Sick redtail catfish

[Reedjasper]

I was recently given a redtail shovel nose catfish cross because it outgrew their aquarium. I have had him for about a month now but he seems sick. He eats but not a whole lot, I thought he was just adapting to the new aquarium but it's been awhile now I am starting to worry. He is about 24 inches long and I have him in my 200 gal tank. His tank mates are 2 large oscars, 3 large tinfoils and a 24 inch long clown knife fish, nine of which showing any signs of sickness

I thought he had a fungal infection at first cause I noticed white on him but when I look closer it looks like his skin is peeling. I know that sometimes when you handle fish in transport it can remove their protective slime is this the case? Thanks

 

[TheBroc]

I don't know for sure but that is a lot of large messy fish in a small amount of water. Water quality could be in question here.

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[XPredatorX]

I thought he had a fungal infection at first cause I noticed white on him but when I look closer it looks like his skin is peeling. I know that sometimes when you handle fish in transport it can remove their protective slime is this the case? Thanks

Post a picture if you can, can't really tell without one.

Does the catfish get "excited" when you feed the fish or does he show little/no interest though?
If he gets excited then there's a good chance he's actually unable to compete with the other fish for food, whatever the reason may be.
In that case you could try to feed him directly with a pair of tongs and see how that pans out.

For example, vid below..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCy-WEV2TI4

You can see the red tail shows interest in food but barely eats anything until the owner feeds him directly (2:35).
Could also try feeding when the lights are turned off.

 

[Reedjasper]

I read a post on here about the same issue that said try sea salt treatment so I did and he cleared up overnight. I fed him and he ate well looks a lot happier! I tested my water and nothing seemed to wrong. I have plenty of filtration and do weekly water changes, so I was convinced water quality was not the issue. I will update if he gets sick again . Thanks for the replys though!