Miraculous recovery?

[Jarred Darque]

ok, 5 inch long Striped Raphael. never comes out to play...

I try and physically check on my fish every few weeks, mainly the ones I dont normally see, both my raphaels.

A few weeks ago, I looked at the striped one, the larger, and just north of his anal opening he had what looked like a horrid lesion on his soft underbelly, about between his two lower fins. It was a couple of millimeters across. the center looked like raw flesh, very red and agitated, the outer border was white, whereas his belliesnormal coloring is a grayish color.

Sounds really bad huh? Well, I had already ordered meds for the tank, but when they came in a few days later I decided not to med the tank just yet. I was gonna wait till the QT was set up for him...it is expensive to med and entire 75 gallon tank for one fish.

About a week and a half after first seeing this, I looked at him again and BAM it was gone (I did check on him afew days after the first time and it was still there, unchanged) All there is now is a slight trace of a white spot about 1mm in diamter where the lesion was. His habits have not changed at all.

Does ANYONE have any idea what it is was wrong with him or still may be, the tank does have driftwood and agood bit of tannin in the water, which I hear helps fish fight off infection and diseases, hence why some SA species are more succeptable to changes in water conditions and diseases when in a normal tank.

My hypothesis, he had either a leason, infection, or jsut injured himself, and in cleared and healed on its own. Or, I was seeing the effects of some type of parasite going into him and it has entered and the wound healed over (worst case there I think) Of course, it is possible his skin deteriorated some since he never moves and that one spot was always in contact with the same surface.

Anyting at all I should do?

BTW, this same fish seems to shed ALOT of his slime coat, and has ever since I got him, about 6 months back, he was same size then as now, or near enough. His eyes are cloudy, unlike my spotted raphaels, perhaps going blind from not using them? He avoids light like the plague, but at least can tell when the lights are on or off.

i would quarentine and treat anyway. cloudy eyes are not a good sign.

=( good luck!

[Devilishturtles]

What is your nitrate reading? Sounds like maybe your tank has a high level. How often do you do water changes?

He likely healed himself up all good. Amazing what fish can do with good water quality. Hard to tell what it was initially, could be a nick, could have been a bacterial infection.

Glad its gone though.

[Jarred Darque]

Ah I can get nitrate readin later today.

The cloudy eyes have always been there, and many raphael owners say that their fish has them as well, whether they always have or it hapened over time seems to vary though