So my new little moor seems to be doing pretty well, he eats, poops normally, and swims all over fine. He does rest on the bottom sometimes, but not often. I have had this fish for about 72 hours.

Tonight I seemed to notice that his gills are open a lot farther than normal, and much farther than the other fish's gills, like I can see way inside them while he swims. It is possible that they were already like that and I am just now noticing it, but I think it is new. Is this a symptom of something?

Also, he has some white spots on his tail, but not like ich. I have seen ich several times before and it looks like tiny grains of salt stuck on the fish-this looks nothing like that. This looks like little white "smears" kind of? Hard to explain. I cannot see that there is any growth on them like cottony type stuff that might be a fungus, the white areas appear flat and the fin does not look worn or anything. I think these spots were sort of there when I got him but they have become more white since then, although the areas have not become any bigger. I suppose it could just be a coloring thing, but I think they have become more white and I have never heard of a moor getting white spots. There are about four of these spots on his tail. He does have some areas on the ends of his tail that are more grey than blck and so are kind of see through, but these areas look different. I tried to take some pictures but it is really hard to see since the fish is moving and all I have is a cell phone camera. The other fish in the tank seems fine, although she has a bent tail now, where the bottom of her tail is curling in a little bit.

I had another moor originally, but he died about 24 hours after I got him, not sure why.

Here are the answers to the questions above:

Ammonia Level? 0
Nitrite Level? 0
Nitrate level? 10
Ph Level, (If possible,KH and GH and chloramines)? 7.0, 80 ppm, 120 ppm
Ph Level out of the Tap? 7.0
Tank size (How many Gals) and How long has it been running? 20 gallons, 9 months (with other fish)
What is the name and size of the filter/s? Whisper 40i, 175 gph, adding second filter soon
How often do you change the water and how much? once a week, 30%
How many fish in the tank and their size? 2 fish, both about 2 inches w/ tail
What kind of water additives or conditioners? Prime
Any medications added to the tank? salted to .1 % (Parasite Clear added 90 hours ago, should not be active anymore)
Add any new fish to the tank? the moor has been in 3 days, the other fish about a week
What do you feed your fish? Omega One pellets, Omega One flakes, peas, spirulina
Any unusual findings on the fish such as "grains of salt", bloody streaks, frayed fins or fungus? As mentioned above, white areas on tail and gills seem open more than normal
Any unusual behavior like staying at the bottom, not eating, ect..? Rests on the bottom ovvasionally but acting normally otherwise, eating/pooing fine

Here are some terrible pics that probably will not help:

This is probably the best representation, it is the little white area in the middle of the tail fin



You can see it here although the reflection makes it look more white than it really is, also it looks liek there is another spot on the end of his tail, but that is just where his tail is more gray than black



One last pic, although you can barely see it here



Thank you for any thoughts on both the white areas and the gills.

Well, now looking closer maybe it is a fungus...it kind of looks like there might be little tufts coming off of it now. Two of the four spots are pretty round like they could almosy be ich, bnut I think they are too big, and the other spots are definitely not round in shape and none of them look like salt grains.

If it is a fungus, what is the safest thing to use to cure it with such small fish? Is having the salt in there helping or hurting? SHould I try Fungus Clear? I have some Parasite Clear but I am a bit wary of using it after losing my other moor last wekk, although there is no way to tell if the PC had anything to do with it.

I will update in the morning and see if the spots have grown or anything. In the meantime I did a 30% water change and a nice gravel vaccuum.

Thanks.....

Hi Jen,it doesn't look like Ick at all to me.Very well could be a sort of fungus.Everyonce in a while a goldfish of mine will turn up with an odd unexplainable white spot.I never know why though.One minute you'll see it,and before you think about it it'll be gone again. If you're seeing multiple spots that have a tuft like appearance, then You can try the fungus clear.One thing about fungus is that if it is a true fungus,you usually see results as soon as you start treating.Alot of things mistaken for fungus won't budge from that med.As for the gills,what color do you see when you look in at them--red/meaty looking,or pale/maybe tattered,or grayish spots on the gills inside.

Well, you know how terrified I am of picking the fish up...but from what I can see while he is still in the tank the gills look pinkish-red. But mostly I am only seeing the inside of the gill cover which is silvery. Do you think I need to pick him up and try opening them more?
I'll keep watching too and see if I get a better look.

And again, maybe his gills were always like that and I am just now noticing it, and as an already paranoid fish mom I am worrying about it. But his gill covers definitely open a lot more than the calico's do.

I think I will wait until morning and see what his tail is like. If it looks worse or there are more patches or the patches are bigger, I will definitely pick up some Fungus Clear, and then kind of see what develops. How dangerous is a fungus to a fish? Do you think I am ok to wait and see? I mean obviously I can't get meds at 2 in the morning here anyway, but would waiting until tomorrow afternoon be ok? Does Parasite Clear help with fungus too? I just wonder if he has something else too but am very wprried about overmedicating.

I just wish I knew if he was ok, I get up in the middle of the night to check on him. He likes to sleep on the bottom corner of the tank, which worries me, but when the light is on he swims around fine. I hope the little guy is alright.

So are you done with your work week yet? I hope you get some nice rest. As always, thanks for your help.

Many fish have gills that naturally open more than others.....

