A. Macmasteri bumping into wood

[ApistoBen]

Showing no other symptoms at all! He has been eating well, this afternoon i just noticed him "scratching" his sides against various pieces of bogwood.

Any ideas anyone? Water qualities are always good, i do a 10% water change twice a week, and no other fish are showing any symptoms.

I wont start worrying too much until he stops eating! :thumbsup:

Ben

 

[gerald]

Scratching often indicates skin & gill parasites - it could be ich, velvet, flukes, many possibilities. Just watch closely for now and see if it continues, or gets worse, and if any other symptoms become apparent that may give clues to what's causing it.

 

[ApistoBen]

Thanks for the reply.

I guess it is just a waiting game for the time being. I would treat with salt just to be safe however I have shrimp that wouldnt appreciate that much!

Thanks again,

Ben

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
I think Gerald is likely to be right, something is irritating the fish and parasite like Gill Flukes are a possibility.

I would treat with salt just to be safe however I have shrimp that wouldnt appreciate that much!

Don't treat the tank with salt. You could try a salt bath for the fish, but I'm not a great fan of salt.

Have a look at this link "Water Chemistry: Osmoregulation, Ionic Imbalance & pH" linked in <http://www.apistogramma.com/forum/i...stry-osmoregulation-ionic-imbalance-ph.11838/>.

cheers Darrel

 

[ApistoBen]

Thanks for the response Darrel. I will have a read of the link, thanks again.

Yeah I'm not the biggest fan of using salt either, I just find it useful for treating against parasites.

He's still showing no other symptoms today, will keep this thread updated if there are any changes!

Thanks again,
Ben

 

[gerald]

Hopefully its just a mild case of "ich" or other ubiquitous parasite that he can fight off on his own, if all other conditions are good.