Dwarf Sucker Mouth Catfish (Otto'S - Redness Under Chin

[2tropicalfishies]

We have a dwarf sucker-mouth catfish which we are concerned about. It has been fine since we put it in our tank some 4 months ago, however just today we noticed it hanging off a leaf almost upside down (we thought it was dead). This lasted for some 10 minutes or more till it finally moved onto another leaf. Upon looking at it more closely it appears that the fish has a redness appearing from the underside of its body (under the mouth/chin area). We are concerned that this could be an issue as it does appear to be a tad sluggish today. We do have companion dwarf suckermouth catfish (ottos) in with it and they seem fine. It is in a 63 litre tank, with a variety of other fish including Gouramis, glass catfish, yoyo loaches and neons. All levels are normal and Ph is 7, tank temperature is 27 degrees. We did put some melafix in the water yesterday to assist our Gourami with his ailment (assistance needed with the gourami as well, on another posting), so are unsure whether 4ml of this chemical could be problematic for the catfish.

If anyone could give any suggestions what this redness is we would be most appreciative. Also, whether melafix is an issue.

Thank you in anticipation.

 

[kelly528]

Sounds like poor water quality, specifically burns. That area that is getting irritated is his gills. Otos are really sensitive to water quality. $10 says it's the Melafix... I believe it's capable of damaging the labyrinth organ in fish like bettas and gourami so it doesn't suprise me that it's doing a number on scaleless fish. In the future, always isolate a fish to medicate it, unless it is a tank-wide illness like ich.

 

[2tropicalfishies]

Thank you for your thoughts on what could be wrong with our dwarf suckerfish catfish, we appreciate your thoughts. Unfortunatley after coming home after being out today we found him/her had passed away. We will keep your thoughts in mind for our other catfish, just incase they come up with the same problems. Thanks again kelly528 for replying.

 

[kelly528]

Thank you for your thoughts on what could be wrong with our dwarf suckerfish catfish, we appreciate your thoughts. Unfortunatley after coming home after being out today we found him/her had passed away. We will keep your thoughts in mind for our other catfish, just incase they come up with the same problems. Thanks again kelly528 for replying.

Aww sorry to hear that

 

[waterdrop]

Hi 2tropicalfishies and welcome to TFF!

Just glancing back at all your threads I find its not clear to me that you ever discussed cycling with the beginner section members and its not clear if your tank was really cycled. (I could be way off here, lol, but you might want to discuss it.)

In all cases you mention that your "levels are all fine" with pH=7 and temp of 27C if I remember. What the members would want to know is what type of test kit you used to arrive at your numbers and if the test kit was a good one then what the numbers (for ammonia, nitrite(NO2), nitrate(NO3) for instance) really were/are?

We always like to doublecheck with newcomers to make sure their LFS has not led them down the wrong path a bit about some of these things.

~~waterdrop~~