Hole In Head...not On The Head?

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dcfeeiv

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so I come home from school for winter break and a few of the family fish in the 55 gal tank have died (2 green brochis catfish over the span of about 3 months)
well on a few of my silver dollars have what looks like hole in the head but its near their anal fin
looks like craters and such back there
water parameters are normal
ammonia @ 0 ppm
nitrite @ 0 ppm
nitrate @ 40 ppm its normally around 10-20
 
You can get lateral line get you some info.

Head & Lateral Line Erosion

Taken from this link.

http://www.fish-disease.net/diseases.htm


Symptoms:

This disease is marked by open pitted wounds around a fish's head and along the lateral line, as if something is slowly eroding away the flesh. It is very similar to the freshwater disease Hole-In-The-Head. Head & Lateral Line Erosion (HLLE) is not fatal in the short run, but if the disease continues to progress, the fish will stop eating and become lethargic. Furthermore, the open wounds caused by HLLE make the fish susceptible to other infections which in turn leads to the further deterioration of its health. These secondary infections are usually the cause of death.



Cause:

Unknown cause, although it is thought that there may be several contributing causes including stray voltage in the aquarium, poor water quality and environmental conditions, high nitrate levels, lack of vitamins and poor nutrition, stress, parasitic infestation (the protozoan Octomita necatrix), or using carbon. Some fish, like Tangs and Surgeonfish, seem to be genetically predisposed to this disease.

The lateral line aids fish in detecting small microvoltages emmited by prey or predators during muscle contraction. The induced voltages from any submerged coil device such as a powerhead, heater, and pump can all add voltage to the tank. This stray voltage can irritate a fish's lateral line if it's constantly stimulating it and eventually lead to erosion of the skin overlying this structure.



Treatment:

Medications do not seem to do much for this disease, although the use of medicated food is recommended to prevent bacterial secondary infections. The best intervention, however, seems to be improving the water quality and supplementing the fish's diet with vitamins, particularly vitamins A, B, D, and E as well as iodine. This can be done several ways. Food can be soaked in water with a drop of liquid multivitamins, such as Selcon or Zoe. Alternatively, fish could be fed fresh or frozen vegetables, such as broccoli, zuchinni, and peas.

The importance of good regular aquarium maintenance cannot be stressed enough. Eliminate any stress-inducing factors. It might also be a good idea to add a grounding probe to the aquarium if you suspect that there may be stray voltage in the aquarium.
 
Any pics of the sick fish?
Holes in the body and fins are usually caused by bacterial infections. Try doing a few big water changes and complete gravel cleans. Check the filter and give it a clean if it hasn't been done in the last month. Then treat the tank with a broad spectrum medication like "Waterlife Protozin" or “Wardley's Promethyasul".
 
the circled part
 

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need a slightly better pic than that I'm afraid. Grab your camera and keep snapping until you get a good image, then we can have a look :)

Their tails look a bit frayed and damaged in the middle. That could be something nipping at them or a bacterial infection. What else is in the tank with them?
 
heres a better picture

also if it is indeed lateral line/hole in the head ive read both that htth is contagious and not contagious
 

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this is a good link
http://www.worldcichlids.com/diseases/Adamhith.html

not saying you have HITH but you can look at pictures and see..........

good diet / healthy water<frequent water changes> all help for HITH :good:

what other fish do you have in the tank,,,<might be attacking them<could even be them>i aqquired a spotted silver dollar a fw weeks go and it does like to attack the rear of fishes near the tail on side of bodies :rolleyes:
As said pics not great<sorry> but looking at blurry pic could be missing scales and an infection :unsure:
 

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