split fin on new bolivian ram

[maxthedog123]

I got 2 bolivian rams on Saturday. One of the rams had a split in his right pectoral fin when I got him home. It happened on the trip from the LFS.

Today I noticed that he has a second split. Both are about 3/4 of the way down. The fin may be a little white, but I'm not sure if it's really white or just damaged.

Planning another water change tonight. Should I add melafix to the tank as a tonic for the fin?

 

[jm1212]

just keep the water clean and the fin will heal on its own. tears take relativley little time to heal.

 

[jpappy789]

I agree. Just keep the water clean enough to prevent infection...it will heal up in no time. Melafix wont hurt if you suspect baterial infection...

 

[Bk718]

feed him well and in a few weeks it will close up.

 

[maxthedog123]

Over the last couple of days I've been noticing he has been clamping the fin more and more. Instead of one split down the middle, there are maybe 3-4 splits. It is not ragged, but isn't really healing well. It is a little bit white, but I can't tell if it's torn up from transit and/or may have developed a secondary infection. Parameters are fine (0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate).

Should I be seeing healing yet? The glowlights in the same tank had finrot several weeks ago. I dosed Maracyn-2 - healed it right up and I saw improvement within a day or two.

I did dose 15ml of Melafix last night - no Maracyn-2 on hand last night. No other fish have any symptoms. I don't currently have a QT tank, so if I'm going to treat I have to treat the whole tank.

Thoughts?

 

[Bk718]

the healing process is slow may take upto a whole month depending on how severe the damage is. I had a Silver dollar with its whole tail missing, over a month, half of it grew back, but this was with feeding a variety of foods and keeping up with water changes

 

[Star_Rider]

you get the rams from a LFS?

I had some angels that came from Peru..they had to spend an extra 36 hrs in customs..when I finally got them they had been in an acclimation tank at my friends house(he got the angels) for 4 days.

after I got them home I started to notice they had fin deterioration..aka ammonia burns.. these can take awhile to show up as the ammonia slowly degrades the fin..it can show up several days after the exposure to the ammonia as it is fins dead cells sluffing off.

sometimes this happens to fish the LFS get as they may have been in the transport bag too long..if you start to see fungus you may want to treat the fish for bacterial infection.
they are in the main tank? do you have a hosptial tank you can set up?

 

[maxthedog123]

Yes, I got the 2 rams from a LFS. First trip there, but comes recommended. As I said, I noticed the first split on Saturday when I brought them home. It was one clean split down the middle. Each day I seem to see another split - he now has maybe 4 splits.

They are in the main tank, not sure if I can quickly get a hospital tank setup. I know from our previous discussion that you aren't much of a fan of Melafix. Does that really provide any benefit for healing?

 

[Star_Rider]

you read that right.. pimafix and melafix are ok..but if you have a real issue they are not all that effective. they can be used as a preventative measure but many times you don't need extra chemicals(natural or otherwise) in the water.
clean water is very effective for aiding healed fins..I would recommend small water changes everyother day.
the clean water and good diet will help the fishes natural immune system do what it is suppose to do..
I would highly recommend you keep available a qt/hosptital tank..
new arrivals are pretty stressed out..their natural immune system is weakened..having a qt/hospital tank will allow them to be placed in a tank for observation where the water does not have added waste from the inhabitants of the tank and or harrassment from tankmates...they are generally small so water changes are easier to perform. they are a 'more' controlled environement.

don't get me wrong..I think pimafix and melafix do have a place in aquaria..just not as a main med for treatment of disease.

 

[maxthedog123]

My ram was looking much worse - pretty much sitting on the gravel and not moving much. I think whatever is going on with the pectoral fin worked it's way to the gill. It's red and swollen.

So, I finally did the right thing today. Went to the LFS and got a 10 gallon (for $5) for a hospital tank. Of course, I needed a lid, heater, plastic plants, so I still ended up dropping around $60. Took the small HOB off of the lower 30g and I was all set up.

Catching him was easy - way too easy. I dosed with Maracyn-2 and added a lite salt dose. Now watch and wait. I'm actually glad I got a hospital setup because I most likely would have put him down if he was still in the main tank to protect my other fish.