Yes, it is possible I suppose. Okay, I will do as you suggested. Thank you again, very muchIs it possible she pushed the heater against the wall of the container? Rays are very inquisitive. I'm an ICU RN...the shape & appearance of the wound is quite burn like
If it is a burn, salt, lots of clean water, good nutrition & time should heal this wound. I would keep the salt concentration consistent with each water change until the redness & sloughy tissue has subsided & looks to be healing. then halve it for a week, then let it wash out completely with water changes after that.
Hello again, I would like to know what I should be looking for positive or negative and if/when I would need to take more action? She is quite upset, and she is definitely not friends with me at the moment. Should I offer food? She was quite active all night, im unsure if she was stressed or uncomfortable or just looking for food. She rearranged all the sand into lovely dunes. If she can do that then maybe the injury looks worse than it is?
It's hard to tell, ray tissue is very different from anything I've seen when it's injured.
She is very unhappy
. Ive never seen her so buried. She definitely does not like the salt. My heart is so heavy, its almost intolerable to see like this. She did not eat her favorite pellet.
Thank you
It's hard to tell, ray tissue is very different from anything I've seen when it's injured.
She is very unhappy
. Ive never seen her so buried. She definitely does not like the salt. My heart is so heavy, its almost intolerable to see like this. She did not eat her favorite pellet.Thank you
It's most likely not the salt that is bothering her, rather some pain, & rays don't like big changes. Salt actually has a soothing effect as it stimulates slime coat regeneration. Moving a healthy ray to a different tank alone can cause rays to sulk for days. She is not feeling well. Give her some time. Try feeding her favorite foods, but if she doesn't eat, then remove the uneaten food, wait and try again the next day.
Rays are largely nocturnal, so the fact that she is digging in sand is a positive sign. In their natural environment they do it looking for snails & other food. The fact that she is active at night is also a good sign.
Skin regeneration in an aquatic environment is slower than for land animals, so be patient, the healing process will take some time. I had a new adult male black diamond ray that only ate 2 tiny pieces of shrimp in 5 weeks. They can be super stubborn, & though it's not ideal, she wont starve to death
Rays are largely nocturnal, so the fact that she is digging in sand is a positive sign. In their natural environment they do it looking for snails & other food. The fact that she is active at night is also a good sign.
Skin regeneration in an aquatic environment is slower than for land animals, so be patient, the healing process will take some time. I had a new adult male black diamond ray that only ate 2 tiny pieces of shrimp in 5 weeks. They can be super stubborn, & though it's not ideal, she wont starve to death
Okay, thank you for that. She certainly is sulking and appears to be mad at me in particular. She was active all night, didn't sleep much because of her water slapping, she's in my bedroom. I feel so much better after what you explainedIt's most likely not the salt that is bothering her, rather some pain, & rays don't like big changes. Salt actually has a soothing effect as it stimulates slime coat regeneration. Moving a healthy ray to a different tank alone can cause rays to sulk for days. She is not feeling well. Give her some time. Try feeding her favorite foods, but if she doesn't eat, then remove the uneaten food, wait and try again the next day.
Rays are largely nocturnal, so the fact that she is digging in sand is a positive sign. In their natural environment they do it looking for snails & other food. The fact that she is active at night is also a good sign.
Skin regeneration in an aquatic environment is slower than for land animals, so be patient, the healing process will take some time. I had a new adult male black diamond ray that only ate 2 tiny pieces of shrimp in 5 weeks. They can be super stubborn, & though it's not ideal, she wont starve to death
. Have a great day
Unfortunately salt does not have a soothing effect despite stimulating the slime production. Especially with such a big wound it will irritate the fishes nerves a lot = pain. And slime production only works on somewhat intact skin, not with wounds.
Still, I also would add salt!
Especially with this big wounds because it helps the fish with the osmoregulation. Open wounds without or with destroyed skin mean that water constantly entering the fish's body which means it needs more energy for osmoregulation and also it's kidney has to work a lot to get rid of the excess water.
I have seen a catfish with approx 30-40% of it's skin completely gone due to heater burn. It survived and fully recovered only with salt.
I would not feed a sick fish, because digestion puts additional stress on the body.
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