Firefish Tail Injury, Fin Rot?

FishRFriends!=Food · Sep 7, 2023

Hey all,

Purchased a Firefish from a LFS 3 weeks ago, has been healthy and showing no signs of disease. Last night however, I noticed that his tail fin is starting to tear? This must have occurred within the last 24hrs as I havent noticed it before. Is this an early sign of some sort of disease or infection, or an injury? The only other tank inhabitants are a small watchman goby, who he shares a cave with at night, and 4 snails. I'm in the process of setting up a 10 gallon QT anyways, so if need be he can be transferred for medication.

Thanks, Jonathan

fishguy242 · Sep 7, 2023

#fishmedic

Jay Hemdal · Sep 7, 2023

FishRFriends!=Food said:
Hey all,

Purchased a Firefish from a LFS 3 weeks ago, has been healthy and showing no signs of disease. Last night however, I noticed that his tail fin is starting to tear? This must have occurred within the last 24hrs as I havent noticed it before. Is this an early sign of some sort of disease or infection, or an injury? The only other tank inhabitants are a small watchman goby, who he shares a cave with at night, and 4 snails. I'm in the process of setting up a 10 gallon QT anyways, so if need be he can be transferred for medication.

Thanks, Jonathan

Sharp edged fin damage is almost always caused by some mechanical injury. My guess is that watchman got tired of sharing space with it. If the aggression stops, this fin will heal pretty quickly and is unlikely to get infected.

Jay

Sharkbait19 · Sep 7, 2023

I agree - looks like bites from the watchman. Given enough tank space, they should be able to figure things out.

FishRFriends!=Food · Sep 7, 2023

Hey Jay,

Thanks for the good news. Is there anything special I can feed to help with the healing process? The watchman goby decided he wanted to live in the firefishes cave, so I dont think I'll have an easy time moving either of them. I havent personally seen any aggression between them, could this lead to a larger issue if it continues?

Jay Hemdal · Sep 7, 2023

FishRFriends!=Food said:
Hey Jay,

Thanks for the good news. Is there anything special I can feed to help with the healing process? The watchman goby decided he wanted to live in the firefishes cave, so I dont think I'll have an easy time moving either of them. I havent personally seen any aggression between them, could this lead to a larger issue if it continues?

Yes, if it continues, the damage is going to build, and at some point, it could become infected. Then, you would need to move the fish to a treatment tank and dose with a broad spectrum, gram negative antibiotic like Neoplex or Maracyn 2.

Jay