Sick Ram

[pickwick]

Hello all
I am trying to find out some info for my husband. He has two Rams and one of them has some sort of growth comming out of it's gill. It is only on one side and is growing. Can these fish get tumors? Cause thats what it looks like. THe fish was doing well up until yesterday. This growth has been getting bigger for about 10 days, and now this fish is hiding under a plant and not really moving much. The "tumor" is a pinky-flesh color with white spots. Any ideas? and is there anything we can do for this poor little fish?

Thanks for you help.

 

[TCTFish]

You should set up a QT and do a bit of research to find an appropriate medication. The fish needs to be isolated. A QT can be inexpensive and very simple. A bare bottom tank (five to ten gallons) with a heater, thermometer, air pump driven sponge filter and a hide out for the fish...preferrably plastic and non porous.

Could you get us a photo?

Here are some questions...

How many gallons is the tank?
Type of filter?
How long has the tank been up and running with fish in it?
What are the water parameters? Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH...numbers please.
How long have you had the rams?
What other fish are in the tank?

 

[pickwick]

sick ram

Hi there,

This is the husband now. I am sad to say that when I woke up this morning the Ram was dead. He was very swollen for the last couple of days, and when I took him out of the tank there was some blood coming out of his gill on the one side by the growth. I am thinking that this growth was also inside the Rams belly.

Here is some info about my tank.

40g Tank

1 Red Turqois Discus
1 Ram now
4 Rummy Nose
100's of Trumpet snails

3 bunches of water wysteria
2 bunches of java fern
some rocks
1 pot
1 piece of wood
sand substrate
1 air stone
aqua clear 300 - do not use carbon

temp 84
pH 6.5
Ammonia 0
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 5

The tank has been running for a year now and has been through us moving 2 months ago. The Rams were the first 2 fish in the tank. I added th Discus about 6 months ago, and the Rummy nose about 1 month ago. Everything has been fine. I change 25% of the water 2X/week. I also use 2 tsp./week of aqutic plant fertilizer.

There is a picture of the ram that I took about 5 days ago. Not a great pic. but if you look you can see the growth by the gill.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a48/pikwik2005/Pikwiks Watery World/100_1762.jpg

 

[TCTFish]

I can see the redness but not any of the growth's texture. Wouldn't be able to get a positive ID on what the growth was unless it's examined through a necropsy. It could be a tumor. Could be an irritation from parasites in the gill that became infected. The gill could have been injured and infected. You may or may not ever know.

Your bio looks really good, so water quality is out of the equation. Keep an eye on the other fish. Wait a little while before replacing the ram (at least two weeks or more). At this point in time with the little info known on the cause of this growth and the fact the little guy died, observing the remaining fish for any signs of illness or lesions (loss of appetite, unusal behavior, sores, etc) is all you can really do.

Do you use a QT when you get new fish?

 

[pickwick]

No I have never used a QT, but I have a 10g Tank collecting dust that I could set up and use. I think I will set it up.

 

[TCTFish]

Good. You already have the most important part. Don't need to make it too elaborate. Bare bottom with heater, thermometer, a simple filter, and a hide out for the fish...something plastic and non porous. Makes for easier treatment if treatment becomes necessary.

Two week isolation is generally recommended for new fish. This gives enough time for anything to break out if the fish are infected with anything...parasites, bacterial problems, etc.

It is a good idea to sanitize the QT after each use. Change water completely and soak filter and hide out in one parts bleach to four parts water for at least 30 minutes. It generally takes 20 minutes for chlorine to kill microorganisms. Rinse well after soak, then soak again, but just in fresh water and heavily dechlorinated. Rinse again and it's all set to go again. This will avoid transferring any unwanted bacteria and parasites to the next fish that goes into the QT.

It can also double as a hospital tank when any fish get sick in the main tank.