Boesemani rainbowfish scale issue

[Clown/Loach23]

Hi guys, I'm new to posting but was worried today when I saw one of my six boesemani with a wierd white scale issue. I've had them for over a year now and don't want to lose one. I haven't had Any health related problems with them yet. Any help would be appreciated as I don't even know what it is. Picture is attached.

 

[Colin_T]

It could be the start of an ulcer, which is common in rainbowfish that have Tuberculosis (TB).

Monitor the fish and if the area develops a red sore then it is an ulcer.

Feed the fish lots of plant matter and use a goldfish flake/ pellet for them. I kept a layer of duckweed in my rainbowfish tanks and the fish ate that whenever they wanted.

I found frozen bloodworms encouraged this but a lot of people in America use frozen bloodworms and have no problems, so it depends on the brand you have available. But when I stopped feeding the frozen bloodworms, the fish stopped getting ulcers.

Do big (75%) water changes each week and gravel clean the tank whenever you do a water change.

 

[Clown/Loach23]

Is this something where I need to remove the fish from the tank or can it stay in there?

 

[Colin_T]

If the fish has TB then all the fish have it so it's pointless moving them.

Keep the fish in the main tank for the time being and add more plant matter to its diet.

Do lots of big water changes, even 75% each day for a week or so and see if that helps.

Monitor the fish and see how it goes over the next week. If it gets worse and turns into a big red sore then euthanize the fish.

 

[Clown/Loach23]

Okay this is not the fun part of the hobby. You don't recommend medicine either? Would something like 30 percent water changes everyday be sufficient? Also I was feeding frozen bloodwork something like once every 2 weeks or so that could be the cause

 

[Colin_T]

The big (75%) water changes are to try and dilute the number of disease organisms in the tank. The more water you remove, the more pathogens you remove in that water, and the fewer that are left behind to attack the fish.

Frozen bloodworms once every 2 weeks should not cause this. It might but is unlikely. When I had ulcers in my rainbowfish I was feeding a lot of frozen bloodworms every day.

Try increasing the plant matter in their diet and see if it helps.

If it is TB there is no cure due to the bacterium that infects the fish. The Mycobacteria (TB) have a waxy coating surrounding them and this prevents medications from killing them. Most other types of bacteria do not have this waxy coating and are easy to kill with medications.