Water Cow Goby Needing A Diagnosis

[spottycat]

Alright, so I have had this goby for about five months now, very well behaved and friendly fish. He's currently getting close to 10 inches in length and lives in a 55 gallon aquarium with well balanced water.

now that that's out of the way, the problem is that This goby has always had two bumps on the side of his head. I talked to the store I purchased him from and they said he had always had them, yet never showed any signs of being ill. Over time though these pustules have gone through a cycle of swelling up and popping. After which they go back to just two tiny bumps on the skin. Each one is about a quarter centimeter wide and after they pop they release a small amount of what appears to be puss while leaving a red, sore looking patch on the fish's skin.

I've been searching around and for the life of me I cannot find an accurate definition and treatment plan for these spots. They have not spread to any of the other fish (who have been in the tank as long as he has) and none of the local shops or fish owners can tell me what they are.

The reason I'm suddenly posting this in the emergency forums after observing this for several months is that tonight I finally caught sight of one of the bumps popping and releasing the puss, which concerned me more considering the amount that came out.

any input is appreciated and thankyou for reading.

 

[WILDER]

How many fish and which type.
Water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.

If the lumps are bursting he need isolating as they can infect the whole tank.
I would also use a bacterial med.

Do the lumps look like a cauliflower as need to rule something out.
Lumps can be tumours, bacterial, parasites, lymthocystis, viral.

 

[spottycat]

There are only three other fish in the tank, a pleco (7 inches), a payara (6 inches), and a juvenile Arowana (9 inches) (before anyone yells about needing a larger tank I'm planning on purchasing one as the fish grow)

the tests I use don't measure ammonia, but I change the water regularly and it doesn't have a lot of time to build up.

next, the ph is about 6.8, the nitrates are around 20 (safe)and nitrites are at 0

the lumps don't look like cauliflower, more like just small, pale headed bumps with a slight pinkish tinge at the base, once the rupture the base is left looking red. They haven't spread to any other parts of the fish, or grown any larger in all the time I've owned him. I would isolate him but I lack a large enough isolation tank right now, and over five months of these outbreaks the other fish have shown no signs of infection whatsoever.

also I have tried dosing the tank with Coppersafe and Melafix, niether of which even put a dent in this odd malady. I've tried dosing the tank when the bumps are only in thier smallest stage, and right after they rupture too.

I recently found a website that said my fish may have Furunculosis or common boils. The flow chart I used can be found here http/www.fishyfarmacy.com/fish_diseases/skin_disorders.html

 

[WILDER]

Sounds bacterial. What your location for a med.

Get you a link to lumps and bumps.


http/badmanstropicalfish.com/articles/article25.html