Christmas Wrasse Disease - Need ID and Treatment

[Xavier434]

Hi everyone. I just recently purchased a Christmas Wrasse and I believe that it may have a disease but I am not certain. May I ask some of the experts here to help me identify what is wrong and what I should do? Video below. The spots are on the fish's left side towards the back.

If more information or clearer videos/pictures are needed then please let me know.



Thank you so much in advance!

 

[Big G]

Are the spots there all day or only in the morning? They like to bury themselves in the sand or rock surrounded by their mucous cocoon.
Any other symptoms? Flashing, breathing heavy, not eating, etc.?

 

[Xavier434]

The spots are there all day and always in the same location. Eating fine. Very active. Comes out during the day and sleeps under the sand at night. No heavy breathing that I have noticed, but I was not really looking either. What is flashing?

 

[Big G]

Flashing is when they rub against the sand, rock or some other object in the tank like they are trying to scrape something off of their scales.

Pretty common for wrasses that sleep in the sand to injure themselves as they dive into the sand or rocks. Or as they dart around the tank. Need to keep an eye out for changes to the areas like redness, etc. That could be a sign of a bacterial infection setting in from an injury.

 

[Xavier434]

Ok so suspect that this is a physical injury and not an illness? Is there any treatment that you would recommend that I do which is both low risk and may potentially help?

 

[Big G]

That's a tough one to answer, especially with wrasses. It's so darn hard to catch them to treat them in a hospital tank.
If you feel the need, my first step would be to treat with Ruby Reef Rally. It's very gentle and helps the fish's immune system with antiseptic and a bit of antibiotic treatment.
If the spots get worse (red, black, etc.), then a wide spectrum antibiotic like Triple Sulfa, NFG powder, Furan2, or the "Trifecta" of Kanaplex + Furan2 + Metro.

 

[Xavier434]

The problem seems to be getting worse. New video below with better lighting. I am leaning towards a hospital tank following what Big G recommended in the post above, but I would really appreciate it if people took a look at the new video to see if the precise problem can be identified more easily.

Look for the white spots on the left side of the Wrasse.