help, injured gourami

RockabillyChick

Kilt-lifter
Nov 5, 2005
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Washington state
a few days ago i moved my fish into their new 20g long tank. i used their old filter and a new one. they did lose the gravel from the old tank (left it in the old tank which is now split with 2 bettas) so they lost some bacteria, so now the tank is mini-cycling. i am doing daily water changes to keep the levels as low as possible.

my red honey gourami, the day after i moved him, i noticed a small black spot on his head, just above and behind his eye. i kept an eye on him, and the black spot got larger, and actually seemed to move down towards his eye, and then dissapeared. now tonight, i checked on him, and it now appeares that the area behind his eye has a large hole. its about 1/16" diameter, but on a 1 3/4" fish, that's a good sized hole. he is acting normally, chasing the tetras, nibbling on the plants (he's never gotten over his shyness enough to compete with the tetras for food, so he eats whatever they miss and algae off the plants) and swimming around and hiding under the heater. i know it can't be HITH because that only effects large cichlids, but it looks like a big pink scar on his head. i can't tell if its actually indented into his flesh, but there is definately something there.

should i treat with salt? i will get some melafix and see if that helps. anybody know what could have caused this?
 
ok, i just went and looked at him a little closer and it looks like a SCAR, not a hole. there is no indentation into his flesh, its just like a spot on his head decided to turn pink.

its just so weird because he's acting totally normal. he's even got his pretty red color back after the stress of moving today. when i first moved him he went back to his baby colors, pale tan with a brown stripe down his side. today he's nice and red again.
 
About 2 months ago I bought a new Dwarf Gourami, who had developed a pink bump near his mouth. I also posted on it, and mistakenly diagnosed it as fish lymphoma. I thought for sure he was a going to die. However, over the next few weeks, it went away. Now he has another bump right in the middle of his "forehead" between his eyes. Honestly, and this is just my opinion, but I think he is banging himself up somehow, maybe against the glass? Anyway, Ive noticed my gourami is a bit clumsy and sometimes bumps into things in the tank. I think what it is really, is the human equivalent to a "goose egg". Basically just some swelling due to banging into something. Its possible your gourami is a clutz just like mine. =) I wouldnt worry about the pink spot unless he starts acting sickly. Take care.
 
i think your right. i've been keeping a close eye on him and the wound is starting to dissapear. its much smaller than it was and looks like its closing up nicely on its own.
 
Glad to hear that Mr. Gourami is feeling better. :clap:
 
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