Hi there SandJ - sorry to do this but I think we need to take a step back now and look at your tank a little more closely. Would you be able to answer as many of the questions in the white box as possible?
I think it may be a parasite of some sort which may have weakened him but the key to his recovery will lie in the quality of your water/filtration etc.
When you say he had a white stick like growth coming out of him - do you know what happened to it?
Anchor worm (or lernea elegans) is a real threat. They attach ventrally and hold on for dear life for about 14 days, while reproducing copiously. The wounds they create almost always infect with ulcer disease bacteria or aeromonas and then you have two problems.
The best thing at the moment (without knowing if this is what it was) would be perfect water and 0.3% salt. That's 1 teaspoon of salt per gallon - then 12 hours later another teaspoon of salt per gallon then 12 hours after that - another teaspoon per gallon - this can help destroy and free swimmers.
Another good product is Anchors Away which destroys any free swimming Lernea....
Did it look anything like this?
