Freshwater aquarium angel fish

Question
Hi Chris,

So, now we've changed water and are giving antibiotics, and generally hoping for the best. I am wondering, though, if my angelfish does recover, can he re-grow the eroded part of his face?

------------------------
Followup To
Question -
Hi,

I have a 25 gallon fish tank with 2 fancy goldfish, 2 mollys, 2 catfish/bottom feeders, one SMALL sucker, a regular goldfish and 1 angelfish. The nitrates in the tank were very high (250) as we hadn't changed the water in over a month, but we did a 50% change a few days ago and plan on another within the week. The other levels were in the acceptable range.

My question is about the angel fish. About 2 weeks ago I noticed that he had small red spots on his "nose" as if you could see some blood just under his skin. Within the end of the week, it looked like he had a chunk removed from his nose and developed a Stacey Keech harelip sneer. I tried taking a picture to show my local fish store, but in the pic the fish looked a lot healthier than in real life and the fish keeper thought the change in shape was just the fish maturing and therefore developing a more prominent forehead and nose. In the last week though, he looks bruised from mouth to eyes and the top of his face appears to be disintigrating. He hasn't eaten in forever and just mopes behind a plant.

I'm assuming that this fish is not long for this world, but he amazes me every day he's still alive. Also amazing is that the other fishes seem to be unafected by whatever disease the angel has.

Should I remove the angel? Could there be anything I can do to help him?

Please advise!
Answer -
Hi Kristin;

Redness indicates bacterial infection usually. With such a high nitrate level and the tank having such a messy variety of fish his immune system is not funcioning properly in order to stay strong enough to fight disease. Nitrates are also considered to be a main cause in diseases like "Hole-in-the-head" that could be what his problem started out to be. It can cause erosion of the face and head that leads to infection like you are seeing now.

Get the nitrates down by making a 25% water change every other day. He may need medication like an antibiotic though so you might consider a hospital tank to treat him in, while still making the nitrate lowering changes in the main tank. The lower nitrates will help keep the other fish healthy and from developing illness eventually too.

A hospital tank is a bare tank with no decorations and no filter. A filter and decorations can absorb medicines and make them useless. Just a heater and an air pump hooked to an airstone for oxygen is all that is needed. Make a 25% water change in the hospital tank daily to keep toxins low and the water fresh for the sick fish to build a healthier immune system. Antibiotics decay within the first 12 hours of adding to the water so don't worry that you could be removing it with the water change. Make the water change right before the addition of medicine for the day and it will be fine. All you are doing is removing old medicine and waste when you do it that way. Some medicines have a "cumulative" effect in the fish and last in the water for a long time, but your fish doesn't require these kinds so don't worry.

Hospital tanks are very valuable in treating sick fish because the sick fish can be monitored more carefully and can have peace and quiet in their isolation. It can take a lot of unnecessary effort for a sick fish to contend with the other fish in a community tank, so they may not ever heal. Also, medicines can really mess up an established tank or be filtered out prematurely and healthy fish should not be exposed to medicines anyway. If they ever do get sick, they may not respond to treatment properly if their bodies have been exposed to the medicines while healthy. As sick as he seems to be, try a fish antbiotic with tetracycline in it. It is a pretty effective one. You will notice it leaves a brownish-yellow foam on the water after a couple of treatments and makes the water the same color. Another good argument in favor of a hospital tank. You sure don't want that ugliness in your main tank! Yuck!

The goldfish really all should be in a separate tank. They require lower temperatures and are just not compatable with the tropical fish you have in there. Goldfish also get very large (8") and are very messy for their size because they are deep-bodied. The three goldfish by themselves are more than enough population for a 25 gallon tank. This means your tank is actually overcrowded. Shopping for a new tank for them would be very helpful for all your fish. A 30 gallon goldfish tank with good filtration and no heater is a good start.

Hope everything straightens out soon.....

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins  

Answer
Hi Kristin;

I hope he feels better soon. Fish do regenerate lost tissue. Once the infection is gone and the swelling goes down it will probably heal up and fill in quite a bit. It may never look "normal" again but it depends on how bad the damage was.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins