Something Growing On My Gouramis Head?

[WillyRBeek]

Since I got her, i've noticed one of my gouramis has had a little growth like thing on the top of her head, but i'm not overly familiar with gouramis so I thought that may just be how some of them look. I just got a closer look at the growth though, as it seems as if it's some sort of parasite, as it looks like it has a bunch of little legs on the side, sort of like a tick. Here's a picture of the gouramis, and while you can see the little thing on her head, you can't really get a good look at it to see what exactly it is, but here's the pic anyway:

Anyone have any idea what this could be? To me, it looks like a big white tick...

 

[Bblou]

ive no idea what it is sorry, but do you mean the bit on its body? nearer the fin? like a slight lump?

 

[WillyRBeek]

ive no idea what it is sorry, but do you mean the bit on its body? nearer the fin? like a slight lump?

You can see it in the picture, the little beigeish lump on the top of the body halfway between the head and the top fin. I was taking a closer look at it and it is in fact moving around slightly, so it's some sort of parasite.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i would post that pic in the emergencies section...... don't know what it is but i know it's not normal

 

[Colin_T]

It looks like argulus or fish lice. They are almost round in shape and grey and have 4prs of legs plus a set of hooks they use to bite and hang onto their victim.
You can usually remove them by cutting the head off and then using tweezers to pull the remaining jaws out of the fish. Salt can be used to treat them as can most external parasite treatments. Often you buy the fish with one attached and if you get rid of it straight away the will be no further problems. However, if it appeared in an established tank then there is a chance it has layed eggs and more will appear over time.
Once you have removed the bug then monitor the fish for the next few days and make sure it doesn't develop any secondary problems like fungus or bacterial infections. Melafix would be ok to add to help reduce the possibility of an infection getting in.

 

[WillyRBeek]

Now this is an odd development. A few days ago I went in and bought some medication to get rid of the parasite growing on one of my gouramis. Anyway today I was just checking up on them to see if the parasite was gone, and it seems to have jumped from one gourami to another...One thing i'm wondering is: How the hell did it do that? Also: How long does this medication take to begin to have an effect?

 

[orandalove]

Now this is an odd development. A few days ago I went in and bought some medication to get rid of the parasite growing on one of my gouramis. Anyway today I was just checking up on them to see if the parasite was gone, and it seems to have jumped from one gourami to another...One thing i'm wondering is: How the hell did it do that? Also: How long does this medication take to begin to have an effect?

Thats quite strange!
I would try giving the medicine again, and maybe the parasite will be gone for good.

 

[Colin_T]

argulus can go from one fish to another whenever they want. The medication should have killed it within a few hours. Make sure there isn't any carbon in the filter because it will absorb the medication. I prefer to remove the parasites physically rather than relly on fish meds to possibly do the job.

 

[WillyRBeek]

argulus can go from one fish to another whenever they want. The medication should have killed it within a few hours. Make sure there isn't any carbon in the filter because it will absorb the medication. I prefer to remove the parasites physically rather than relly on fish meds to possibly do the job.

That is what I ended up doing. I was in the LFS last week and asked the manager about it. I was a little concerned when it had been over a week since I had added the medication, and it wasn't seeming to have any effect on the parasite. He asked me how big it was and I showed him, and he said for one that size, i'd probably have to remove it myself with a pair of tweezers, which is what I did once I got home. That was a few days ago now, and the gourami seems to be doing fine.