Guppy Mouth Stuck Open

[greatfish123]

I have a male guppy whose mouth seems to be stuck open since yesterday. I can some movement in the mouth but its not completly able to close shut. He typically comes forward during feedings and such but now just seems to be swimming constantl y. He also hangs out more than ever near the filter outlet as if trying to get some water into his mouth. During feedings, he goes near the food, but is unable to gulp them. My water tests fine with ammonia and nitrites being 0 and nitrates being 15. I also made a water change today just in case. Can anyone tell me what to do in order to get him back to himself as I feel really sorry for him in this state. Thanks in advance.

 

[greatfish123]

can someone please help

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Are you sure that he has not tried to swallow some food which was too large for him to swallow properly?
Can you see any white/grey stuff or redness around his mouth area?

 

[greatfish123]

thanks for your reply. i've also had someone else suggest that I open its mouth but i'm very hesitant about even thinking about it as this thing is so small and my hands are huge in comparison . I looked closer to its mouth and found that it had some whitish stuff but not a huge lot. I would say it is very minimal. I am not sure if its columnaris. Nonetheless i've separated him and added some copper sulfate and salt to aid him. Is there anything else I can try.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

thanks for your reply. i've also had someone else suggest that I open its mouth but i'm very hesitant about even thinking about it as this thing is so small and my hands are huge in comparison . I looked closer to its mouth and found that it had some whitish stuff but not a huge lot. I would say it is very minimal. I am not sure if its columnaris. Nonetheless i've separated him and added some copper sulfate and salt to aid him. Is there anything else I can try.

I wouldn't advise opening his mouth at all, you are right it is definately not a good idea. If there is any whitish stuff around his mouth, it means the guppy has Mouth Rot (basically columnaris of the mouth), what other fish do you have in the tank?

 

[greatfish123]

okay here's my stocking list: 1 male guppy( the one who is affected), 2 female guppies, 3 platies, 2 swordtails, 6 glowlight tetras, 5 pristella tetras, 1 betta

the fish in question is isolated now btw

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

okay here's my stocking list: 1 male guppy( the one who is affected), 2 female guppies, 3 platies, 2 swordtails, 6 glowlight tetras, 5 pristella tetras, 1 betta

the fish in question is isolated now btw

If you live in the UK, you should be able to get hold of "anti fungus and finrot" by Interpet which also treats columnaris, i would personally use that over the salt and copper treatment as i have found it to be very effective in treating columnaris .
How many gallons is the tank/what is its measurements and what is your average tank cleaning regime like and often do you do it on average? Have you added any new fish to the tank recently?
When you say the guppy is separated, how have you separated him from the rest of the fish?

 

[greatfish123]

okay here's my stocking list: 1 male guppy( the one who is affected), 2 female guppies, 3 platies, 2 swordtails, 6 glowlight tetras, 5 pristella tetras, 1 betta

the fish in question is isolated now btw

If you live in the UK, you should be able to get hold of "anti fungus and finrot" by Interpet which also treats columnaris, i would personally use that over the salt and copper treatment as i have found it to be very effective in treating columnaris .
How many gallons is the tank/what is its measurements and what is your average tank cleaning regime like and often do you do it on average? Have you added any new fish to the tank recently?
When you say the guppy is separated, how have you separated him from the rest of the fish?

unfortunately i cant obtain the medicine as i dont live in the uk, the tank is a 46 gallon tank and i gravel vac/ change water once every week. The glowlights were added very reccently to the tank.. about a 1.5 weeks ago. THe guppy is also in its own tank that is completly separate from the main tank.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

If the guppy is just on its own and you are just treating it alone, then i would advise using a med which fights both bacterial and fungal infections (like Pimafix) to treat the mouth most effectively- salt is much better for treating parasites on fish rather than infections like columnaris.
You have a good tank cleaning regime, although i would advise none the less that you check that there are no places in the tank where waste in particular builds up in the tank (particularly any uneaten food) during the week, as columnaris often starts out in life on decomposing waste. Its posible that one of the new tetras was also carrying the disease and introduced it into your tank, or simply the guppy injured its mouth on something which made it weak to fighting off infection like mouth rot etc.

I take it that the hospital tank the guppy is in is filtered and heated ?

 

[greatfish123]

thanks for your reply. I've started him on pimafix from the start itself. (i forgot to mention it sry). The tank is not heated as out house temp is really warm and the temp usually stays at 77F all the time. I did not have a cycled tank at my disposal so i am going to have to resort to replacing the water every 12hrs. The tank is well aerated also. is there anything else i should be doing

 

[greatfish123]

double post ignore this please

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

thanks for your reply. I've started him on pimafix from the start itself. (i forgot to mention it sry). The tank is not heated as out house temp is really warm and the temp usually stays at 77F all the time. I did not have a cycled tank at my disposal so i am going to have to resort to replacing the water every 12hrs. The tank is well aerated also. is there anything else i should be doing

Does the tank have any filtration? The pimafix combined with the regular water changes should hopefully clear up the mouth rot, you can also try treating the fish with Melafix as well at the same time (these meds can be used together) as it is a good antibiotic med (it wouldn't be able to really treat the mouth rot on its own, but still is a very good anti-bacterial med). Other than that, just make sure the guppy gets fed well and doesn't get too stressed out by the water changes and it should recover well .

 

[greatfish123]

Great thanks for your help. The tank does not have any filtration apart from a DIY sponge filter that does not have the bacteria in it. so its mainly mechanical if it can provide any.