is sometimes white stuff and sometimes not. This has been the case for 2-3 days. The size of the area has not increased, I can't tell if it is infected (perhaps that is the white stuff?).

[Phillydubs]

If it were me I would keep up w the water changes and see. Are you still adding salt or anything else to the tank?

Your fish have been through a lot lately. They may just need good calm stability for a bit IMO

[Clawhammer]

Thanks Phil, that is what I was thinking, but wanted to confirm as I have never had a discus with this kind of bump. I was worried that this was another cross-contamination situation, but in the meantime it has not spread to any other fish and the leopard who has the spot has not been acting sick (decent color and no clamping/hiding).

[Ryan925]

Thanks Phil, that is what I was thinking, but wanted to confirm as I have never had a discus with this kind of bump. I was worried that this was another cross-contamination situation, but in the meantime it has not spread to any other fish and the leopard who has the spot has not been acting sick (decent color and no clamping/hiding).

I definitely am no expert on illness but I'd have to imagine anything you are seeing now is stress related. They have been through a lot. I imagine keeping the water as fresh as possible and monitoring is the best you can do I imagine it will take a bit of time to recover from such a traumatic experience. You've done everything right so far to get them to this point so props for that

[Second Hand Pat]

Eric, after your next water change add two teaspoons of Epsom salts per 10 gallons and see how things look in 24 hours.
Pat

[Clawhammer]

Thanks Pat I have added the suggested amount of epsom salts, thanks for the guidance. I report back tomorrow.

[brewmaster15]

Hi Eric,
Theres probably a small pocket of bacteria there thats made its home in a pore. These "pimples" do tend to rupture on their own and leave a small hole that heals over on its own. This is one "those " cases that I would consider netting the fish and swabbing with hydrogen peroxide to help it along if gets bigger, or doesn't disappear on its own in a day or two.

hth,
al

[Clawhammer]

Perfect, thanks Al. Good to know what I am looking at and great to have a backup plan if it does not disappear on its own.

[Clawhammer]

I just wanted to follow up here. The hole in the leopard's head closed up after about two weeks of clean water (100 out of 140 gallons changed daily). I never had to remove the fish and swab, the hole got a little deeper, but never grew large or looked particularly angry.

Al, out of curiosity, how did you know that this wasn't HITH but instead a bacteria pocket?

All fish in the tank are completely back to normal. There are 4 pairs spawning at the same time right now (including the leopard) so it is back to being a lively tank.

Thanks again to everyone for the guidance and support.