- Have you tested your water?
- Yes
- If yes, what is your ammonia?
- Close to 0, doesn't register
- If yes, what is your nitrite?
- Close to 0, doesn't register
- If yes, what is your nitrate?
- Around 5ppm
- If I did not test my water...
- ...I recognize that I will likely be asked to do a test, and that water tests are critical for solving freshwater health problems.
- Do you do water changes?
- Yes
- What percentage of water do you change?
- 41-50%
- How frequently do you change your water?
- Every week
- If I do not change my water...
- ...I recognize that I will likely be recommended to do a water change, and water changes are critical for preventing future freshwater health problems.
Hi, sorry for the poor photo, the fish is in a poorly lit hospital tank. I am trying to figure out what that hole in the head is. See the white mark on the photo? That's actually a crater in the head...
Some context, I got this Flowerhorn 2-3 months ago. Thanks to COVID I didn't have a chance to view the fish, i got it in a bucket and only got to see him once home. What a mistake.
Where to start. First the fish couldn't swim. He was crawling at the bottom of the tank for weeks. He was breathing with great difficulty for weeks. Along the way an ick outbreak happened. His fins looked like s*** too.
Once the ick was cured (high temp+salt+frequent WC did the trick) he started swimming normally again, breathing got normal, and finally he started eating his first bites after like 2 months in my HT...
Today he swims actively, has the most voracious appetite of any fish I have... Looks healthy and fins have almost fully regrew, etc
BUT,... I am posting today because that hole in the head is still there. Hasn't healed in any way that whole time. I have seen HITH before and this doesn't really look like the HITH I saw before. First HITH tends to be on the top of the head in what I saw... Not on the side. But maybe it's HITH?
What else causes what looks like a permanent hole in the head like this? Or, is it permanent? Anything I can do to heal the guy? With good water params and quality foods (Northfin) I expected the hole to patch up...
Next question... Can I move the guy out of the HT? He seems as healthy behaviour wise as any fish... But I don't want that hole in the main tank fishes...
I considered selling or even giving him away but uncomfortable in doing so without knowing what's causing the hole.
Thoughts?
Some context, I got this Flowerhorn 2-3 months ago. Thanks to COVID I didn't have a chance to view the fish, i got it in a bucket and only got to see him once home. What a mistake.
Where to start. First the fish couldn't swim. He was crawling at the bottom of the tank for weeks. He was breathing with great difficulty for weeks. Along the way an ick outbreak happened. His fins looked like s*** too.
Once the ick was cured (high temp+salt+frequent WC did the trick) he started swimming normally again, breathing got normal, and finally he started eating his first bites after like 2 months in my HT...
Today he swims actively, has the most voracious appetite of any fish I have... Looks healthy and fins have almost fully regrew, etc
BUT,... I am posting today because that hole in the head is still there. Hasn't healed in any way that whole time. I have seen HITH before and this doesn't really look like the HITH I saw before. First HITH tends to be on the top of the head in what I saw... Not on the side. But maybe it's HITH?
What else causes what looks like a permanent hole in the head like this? Or, is it permanent? Anything I can do to heal the guy? With good water params and quality foods (Northfin) I expected the hole to patch up...
Next question... Can I move the guy out of the HT? He seems as healthy behaviour wise as any fish... But I don't want that hole in the main tank fishes...
I considered selling or even giving him away but uncomfortable in doing so without knowing what's causing the hole.
Thoughts?
