Earmuff Wrasse in QT

[skyrne_isk]

there is an odd protrusion on the smaller wrasse I have in QT for about three weeks now. I have two pics of him. the fish is eating mysis and pellets, but will often spit food out (which is odd for Halichoeres wrasses, IME) after eating. Not everything, but usually greedy wrasses don't do this. The bump on his ventral side has come up in the last couple days and I am stumped. It looks to be just superior to the vent (or in front of).

The pictures don't make it easy to see, but there are two angles....

Any ideas?

Here's maybe a clearer shot after cleaning the glass. QT is filthy....

 

[HumbleFish]

Can't tell anything from the pics (too small). Can you post larger pics (closeups) or describe? Is the protrusion a cauliflower-like growth? I'm wondering if it's Lymphocystis...

 

[skyrne_isk]

it's definitely an internal bulge, and it's moving toward the fish's anus. how to confirm if it's sand/rock/constipation or internal parasites? I'm dreading the thought of an internal infection, medicated food is almost impossible for me to implement. if it's constipation, are we talking wait and see or dropping the SG?

I'll see about a better pic.

 

[HumbleFish]

it's definitely an internal bulge, and it's moving toward the fish's anus. how to confirm if it's sand/rock/constipation or internal parasites? I'm dreading the thought of an internal infection, medicated food is almost impossible for me to implement. if it's constipation, are we talking wait and see or dropping the SG?

I'll see about a better pic.

I'd first try the least invasive solution, a peeled boiled pea. That will sometimes relieve constipation in fish. Might be hard to get a wrasse to eat a pea, but you also don't have much to lose by trying.

If it's an internal infection, you could try antibiotics in QT. Or metronidazole treats intestinal parasites (another possibility).

 

[skyrne_isk]

Here are some better shots. TIA

 

[skyrne_isk]

Yeah, I have a conistipated fish. His appetite is dwindling - a feeding response but little food actually going down. Usually it gets spit back out. Is there anything to do but wait and hope on this?

 

[HumbleFish]

Yeah, I have a conistipated fish. His appetite is dwindling - a feeding response but little food actually going down. Usually it gets spit back out. Is there anything to do but wait and hope on this?

Did you try the pea?

 

[skyrne_isk]

I did, but he wouldn't go for it.

 

[HumbleFish]

I did, but he wouldn't go for it.

Will he eat any greens at all? I know some of my wrasses will pick at nori. And nori contains iodine which can help with constipation. You might also try feeding "Ocean Plankton" (Hikari sells it), as that should be high in carotene another natural laxative. Another option is dosing mag sulfate aka Epsom salt, 1 tablespoon per 5 gals. Epsom salt is a mild muscle relaxant, so it might help as well..

 

[skyrne_isk]

I think the idea tonight will be to try some nori based pellets at feeding along with epsom salt dosing.

What about manually expressing the bowels? I realize I would have to be careful not to crush his swim bladder or do other internal damage, but the distention looks very localized to the vent of the fish. Catching him may be tricky, even he is lurking in the rockwork a lot. This behavior is the opposite of how wrasses act.

 

[triggreef]

Will he eat any greens at all? I know some of my wrasses will pick at nori. And nori contains iodine which can help with constipation. You might also try feeding "Ocean Plankton" (Hikari sells it), as that should be high in carotene another natural laxative. Another option is dosing mag sulfate aka Epsom salt, 1 tablespoon per 5 gals. Epsom salt is a mild muscle relaxant, so it might help as well..

Interesting information. I've had few of these same situations with wrasses mostly all fatal. Was not aware of the above info though. Next time I'll be better prepared.

To the OP could you continue to update this? I'd really like to see how it plays out. Good luck

 

[HumbleFish]

What about manually expressing the bowels? I realize I would have to be careful not to crush his swim bladder or do other internal damage, but the distention looks very localized to the vent of the fish. Catching him may be tricky, even he is lurking in the rockwork a lot. This behavior is the opposite of how wrasses act.

Sounds risky. Then again, "fish surgery" has never been my strong suit.

 

[frogdog]

Yeah, I have a conistipated fish. His appetite is dwindling - a feeding response but little food actually going down. Usually it gets spit back out. Is there anything to do but wait and hope on this?

If it's life or death, personally, I would try the epsom salts. Magnesium salts like Magnesium hydroxide and Magnesium sulfate are both used in humans for constipation. I don't know about how Magnesium sulfate affects fish digestion but I know it's used for other ailments. The advantage of using it is that the fish will absorb it even if he doesn't feel like eating.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a601073.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3036964/

 

[HumbleFish]

What about manually expressing the bowels? I realize I would have to be careful not to crush his swim bladder or do other internal damage, but the distention looks very localized to the vent of the fish. Catching him may be tricky, even he is lurking in the rockwork a lot. This behavior is the opposite of how wrasses act.

I've also read about people puncturing these "bubbles" with a fine needle. Again, no actual experience... but you might wanna do some research into that.

 

[skyrne_isk]

Epsom salts went in last night. The bulge is now a hugely distended abdomen from gills to anus and the fish is having a hard time swimming. We'll see this evening if any progress has been made. IME, once the backed up digestive system is this bad it is usually game over.... but we'll see - wrasses are tough.

Surprisingly, the fish could move enough that it was still difficult to catch, though. I took a shot at netting to try expressing the bowels with external pressure application but the fish's ability to still move made me think to let it see what 24 hours of Epsom therapy would do. To your points above, it is a natural laxative - mostly magnesium in content.