I have a young male by himself in a 5-gal and when I did a water change he got pretty frisky, and the next day I saw a slight bump on his face, sort of on his chin. It's gotten bigger, and seems to have spread towards his gill opening. I checked the "disease" articles but this seems like an accident (?). Is is possible that he actually bumped into the rock (in a corner)? Or should I be worrying about some kind of disease? He seems to feel fine and eats everything he can. His water is very clean, with plants, I do weekly changes. Is there a First Aid procedure? I'm posting this here because I've never seen a fish hurt himself, all by himself, before. And this is my first experience with gouramis --- beautiful fish --- but clumsy? Delicate skin?
Are gouramis accident prone?
- Thread starter Bling
- Start date
First things first -
What kind of gourami? I assume a dwarf?
How long have you had him?
How many water changes have you done since you first got him?
What do you feed him?
Does he eat well?
Is he showing any other unusual signs of disease or distress?
Is the tank cycled?
What are water parameters like?
Do you have a heater he may have burnt himself on?
What other decorations are in the tank (besides the rock you mentioned)?
Are there any floating plants?
I can't say what may have caused this bump but it may well be a bacterial infection (as it's spreading) that resulted from injury. The thing is, if he is alone in a small tank and there is no room for other fish and he is new to the tank and doesn't have adequate cover, he will be nervous and easily startled. Obviously, this could lead to accidents. If the water quality is not excellent and/or the tank hasn't cycled or is over-stocked, it is very easy for the gourami's wound to be infected. Dwarf gouramies also typicaly have a weakened immune system due to inbreeding so are more succeptible to disease. It could also be fungus or an internal bacterial infection...
To decide what can be done for him, you need to describe this 'bump' in more detail - color? texture? when did you first see it? etc... and his behaviour - eating normaly? appetite? shy? swimming? lethargic? etc. and also answer my above questions.
BTW, did you use de-chlorinator when you changed the water?
What kind of gourami? I assume a dwarf?
How long have you had him?
How many water changes have you done since you first got him?
What do you feed him?
Does he eat well?
Is he showing any other unusual signs of disease or distress?
Is the tank cycled?
What are water parameters like?
Do you have a heater he may have burnt himself on?
What other decorations are in the tank (besides the rock you mentioned)?
Are there any floating plants?
I can't say what may have caused this bump but it may well be a bacterial infection (as it's spreading) that resulted from injury. The thing is, if he is alone in a small tank and there is no room for other fish and he is new to the tank and doesn't have adequate cover, he will be nervous and easily startled. Obviously, this could lead to accidents. If the water quality is not excellent and/or the tank hasn't cycled or is over-stocked, it is very easy for the gourami's wound to be infected. Dwarf gouramies also typicaly have a weakened immune system due to inbreeding so are more succeptible to disease. It could also be fungus or an internal bacterial infection...
To decide what can be done for him, you need to describe this 'bump' in more detail - color? texture? when did you first see it? etc... and his behaviour - eating normaly? appetite? shy? swimming? lethargic? etc. and also answer my above questions.
BTW, did you use de-chlorinator when you changed the water?
Sorry, I should have added more info! He's an "ordinary" Mosaic or Pearl gourami, not a dwarf. I've had him a little over a month. Yes, the water was cycled, at room temperature (70's). We got him, and a female, for mosquito control outside, but it got very hot, so I brought them in (and saw then how beautiful they are). Then the weather cooled, but I kept them in. (I'm in Hawaii.) The male kept attacking the female, so she's in another tank now. I use mostly rainwater, but some tap water with the conditioners. He eats everything, from flakes, to frozen, to his favorite, mosquito larvae. The water is about 7.4; I've changed water about 3 times; there a pothos in one corner, with only roots submerged, some elodea, and a floating hyacinth with lots of dark roots that I change regularly (with mosquito-y plants from outside) and he seems pretty happy to me. I know the tank is small but he's to be an outdoor fish soon; and he did seem nervous when I changed the water last time, but only until I finished pouring it in. Then he found some of the larvae that came from the rain barrel. The rock is coral, which I understood would help buffer the water, and I'm guessing he hit it. I didn't know a little fish would hit something hard enough to cut! And I did expect the little injury to heal, not get bigger. What should I have done when I first noticed it? What should I do now? Thanks so much for the help! This forum is really terrific.
