Please Help My Cardinal Tetra :-(

[Calico]

Hi everyone - nice to meet you all ! I hope someone can help as I dont know what to do here, nor how to treat this.

One of my cardinal tetras has something funky going on. Firstly, it looks as though the flesh surrounding the dorsal fin is being eaten away - its all fleshy, but not bloody (doubt its finrot). The dorsal fin is nealy gone, yet all other fins look fine. Secondly, there is something that looks like a white worm thing around its right eye. The other tetras seem uneffected, except there is another one which has like a little bubble type thing under one of the pectoral fins and inder the chin - not sure if this is related.

Have filled the info out below as best as I can. I have tried to photograph this fish, but it is very difficult as they are so little.

I would like to treat the whole tank before more fish get these symptoms, but just dont know what to treat for - I dont want to treat with unecessary meds.

I have separated the school of tetras into a QT tank for now. Am thinking maybe start with salt until I can find some answers? Can cardinals handle salt?

Can anyone help me?

Thank you all for reading

Tank size: 66 gallon (250 litres)
pH: 7.6
ammonia: 0
nitrIte: 0
nitrAte: 5
All tested with API Freshwater Master Test Kit (Drops)

kH: unknown
gH: unknown (I can test with those unreliable strips, but do not have drops for kH & gH)

tank temp: currently 80F

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
Leision/fleshy/open area around dorsal fin. White worm-like thing resembling roundworm surrounding one eye, fish looks skinnier than other tetras. Fish eating, swimming and schooling as normal, colour has not faded.

Volume and Frequency of water changes: around 50% weekly. Water it tested twice a week.

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: just water conditioner with each water change - ceramic rings, black sponge and wool in external filter, and sponge only in additional internal filter.

Tank inhabitants:
6 cardinal tetras
2 dwarf gouramis
2 juvenile angelfish
6 corys
7 rams
3 balloon mollies
4 guppies


Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration): last fish (angelfish) was added approx 6 weeks ago

Exposure to chemicals: no known chemical exposure

Digital photo (include if possible):

Sorry, photos are not good. The white ring around the eye is the worm thing - first and second pics. The dorsal is all fleshy as you can see.

 

[Calico]

Anyone?

Am taking this fish into lfs today to see if anyone there can help me out.

Would love to find out what this is and treat it asap if possible .

 

[Uriel]

Is it possible the Angel fish or any of the other fish attacked the cardinal and tore the fin up and caused pop eye from the trauma ? This is purely a guess on my part as i'm no expert on these things.

 

[Calico]

Thanks so much for the reply Uriel

I guess its possible it was attacked in that spot and got infected (doent look pussy) - however, it isnt popeye. Its hard to see in the pics, but it actually looks like a distinct white worm attached around the eye. It doesnt go all the way around the eye, - about 3/4s and looks like something I that could be pulled off with tweezers - although I woldnt try this LOL. The closest thing I can find to this on google is roundworm.

Its possible the dorsal fin is unrelated to the eye thing... maybe it is. Im really suspicious of a parasitic attack, but as mentioned, all the other fish in the aquarium seem fine (for now anyway). Although eating well, this tetra is substantally thinner/skinnier than the other tetras - again hard to really see in photos.

I should also mention that when I bought these tetras, I noticed this one tetra seemed to have a strange dorsal fin, almost like a double fin. I just put it down to a deformity at the time and was not concerned, but now Im not so sure as it is the same tetra with the fleshy fin.