malajulinka
New Member
I just went to feed my tetras, and one of the cardinal's mouths was weirdly open. I said to him, "What is wrong with your face?" There is actually a black line in there, literally as if he bit down on a stick and it's propping open his mouth, like in cartoons when they prop open their eyes with toothpicks to stay awake. He's swimming and shoaling just fine, and was interested in/chased after the flake, but couldn't eat it because...well...see above.
Does this sound like some kind of parasite or another disease? Or did he actually bite down on something? Should I fish him out and investigate?
To make things clearer:
Tank size: 29 gallons
pH: 7.6
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: not sure, test not included in my kit - however, has been up and running for two months, and I change 30% of the water every 2-3 days, using a dechlorinator, and the tank is planted. Last water change done yesterday.
tank temp: 82F
Tank is well cycled, tetras have been in there for two months with no problems, temp is a bit warm due to a heat wave (around 82F). I might add that last night I saw one of the cardinals with something visibly dark inside his abdomen, but decided to wait it out in case it was constipation. No way to know if this was the same fish - none are showing dark spots today. Only other tankmates are two baby BNPs added about a month ago and 3 Assassin snails - two brand new, added today, but seems unlikely they could have caused a problem in 1/2 an hour.
Advice?
Does this sound like some kind of parasite or another disease? Or did he actually bite down on something? Should I fish him out and investigate?
To make things clearer:
Tank size: 29 gallons
pH: 7.6
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: not sure, test not included in my kit - however, has been up and running for two months, and I change 30% of the water every 2-3 days, using a dechlorinator, and the tank is planted. Last water change done yesterday.
tank temp: 82F
Tank is well cycled, tetras have been in there for two months with no problems, temp is a bit warm due to a heat wave (around 82F). I might add that last night I saw one of the cardinals with something visibly dark inside his abdomen, but decided to wait it out in case it was constipation. No way to know if this was the same fish - none are showing dark spots today. Only other tankmates are two baby BNPs added about a month ago and 3 Assassin snails - two brand new, added today, but seems unlikely they could have caused a problem in 1/2 an hour.
Advice?
He dislodged it himself and is swimming around with his mouth normal and closed, indistinguishable from his buddies.