Another note: it's not red like it looks here. I don't know why the picture came out so red.
Another note: it's not red like it looks here. I don't know why the picture came out so red.
Paradise_Gourami
Fishaholic
I know what youre talking about, my favortie fish (a paradise gourami) freaked out when i was doing a water change and cut his whole side on the undergravel tube head and died soon after.
Beautiful fish (my favourite fish infact 
I adore pearls). It does look like an injury - not an illness or parasite or anything.
He must be nervous because of the tank size. Pearl gouramies should be kept in at least a 10 gallon tank - 20 gallons is much better. They also like to have some company and that tank doesn't offer enough territory space for more than just one male pearl. Also, being moved from a large space outdoors to a tiny tank would (not surprisingly) be quite traumatic for a fish.
BTW, pearl gouramies don't like very hard water so if the pH gets any higher than 7.5, I would take the coral out. Actualy, it may be best to take the coral out anyway so he doesn't get injured again.
There is no reason for this injury to be fatal. If it hasn't been infected the fish should heal and be fine. You could add some salt (just a little though) to the water to help him out but just keeping the water very clean and at a highish temperature (which speeds up metabolism so he heals faster) should be enough.
It is essential that you don't over-feed and that you remove any sharp objects prior to your next water change to avoid a repeat of this. I would also advise feeding him more live foods if you aren't already, as this is what he was eating outside.
I adore pearls). It does look like an injury - not an illness or parasite or anything. He must be nervous because of the tank size. Pearl gouramies should be kept in at least a 10 gallon tank - 20 gallons is much better. They also like to have some company and that tank doesn't offer enough territory space for more than just one male pearl. Also, being moved from a large space outdoors to a tiny tank would (not surprisingly) be quite traumatic for a fish.
BTW, pearl gouramies don't like very hard water so if the pH gets any higher than 7.5, I would take the coral out. Actualy, it may be best to take the coral out anyway so he doesn't get injured again.
There is no reason for this injury to be fatal. If it hasn't been infected the fish should heal and be fine. You could add some salt (just a little though) to the water to help him out but just keeping the water very clean and at a highish temperature (which speeds up metabolism so he heals faster) should be enough.
It is essential that you don't over-feed and that you remove any sharp objects prior to your next water change to avoid a repeat of this. I would also advise feeding him more live foods if you aren't already, as this is what he was eating outside.
Thanks, everyone! I'm going to move a lot more slowly during the next water change, and remove the coral. I might have to change his name to Scarface, but at least I'm glad to report the injury hasn't gotten any worse. He's still only about 2 and a half inches, so I thought the tank would be big enough. I'll be getting a bigger one soon. I'm just not sure I'm going to want to move him outside where I can't see him (and her!) Oh, and yeah, they get LOTS of live food. It's funny the way they both beg for it, and slurp it right out of the eyedropper.
catwoman
Fish Fanatic
I've had fish hurt themselves. one of my SAE's scraped a bunch of skin off his side once on something. I used Melafix right away for about a week and he healed up quickly.
Hi Bling
I've never heard of any of our members keeping a gourami outside for mosquito control before. It must be really nice to live in Hawaii!
Gouramis are fast swimmers and can hit the side or the top of the tank when they run out of room, so I hope you do move them to a larger tank soon. Also, be sure they have a cover on the tank so they don't go flying out. (I've lost a gourami that way.
)
Also, I've always heard that it was not good to keep coral in a tank with fresh water fish. It dissolves over time and could also have sharp edges that could cause injury.
I've never heard of any of our members keeping a gourami outside for mosquito control before. It must be really nice to live in Hawaii!
Gouramis are fast swimmers and can hit the side or the top of the tank when they run out of room, so I hope you do move them to a larger tank soon. Also, be sure they have a cover on the tank so they don't go flying out. (I've lost a gourami that way.
)Also, I've always heard that it was not good to keep coral in a tank with fresh water fish. It dissolves over time and could also have sharp edges that could cause injury.
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