Mouth Problems?

[Bercey]

Hi guys, pretty new to apistos. I have 3 females and 1 male cacatuoides.

One of my females has, what looks to be, enlarged lips. Her mouth is now always open - she eats and swims around so I don't know what's wrong with her.

Any info is greatly appreciated!

 

[Duffmanj]

How long have you had these guys, are they a new addition or have you had them a while and this is a new development?

 

[Bercey]

It's a pretty new development. I've had these fish for well over a year.
I had added the male (didnt have one before), but that was before this issue. :/

 

[Duffmanj]

Perhaps the addition of the male has sparked the urge to breed in the females and they've been fighting? I've never seen it but I believe the most advanced step in apisto aggression is lip-locking

 

[gerald]

Hopefully it is lip-locking damage. If not that, then it's probably a bacterial infection. Watch out for other sores, lumps, or holes appearing on the head or body, and redness at the nostrils - indicating bacterial infection. Also, are her eyes bulging a bit more than normal? (last photo). Not a good sign.

 

[Bercey]

Hopefully it is lip-locking damage. If not that, then it's probably a bacterial infection. Watch out for other sores, lumps, or holes appearing on the head or body, and redness at the nostrils - indicating bacterial infection. Also, are her eyes bulging a bit more than normal? (last photo). Not a good sign.

I haven't specifically inspected her eyes - but I don't think they are bulging more than normal. I have noticed, though, that her gill seems 'flared'?

I have a few other fish in the tank and, at the moment, they seem ok. I've dosed some pimafix and put in an almond leaf...if it were a bacterial infection, though, what would you suggest?

 

[Avid Outdoorsman]

I am not very well versed in illnesses, but isn't the white feces in the photo a sign of a parasite?

 

[gerald]

If it's bacterial infection, treatment is a shot-in-the-dark if you cant ID what bacteria you're fighting. That said, a few of the antibiotics that sometimes "work" in shot-in-the-dark situations are Metronidazole, Flubendazole, Kanaymycin, and Oxytetracycline. Of course if you guess wrong, you're subjecting the fish to MORE stress (meds are stressful on organs), so often the best strategy when you can't ID the cause is to move the sickie to her own tank, and keep clean, warm, and well fed with nutritious live foods (mosquito larvae are probably the best, and free!). A.O.-- Intestinal parasites are one possible cause of white mucusy feces, but other things can cause it too: bacteria, organ damage, starvation, maybe even die-off of the normal intestinal bacteria after med treatment.

 

[Avid Outdoorsman]

Thank you for setting me straight Gerald. I had gone many years without any illnesses. Around the beginning of the year I brought in some wild caught A. Bitaeniata. Even though I kept them too there own tank within two weeks I was loosing fish through out my house. I lost a lot of very nice fish. The advice that apparently wasn't correct, but helped was based on the white feces. If I have a problem in the future I will be sure to post it here as soon as it starts to rear its head so I can get some proper advice. Had I not read that and seen the same scenario I would have instantly started to treat for internal parasites possibly unnecessarily.

 

[Tph]

I haven't specifically inspected her eyes - but I don't think they are bulging more than normal. I have noticed, though, that her gill seems 'flared'?I have a few other other than

I have a few other fish in the tank and and, at the moment, they seem ok. I've dosed some pimafix and put in an almond leaf...if it were a bacterial infection, though, what would you suggest?

 

[Dano1311]

I haven't specifically inspected her eyes - but I don't think they are bulging more than normal. I have noticed, though, that her gill seems 'flared'?

I have a few other fish in the tank and, at the moment, they seem ok. I've dosed some pimafix and put in an almond leaf...if it were a bacterial infection, though, what would you suggest?

Any update on the fish?

I had this with a male, must have been liplocking injury as he was back to normal within a week or so, hope yours is looking better.

 

[Bercey]

Any update on the fish?

I had this with a male, must have been liplocking injury as he was back to normal within a week or so, hope yours is looking better.

Whatever it was proved to be fatal. The fish was old, though? Over 2 years, perhaps she couldn't recover from her injuries?

I honestly don't know what it was, no other fish in the tank have been sick.

 

[Dano1311]

Whatever it was proved to be fatal. The fish was old, though? Over 2 years, perhaps she couldn't recover from her injuries?

I honestly don't know what it was, no other fish in the tank have been sick.

sorry to hear that if anything saving grace is that it hasnt been passed on to any of the other fish.