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My dojo loach has what looks like a puncture wound to its lower body. It is swollen, red, and almost cyst/boil like with a puncture in the center.The swollen area is dime size and protruding from the body. there are no red streaks- but it is blood red in color.

after searching threw the tank, i think i found what caused it- a small piece of wood came off a larger piece of driftwood that was screwed down to slate- the tip end of a screw was exposed.

This is day 2( or3) and no one else in the tank is behaving strangly, the dojo in question is qt'd.

Im treating with jungle fungus clear tank buddies tabs, and medicated food, but she isnt eating. She has heavy, labored respirations, and is very lethargic. with the dojo being scaleless- im not sure if i should try something stronger. Ive used this med before on the tank, and it didnt harm her.

DID a water change on the 55 gal tank she was in sat morning, water was 0/0/20 before the change and 0/0/and just above 0, not 10 on nitrATES- barely registered.
current occupants on the 55 is 2 (4 to 5 in) blue gouramis, 2 dojo loaches, 8 zebra danios, 1 molly, 1 platy. Tank is sand sub, and driftwood, and some live plants.

IS there anything else i can do for the dojo??

Last edited by hca at 19-Apr-2005 09:55

Last edited by hca at 19-Apr-2005 10:03

Last edited by hca at 19-Apr-2005 10:04

Hi Holly, sorry this happened, and sorry we didn't see your post. We may have been tricked by the number of replies. I don't have as much time as I use to so I hunt down 0 and 1 reply posts more often than not.

With injuries as you describe, salt is one of the biggest first aid treatments that should be provided. Fish can go easily into osmotic shock with any opening in the skin or gills, not to mention a bigger gaping wound.

Freshwater aquarium salt should be dosed immediately and because some of the fish are sensitive, you can dose a little lower and a little slower. Always raise and lower salinity slowly and the fish, even scaleless, will tolerate it better.

Usually we would dissolve 1 Tbsp/5 gallons, but with scaleless fish, let's go for half of that. Make sure it is freshwater aquarium salt. Doc Wellfish will dissolve fast in hot water, just remember the conditioner. Then dribble a little in every 1-2 hours throughout the day. YOu can spread it over 12-24 hours. Watch for stress and if you see it, wait longer before trying to add a smidget more.

I'm going to suggest that you start with a partial water change and dilute the Fungus Clear a little unless you used a half dose. If you did that, it is fine. The fish may be stressing from the full dose. If you knew with 100% certainty that it was a mechanical injury, it may not even be necessary, but is a good precaution. I use melafix and/or pimafix in such cases first and watch for infection.

If he sustained internal injuries as a result of the puncture wound, then there is little you can do for him. My guess is he will either expire in the next 24-48 hours, or will perk up with the salt and heal, if he is not damaged internally.

Keep us updated and I hope he is still with us.

yes he is still with us, but not well.

Dosing at half strenth, changing 25 % of water daily, redosing every other day.

Will add salt asap

hasnt eaten since sat afternoon- i fast the fish on the weekends

Im not sure when the wound happened- was 100% ok sat am- mon am was like this.I work weekend double shifts- so i didnt check the fishies, and this happens....

the hole is small- but the swollen red area around the hole is what is large

The wound is behind the top fin, on the lower 1/4 of his length.it is a good inch behind the anus- Im not good at fish anatomy, but i dont htink there is many organs back there is there???

Id give you a picture- but with the colored water and my crappy camara you cant see much its really blurry

I know your busy cory- thanks for helping out!
edit to add- to help explain it better i did a quick mock up of what the wound looks like and put it on photo bucket

the red area is the swollen area- most of it is blood red, the black dot is the puncture- the white is just the area affected heres a link

http://photobucket.com/albums/y8/Hollyca75/?action=view&current=dojomockup.jpg


Last edited by hca at 19-Apr-2005 13:11

well amazingly he is still with us. He did eat a small bit last night- about a 1/4 or less of what is normal for him, but its a good sign that hes trying to eat.
nothing else has changed. Wound and the larger are around the wound still looks the same.

If you have melafix or pimafix you may want to follow up with that. I like Pimafix a little better. Otherwise, if you see anything change that appears to be infecting, use the Fungus Clear, but at half dose.

have melafix- switching to that, with the salt.

Area is still very swollen, but the redness is leaving and returning to normal coloration. She was swimming around this am. Still not eating much, but eating a little. I think shes gonna pull threw.

Cory_Di- thank you very much
Holly

I would try putting some fishy treats in the tank to entice eating...is there something your dojo likes in particular? Blood worms? Water fleas?

I've got a fever... and the only prescription... is more cowbell!

Update

Swelling is almost gone, and the redness is almost gone- leaving 2 small wounds that are closing- now that the swelling is just about gone, they look like short but deep scratches.

He is more active, but not eating well, hoping that catches up soon.

Ive tried a number of foods, he just doesnt seem interested- a nibble or 2 and thats it. He is usually a fishy garbage disposal- hoping is appetite comes back soon. Ive tried blood worms, shrimp pellets, flake, algea wafers,and a bit of earthworms from my organic compost pile( usually goes nuts for those)- not much of a difference in what i offer- but a few nibbles is better than nothing.

What you still don't know is if internal damage occurred. Time will tell. I've been involved in other threads where there were severe mechanical injuries that healed, only to have the fish suddenly expire over night a month later.

I don't say this to be discouraging, only to help you keep in mind that what will be, will be. Don't push him too much. He may also be doing what his injured body requires of him at this time.

I should add that you might consider some small water changes daily for a bit to help him out. Those, in just 10% increments can be helpful.