Please Help my Flowerhorn: Huge Wound

[Lupin]

I didn't think doing daily water change would be helpful because it would take out too much of the medication that I was using.

Your pattern of treatment seemed fatal to me which is why I suggested water changes to immediately remove all the meds you dosed. Mixing meds is not a good idea unless you know the reaction won't kill the fish. I'm surprised the fish actually survived that long and I would be more amazed if it survives in the end but it's a sturdy fish to start with.

I have been trying to put in different kinds of food in there. We normally feed our tank with Tetra Cichlid Crisps, Tetra Flakes, Hikari Cichlid Pellets, and frozen Krill. I have been putting small amounts of all of them at different times other than the krill and he hasn't seemed to eat them. I usually just scoop it out.

Might want to try more. Foods are very important to boost its immune system.

 

[joander123]

if it were my fish i would keep the temp at 80ish like so... add [SIZE=-1]methylene blue (1 treatment) keep the water clean. If he lives another 5 days, run another treatment of [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]methylene blue.

Clean water IMO/IME is the best thing you can do for him.

good luck, id be amazed if he survives though.
[/SIZE]

 

[Tonyvensis]

Metholine blue will kill your filter.
Use a small amount and dab or drip it over a bucket on the wound.
This is the best way of getting it straight on to the wound and avoiding too
much entering your tank and damaging your filter.

 

[nato2k]

Your pattern of treatment seemed fatal to me which is why I suggested water changes to immediately remove all the meds you dosed. Mixing meds is not a good idea unless you know the reaction won't kill the fish. I'm surprised the fish actually survived that long and I would be more amazed if it survives in the end but it's a sturdy fish to start with.

Might want to try more. Foods are very important to boost its immune system.

Thanks,
I should have mentioned that I did a couple other water changes in between changing meds. I did a 50% water change earlier today and I will do another tonight then another tomorrow then begin the Jungle Fungus Clear and the Meth Blue. The thing that sucks is I don't have any kind of filtration that doesnt have activated carbon. The closest I have is a emperor 400 that has been running on the filters for about a month. Right now its just some cheap pets mart 30 gallon rated filter in the tank.

 

[Lupin]

Metholine blue will kill your filter.

This can be done in the hospital tank. Just not the main tank.

 

[TheFishLady]

I would never suggest dripping methylene blue on any fish directly, especially not into an open wound. If you call the company that produces it, they will tell you the same thing. This could be deadly and fast!
Methylene blue is a great med to use for this, but treat the tank as suggested on the bottle, and also add fungus eliminator at the same time (dosing according to directions). The 2 of these medications together will help protect that wound from fungus (which it appears is already growing there) and bacteria.
Yes, keep the tank as clean as possible, and good that you've slowed down the feedings. The fish probably doesn't feel well enough to eat, and it won't starve in just a few days.
As Lupin posted, it's going to be very important for that fish to be out of any medication for at least 24 hrs. The number of medications used in such a short period of time have probably not helped his condition. Each different med induces shock to the fish's system, and some of those meds are pretty harsh.
While this could have started as a heater burn, the continuing deterioration of the wound is quite obviously an infection taking over. Once the infection is gone, the fish should still be able to heal on its own, though I would expect to see some scaring afterwards.
I had a fish who's tank sprung a leak during the night, leaving her to flop on gravel before I found it in the morning. She managed to wear a deep hole into her side from the gravel(as deep as in your photos). I treated with the meds I just suggested and 3 wks later she was fine with just a small scar where the tissue all grew back. If you can kick that infection there is no reason your fish can't heal up the same way... those are the meds to do it!
Really important: don't use salt in the aquarium while treating with fungus eliminator. This med has some salt in it (among other things) and too much of a good thing is no good.

For future reference, never allow a fish to come in direct contact of any med (unless it is meant to coat the food), especially one that is meant to treat the tank water. The potency of the meds would be toxic to any fish that way. When companies bottle these meds, they do it in a concentrated form so that when added to the tank with the proper dose, it is at its proper strength in the water.

 

[Star_Rider]

there is some good advice here.

some meds can be used as a topical..but they usually specify it on the label.

best bet is to do water changes..you should be doing them to maintain ammonia as the fish will continue to produce this as a by product (waste)
food should be removed if uneaten..do this when you do water changes.

adding pimafix/melafix may help keep bacteria in check in the water..this may in turn help the fish by keeping bacteria at bay.,(methylene blue does the same thing) H2O2 can also be used in low doses over short periods ..

 

[nato2k]

Just wanted to update, I just started treatment on him again, the wound looks worse already. I posted a picture below but the light foamy lookin growth is starting to appear around the edge of the wound again i tried to point it out with an arrow. He also has white stringy looking mucus hanging offa him. sorry for the poor picture quality but I couldnt get the camera to focus with the blue water. I began treatment with Methylene Blue and Jungle Fungus Clear. The recommended doses of both. Between medication I had an activated carbon filter running for just less than two days and did 3 50% water changes.

 

[TheFishLady]

I can't tell you what kind of reaction anything is going to have if you're using the Fungus Clear. The active ingredients are going to be different in that vs the Fungus Eliminator.
When I choose meds to treat fish illness I am not relying on what the company tells us on the label the med is used for. Instead, I look for active ingredients, and sometimes even call a company to find out what other ingredients are in something. I know what base ingredients are used for treating various illness/injuries... that was a large part of my training for almost 4 yrs.
Can you list here the active ingredients shown on the fungus clear packaging? I've never used that, so have no idea if its even safe to be mixing with methylene blue.

 

[nato2k]

fungus clear: nitrofurazone, furazolidone, potassium dichromate. it seems like i had better success with marcyn 2(minocycline) and maroxy(stabilized chlorine oxides)