Sometimes, if you have a specific spot - like on the end of the tail, you can swab it with hydogen peroxide and have an immediate healing effect. No fungus, few bacteria, and few parasites can withstand swabbing. If it is at the end of the tail, I would suggest filling a little bowl with a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of Hydrogen Peroxide. Pick up the fish and swish his tail in the bowl for a moment and place him back in the tank. You can do this again, 12 hours later or so. It will sterilize the area very nicely - and without filling an entire tank with meds.

For that matter, you can do it, and add the meds. A double whammy, if you have the mind to.

Parasite Clear - being a lightweight dose of PRazi and a bit of antibiotic - should be quite benign. I do not think it should be too concerning......

Thanks, I think I will try the peroxide and see what happens. I like the minimalist approcah. His tail does not look any worse this morning, although it has only been about 5 hours.

Will the Parasite Clear affect the fungus or is it only for parasites? And if I do end up using Fungus Clear, is it safe to use with salt? I will read the package but just wondering if anyone knew off the top of their head.

I think that the gill thing might just be the way this fish is, but it is hard to tell. As longas everything else looks good I am going to try not to worry too much.

Thanks again!

I have never used Fungus Cure, so I do not know.....

I have, however, cured multiple fungus' and fungus type parasites with Prazi or salt or antibiotics mixed with same. I have had the best luck with cleaning fungusy wounds and infected wounds with topical treatments like Hydrogen Peroxide and Potassium PErmangante paste. Second to the topical treatment is a bath with PP.

Full tank baths - Acriflavine is one I have used when treating fungus/bacterial infection with success.

Thanks! I think I will wait and see how things look later today, then once the baby I am watching is gone I will try and dab some hydrogen peroxide on the spots or dip his tail and see how that goes. I hate to add meds to the whole tank unless it is necessary.

Also, I just noticed that when he does sit on the bottom he is opening and closing his mouth most of the time, almost constantly. Not yawning but just the normal fish open/close thing. Could that mean anything, like he is trying to clear his gills or something? I hope he doesn't have flukes.

I would love to use Prazi on the tank but from what I have seen it is pretty expensive, so I hesitate to use it when I am not sure. And I tried EVERYTHING to find some pp around here and no luck, so unless I buy it online I am out of luck on that. I know the Parasite Clear has Prazi in it but not sure if it is enough to have much effect?

I think I will pick up some Fungus Clear just in case, plus I have Parasite Clear already on hand. Hopefully I won't need them but it is good to be prepared. When I get paid next week i am going to get some MetroMeds or Medi-Gold just to have on hand as well.

So what do you think about my swabbing with peroxide this afternoon and then waiting to see what happens? Having salt in the tank won't make the fungus worse will it? And is it safe to use the peroxide at full stregth? I have the kind you buy at the drug store, it says 3%. Thanks, as usual you are a great help.

Using the Peroxide will not hurt and can only help. "Full stength" is not what you get at the drug store. What you get at the drug store is just fine and will do just what you want it to do - a lightweight, gentle sterlization through oxidation....

PP is often found in the water conditioning section of Sears Hardware - where they sell water softeners and such....

Parasite Clear will do a fairly good job at flukes - unless you have the resistant, nasty or extra heavy infestations that I have seen. It has Prazi and a bit of antibiotic action. It will be a good thing to try if you feel you need it.

I am a minimalist, but I will also not hesitate to use a treatment if I feel it is warrented..... Do not be afraid to "pull out the big guns" if the simpler treatments do not work.

Thanks again, I am just nervous to use the Parasite Clear because the last moor I had died soon after it went in, ven though it was probably unrelated. I also hate how it makes the water bubble, but that is just a personal thing, lol!

I had my mom go to Sears when we were looking for the pp and she said they didn;t have it, but sometimes she is...well...not the best at finding things! I did talk to some people at one of our lfs's though and they said they had not been able to find any for a long time either. I was thinking there might be a little bit in my daughter's chemistry set, if I can find it I will check. Darn messy house.

And the opening and closing his mouth thing...a better way to describe it would be that it looks like he is chewing on something. But I think that is pretty normal, right? I am trying not to watch them TOO much since I think if you look for things wrong with your fish long enough you will eventually find something, whether it is there or not!

I will definitely try the meds though if it gets to that point, like you said, I am a minimalist but if it is my fish's health in danger, bring on the meds!

I think I'll try the peroxide tonight and see how things look tomorrow, and go from there!

As an update, I did swab his tail with peroxide last night and this mortning it looks the same, no better and no worse. The white spots are still there but look flat. I am still not positive that i saw tufts coming off them but there definitely isn't any now. He is still resting on the bottom sometimes, although now I don't know if it is because of his torn fin (see below) or something else. I just hope he doesn't have flukes on top of his other problems, poor little guy.

The bad news is that somehow when I had him out of the tank he managed to tear his pectoral fin right in half, vertically, so it looks like he has two fins now. I feel terrible but I never even had anything but his tail out of the water and he didn't struggle, so I am not sure how it happened. He is still able to swim ok. Hopefully it will heal although I think that will be ahard since that fin is almost always in motion. The tank is salted to .1% and params are spot on, hopefully that will be all he needs to heal.

I have a thread going in 911 if anyone who reads this has an idea about helping the fins heal.

Thanks!

I am sad to report that Tom II did not make it. I don't think it was the fin that caused his death, but it probably didn't help. RIP little Tom II. :-(