cichlid problem

Question
QUESTION: I hve a very large black-orange cichlid who keeps his mouth wide open most of the time. he had to swallow another cichlid that was too large for him to swallow. Whts up with him?

ANSWER: Dear P. Parish SR,

The fish may be stuck in his mouth and he may be having issues because of it, or it could have caused damage to the twoside bones to the mouth, inverting them, like hinges, and he may be unable to close his mouth due to that.

Look into his mouth.  DO you see a fish in it still?  

How long has the fish been in your fish's mouth?

Don't attempt to remove it.  If it went in head first, then if you pull it out, it is going to embed into his mouth and injure him.

Keep an eye on him.  Make sure he's breathing right.

I would look at his mouth to look for sometype of injury.  Is there any swelling?

Please write back and let me know the answers to these questions so I can better answer your question and please include an image of your fish with the open mouth if you can.

Thankyou,
Renee

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: the fish is out. it went in headfirst? what should i do now?

ANSWER: Hi,

You will have to watch his mouth to see if he has any injury to it.  Is his jaw still open?  If so, then is he able to close it at all?

Please let me know his current symptoms.  I want to give you the best advice possible and in order to do this, I will just need a bit more information from you about the symptoms the fish is having.

Thanks,
Renee

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: yes, Renee, he will open and close his mouth at times, but now he seems to have a reddish-pink cyst at he front of his lower mouth. What could that be? Thank-you very much for your quick responses; I really appreciate it! Also just a footnote: I did a 15 gallon water charge and cleaned my filter and replaced the carbon. I also have a 55 gallon tank with a rena xp2 filter.
         Clint Parrish

Answer
Hi Clint,

Okay, he's got one of two things going on.  Either he's got an infection, or a parasite.  Both can be on the mouth.  I suspected this.

Remove your fish from the aquarium and place him in a hospital tank.  Treat with salt, 2 to 3 teaspoons of marine salt (don't use table salt) per gallon.  If it's a 10 gallon tank, treat with 30 level, stirred teaspoons of marine salt.

The salt kills parasites as well as infections.

Heat the tank to 80 degrees.  Also, please give him ample filtration while in the smaller tank.  

Treating him in a small tank will allow you to treat him without having to dose your entire larger aquarium.

I certainly hope to hear good news in a week about his health improving.

Good luck Clint. :)
Renee