Larger Than 'ich' White Spot On Otocinclus

[ilikepotatoes]

I just got 2 new otos in my freshwater community tank. They've been doing fine for a couple weeks, but one of them suddenly got a white spot at the base of its fin.

It is larger and definitely doesn't look like ich. Can anybody identify the spot and what it is? (Picture below)

Tank size: 25G
pH: 7.2
ammonia: 0ppm
nitrite: 0ppm
nitrate: 20ppm
tank temp: 74 F

Fish Symptoms: My oto recently (in the last 24 hours) started hanging around the top of the aquarium heater exclusively. This is right next to where the outflow of one of my HOB filters is, but he hangs around the other side of the heater, not directly in the current. He has a large white spot on the base of his fin (see picture) which does not look like ich.

Volume and Frequency of water changes: 10-15 percent water changes, once a week.

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: I added 5ml PimaFix after discovering the spot, but previously there were no other additives.

Tank inhabitants:
1 Red Platy
4 Otocinclus
2 Male Guppies
6 Neon Tetras
1 Golden Dojo Loach (which I am about to move to a cold-water tank.)

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration): 1 piece of driftwood with Java Fern attached from the same tank at the LFS where I bought the Oto, and one other Oto.

Exposure to chemicals: PimaFix, and whatever was in the water at the LFS

Digital photo:

There is a spot right at the base of the fin where the arrow is pointing.
It's the clearest picture I could get of the little guy.

 

[CysticCrab]

looks like ich to me, one of my tiger barbs had ich pretty bad after my friend though it wold be funny to add some to my tank whilst i was gone for the weekend, he got it really bad, and they were huge, i thought the same thing but turns out it was just ich GL

 

[XeroTolerance]

Looks like ich.

It seems like it is relatively new to your tank. Is there enough algae? Is there enough supplemented veggies, like zucchini? 2 isn't enough, otos prefer to be in groups of at least 5 or more. They eat a ton of algae. Thats why they aren't usually good for normal tanks because they will starve and they take a lot of work to take care of.

It is probably stressed out and has developed ich.

 

[ilikepotatoes]

looks like ich to me, one of my tiger barbs had ich pretty bad after my friend though it wold be funny to add some to my tank whilst i was gone for the weekend, he got it really bad, and they were huge, i thought the same thing but turns out it was just ich GL

I'm definitely not going to rule ich out, but I just dealt with a case of ich a few weeks ago, spots, even the largest, were not that large. The picture doesn't show the spot too clearly, but it looks almost like fungus since it is so large.

 

[ilikepotatoes]

Looks like ich.

It seems like it is relatively new to your tank. Is there enough algae? Is there enough supplemented veggies, like zucchini? 2 isn't enough, otos prefer to be in groups of at least 5 or more. They eat a ton of algae. Thats why they aren't usually good for normal tanks because they will starve and they take a lot of work to take care of.

It is probably stressed out and has developed ich.

I have 4 Otos in my 25G currently. The other two I bought at a chain pet store over 8 months ago and they are doing fine. I supplement with zucchini and spinach about 1-2 times per week, which my other fish seem to enjoy also.

But like in my reply earlier, it really does not look like ich in person. Again, the picture isn't too clear, but it looks like too large of a spot; almost looks like a teeny cotton ball. I will not rule out ich yet though.

 

[SaTiVa1984]

I had something similar on my discus not so long ago, my forum post about it is Here.

I suspected it was Ich, and was preparing for mass treatment of the whole tank, but after 3-4 days i saw no other infections on my other fish or any change on the discus, after daily water changes of 40-50% it gradually got smaller in size and lost its white colour.

 

[Prime Ordeal]

The picture doesn't show the spot too clearly, but it looks almost like fungus since it is so large.

Even before I saw this sentence and even with the poor picture quality I thought - fungus. I'd treat it with a general fungus med.

 

[AshP1986]

This looks like the same thing my guppy has... I have no clue what it is though it looks like it is under the skin as well... I posted a a topic to try to get some ideas, but I'm still not sure what to use to treat him. I am treating with Pimafix, but it says to remove carbon media if possible. I am not sure if there is carbon in my media filter I use

So far the fish is acting as frisky as ever, if not more so, but the spot has not decreased in size at all. I am on day 4 of the recommended 7 day treatment.

 

[ilikepotatoes]

I had something similar on my discus not so long ago, my forum post about it is Here.

I suspected it was Ich, and was preparing for mass treatment of the whole tank, but after 3-4 days i saw no other infections on my other fish or any change on the discus, after daily water changes of 40-50% it gradually got smaller in size and lost its white colour.

Thanks for the link, it looks like what my oto has so I'm hoping for the best.

 

[ilikepotatoes]

I am treating with Pimafix, but it says to remove carbon media if possible. I am not sure if there is carbon in my media filter I use

I use the same filter cartridges in my cold-water tank. They do have carbon in them. What I did when I was treating for Ich was cut around the mesh lining and just shook all the carbon out. After the treatment, I just placed a media bag with carbon in to remove the meds. Good Luck!

 

[ilikepotatoes]

Even before I saw this sentence and even with the poor picture quality I thought - fungus. I'd treat it with a general fungus med.

I've never dealt with fungus before; any suggestions? I have PimaFix in there, but I know it's more of a holistic approach and is better for preventative purposes. I've never had much luck with MelaFix either.

 

[Prime Ordeal]

Otos can be more sensitive to meds than most other fish. It can be less stressful to treat with iodine. You have to catch the oto and put him on a small clean cloth soaked in tank water. If you can cover his head with a corner of the cloth it should calm him enough to be able to do the job. Then use a dry cotton bud (q-tip) to gently brush the fungus off as best you can and then paint the iodine onto the fungus area (again with a cotton bud) making sure any excess iodine runs towards the tail and not the head. Leave him for 10 seconds or so and then pour tank water over him to wash off the iodine before returning to the tank. Clearly this is stressful to the oto but a couple of minutes of stress compared to days of continued medcation, which will also affect the other fish, may be better. Repeat if the fungus returns.

 

[ilikepotatoes]

Update.

Ich has been ruled out. I turned the temp up slowly in case it was ich to see how if it would progress, but the spot is still in the same spot and is still the same size. It's probably fungus and I'll try to brush it off soon. Will continue the PimaFix treatment.

Btw, thanks for all the responses. I'm new to forums and this has really helped :3

 

[SaTiVa1984]

Btw, thanks for all the responses. I'm new to forums and this has really helped :3

No problem

Keep us updated on how its going.

 

[AshP1986]

The spot on my fish hasn't changed either... I don't think the pimafix is working and have added Rid-Fungus to the regimen at the suggestion of a lfs employee and fish fanatic.