my yellow labs have white lumps on them!!! help!!!!?

Question

after doing a 45% water change i put in some new chemicals to condition the tap water and get all my levels up to normal(or down). the next day 2 of my yellow labs had white things on them and one i think ia about to die on me. these things on them are white and seem to be raised a bid like a blister or something. i have other cichlids in the tank they are convicts and they have had yellowish orange spots on theis sides for a while. what is wrong with my fish?

Answer 1

How large are these lumps? If they are tiny then you are most likely dealing with ick. If that's the case treat in this manner:

Change a large portion of the water, about 50-60% while cleaning the gravel very well.
Clean the filter and change all the media but leave out the carbon.
Add 2 tablespoons of salt per 5 gallons of the tank.
Raise the temperature to 88-90 F. Raise it slowly, about 1 degree per hour. You may need to add an airstone or two depending on the type of fish and how heavily the tank is stocked.
Add a good ick medication as directed on the bottle. Try to find a medication that used Malachite Green as the active ingredient. (CAUTION: Malachite Green is a known carcinogen. Be careful not to get it on your skin!)
Change 25% or more of the water daily being sure to clean the gravel as you do so.
Continue the treatment for at least 7 days after you see the last white spots on any of the fish.
After the treament, return the carbon to your filter and lower the temperature to normal.
This will work and will remove the ick from your tank.

If they are larger then you are most likely dealing with a skin infection. Treat the tank with Furanace or Marycn to clear that up. Just treat as per the direction on the box and treat for at least 2 weeks, even if it clears up.

The yellowish orange spots are almost certinly a skin infection. Treat that as above.

Personally I would recommend you treat the tank for both to be sure.

MM

Answer 2

It's not a good idea to mix yellow labs with convicts - different needs, different behaviours, different everything really. Your tank is clearly not set up for one of these types (or both). The stress of poorly matched cichlids can easily lead to health issues.

Also, it's best not to use any chemicals in the tank except a water conditioner for the chlorine. Anything else only complicates matters and increases the chance of problems.

Anyway, I don't know what's wrong with your fish - but I do know why they might have problems. At this point it sounds like it could be a fungal infection, in which case there are medications like Pimafix that can do a good job to set things straight. Wait for other opinions first, it's not good to use medication if they don't need it.

Answer 3

use rid ick and add some aquarium salt