AH!!! My fish lost an eye!

[ChadH]

I woke up this morning to find my oldest head-tail light tetra was missing a complete eyeball! its like it just popped out of his socket. I didnt see it laying anywhere in the tank but that dosent mean it is laying somewhere. I just dont think any of the tank mates could do this. The other tank makes are

(6) Head-tail light tetras(1 week old in tank)
(4) Punctas cory's(1 week old in the tank)
(1) Female Paradise Fish (this fish has been with the tetra for almost a year without problems)

could the other tetras have mistaken its eye for food?
what should I do with my poor fish he is swimming around hitting this and doing flips to turn around.

Should I just find some human way of putting him down? or can he adjust to one eye... this is so strange! sorry for the unorganized post but I'm in a hurry to get to work and wanted to get some replies for when I get home.

thanks for anyones help

Chad

 

[Blinky]

Hi there,
I won't try to guess just _how_ your poor fish lost his eye, but I can offer this:
I used to visit a doctor's office that had a fish tank with, let's just say, a less than ideal combination of fish. It was a 25g, nearly bare tank with low lighting, a few algae-choked java fern plants, a group of African cichlids and two large silver dollars (enough fish for a 40g to 55g tank, I'd say).
One day, waiting for the doctor, I was watching the fish and one of the silver dollars turned towards me. I was surprised to see that it only had one eye! I asked the doctor about his fish and how long it had been injured. He told me that it had been 'eyeless' for a long time, and as long as they managed to drop food on the fish's 'good side', he could get enough to eat. He seemed to be holding his own in the tank and never seemed thin or miserable in all the time I visited the office.
If your fish can adjust to his condition, and you can make sure he gets enough to eat, he'll probably be fine.
I'd watch for signs of infection, and make sure that your fish aren't bullying each other - if the injured fish is being pushed around you might want to either add some hiding places in the tank or isolate him (you could try using a breeder net hung inside the tank) until he's feeling better.
*fingers crossed* I hope he's okay.