FRT Shell injury.. :(

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
V

VLDesign

Silver Tier VIP
MFK Member
Mar 20, 2007
1,845
11
1,843
IL
I think it's from my giant pleco sucking on it's shell.

The back part looks to be healing but the one on the center part of the shell just started to get worse.

So I took him out of the 1500 for now and applied a topical antiseptic solution. Once he's dry I will put him in the 300 to heal.

Question is anyone else have issues with plecos and FRTs?

The giant pleco is around 14" in length. Not sure what else could have caused this.

DSC_0674.JPG


DSC_0676.JPG


DSC_0677.JPG
 
It's definitely the pleco in my opinion. A picture of your set-up would be good so we can make sure there are no other factors involved here. Plecos have tiny raspy teeth and the wound in the centre looks like how a wound would look like if a Pleco sucked on something long enough. I'd remove the plecos if i were you.
 
Yeah I have heard in many places that FRTs and plecos never mix well long term.

The previous owner of my FRT tried all different algae eaters with no luck with any, all wanted to suck on the shell of the FRT.
 
Last year I had a frt with a flagtail. The flagtail would clean its shell and cause no problems. The frt would sit still while the flagtail moved around sucking on it here and there.
 
It's definitely the pleco doing the damage. Here is a pic we took about 5 years ago of a Fly River Turtle from the Pittsburgh Zoo. A snail had attached itself to the back of the FRT, causing some damage to the turtle's shell.

e535a061.jpg

Holding_Fly_River_Turtle_Pittsburgh_Zoo_9-25-01.jpg
 
My frt had a chunk taken out of it's underside from jumping in the tank and striking the rim of the tank. All I did was just add some stress coat to the tank and it's in the process of healing. he's probably about 95% healed now. I have 3 plecos in the tank from 3 inches to 6. No issues at all.
 
Hope it heals well....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom