My cold water fish has developed what appears to be a mass of cotton wool on its backside and cannot swim.?

Question

My cold water fish has developed what appears to be a mass of cotton wool on its tail and is struggling to swim. Her appetite is uneffected, but she has gone a shade of white.
I am heading to the pet shop late tommorrow but I'm hoping someone could give me an idea what it is

Answer 1

Sounds like ick. I know that's a funny name, but that's what the people at the pet shops call it. There are some drops that you are going to have to put into the tank for a while. If one fish has it then the rest of the fish in the tank are already exposed to it and you have to treat the whole tank. They are going to recommend that you treat the tank for like a week or so and not to buy any new fish, as the ones you have will infect them too. Depending on how bad it gets, they may die. It's common so don't get too concerned that you did something wrong.

Answer 2

Copperhead and Mrs. Crab have the best answers. Columnaris is also called Saddleback Disease because it typically appears on the "saddleback," or forward dorsal part of the fish. You said backside, so that is unclear to me whether it is the fish's "back," as in dorsal area, or whether you mean the back end, or tail of the fish. If it's on the dorsal area, it's more likely columnaris. If it's on the tail area, it's more likely fungus. But, pretty much the defining factor to differentiate between columnaris and fungus, because they are virtually identical looking in most respects, is that, with Columnaris, there will be little white threads on the mouth that blow in and out as the fish breathes. Either way, Maracyn-2 will do the trick great. Do the water change, siphoning and filter media removal as recommended. Before treating the water with the medication, I would suggest doing a salt dip. Use 1/2 cup of non-iodized salt (aquarium, rock, kosher) to 1 gallon of water. Pre-mix the salt in the water before adding fish. This is a heavy dose of salt and can kill the fish, so care is required, but it is excellent for killing disease and relieving stress. Add the fish. When it stops moving, give it a nudge so it moves again. When it stops again, nudge again and get it to move. When the fish fails to respond to the nudge and move again, take it out. Do not continue this procedure for more than 5 minutes.

Answer 3

A 60 liter or about 2-foot long tank is very limited for coldwater fish which need more oxygen than tropicals & the amount of dissolved oxygen a tank can support depends largely on its water surface area. As for some of the other recommendations, danios are constantly active fish that really need a lot of swimming space to thrive, having to put on the brakes in a small tank is hardly ideal. As for barbs, many can get rather too large for a small tank. And tetras are hardly coldwater fish, does the Amazon strike you as a temperate region? The best option seems to be a small group (about 4) of white cloud mountain minnows, who get to about 4cm long. Their ideal temperature range is about 14-25 deg C, with the lower extreme during winter and other times starting from about 18 deg C. They can adapt to slightly higher temps but prefer cooler water.

Answer 4

This is either Columnaris (a bacterial condition) or body "fungus". You can tell them apart because in Columnaris, the fuzzy strands of the "cotton will be matted down, and the outline of the infection will be almost circular - see link with photos: http://www.fishjunkies.com/Diseases/columnaris.php

For the "fungus" (it really isn't but looks like it), the individual strands will be straighter, and easily seen individually, and the outline is more irregular. This rarely attacks a healthy fish, only one that's already injured, or has the immune system stressed from other infections/parasites, improper conditions, or poor water quality

More on these: http://www.fish-disease.net/diseases.htm - use treatments suggested from this link

Ich, in the other hand, looks like someone sprinkled salt on the fish - it looks like small white bumps about the size of salt grains.

Answer 5

It sounds to me like it could possibly be Columnaris or "cotton mouth". I would move fast in treatment if you believe that it is this disease, as it is very progressive and you can lose your fish. Here is a site you can refer to also: http://www.aquariumcorner.com/disease.htm
Some symptoms are white spots on mouth, edges of scales, and fins; cottony growth that eats away at the mouth, and body, fins disintegrate beginning at the edges.
I would do a partial water change at this point, and be sure to vacuum the gravel. Most of the time these infections happen due to poor water conditions, so it is important to do regular maintenance on your tank. I would add aquarium salt according to directions on the box also, and treat with either Maracyn or Kanacyn. Be sure to take the carbon out of your filter, or it will absorb the medicine.

I hope I was able to help you some. Good luck. ;o)

Answer 6

your fish has a fungus it can vary from shredded tails and fins sores around the mouth to what your describing its not ick white spot as that is salt grained white spots,
go to your pet shop and get a medication,i use inter pet anti fungus and mouth rot treatment,just follow the instructions on the box if you have carbon in your filter remove it or the medication wont work

Answer 7

this could be Ich. I'm not sure though, it sounds kind of weird... Ich is a condition fish get when their tanks arent clean. its a bulid up of parasites and bacteria that attatch its self to the fish and sometimes causes it to not be able to swim. there are medicines you can add to your water to kill ich germs.

Answer 8

You have got the right idea of going to the pet shop because your fish have got fungus which would paralyse them.

Answer 9

I think what your fish has is called ich or ick. It is treatable. Ask at your pet shop. If it is ick it can be fatal if untreated.

Answer 10

it is called fungus infection. you can get a cure at the pet shop.