Head Hole

[GuppyDude]

Iv been down to my last betta for a while now and im fairly sure he has head hole. i noticed a white growth on his head at the end of january, so i seperated him into his own container and treated with melafix and salt. i kept the water as clean as i could and i have been able to keep him alive up till now. it appears that he has become slightly blind and can no long locate his food off the top of the water. he has also reasently become constipated so iv starved him a couple days and he will not take a pea. he is not looking too good today, im not sure how much longer he is going to last. should i starte him back on his bites and let him enjoy his last few days, or try to continue his constipation treatment?

 

[jollysue]

I'm sorry GD. Is he still eating?

 

[GuppyDude]

if i throw in one of his beloved betta bites, he'll try his hardest to get ahold of it, but he userally misses a few times and it floats to the bottom, have to feed him by hand

 

[jollysue]

Is he pooing at all?

I really don't know what to say about the feeding issue.

 

[sukie]

It could be Hole in the Head disease . . . you might try Tetracycline combined with Fungus Eliminator.
That's my best-est suggestion.

 

[jollysue]

I hadn't heard that Betta got Hole in the Head. I thought it was an oscar desease from too small tanks and poor water.

 

[sukie]

I've heard of bettas getting it. . . but I could be totally wrong.

 

[Synirr]

From what I've read, they CAN get it, but it's pretty rare

 

[jollysue]

If it is Hole in the Head, what I've read about it is that it can be stopped, but not repaired. Do you have a pic, GD?

 

[Synirr]

I've also read it can't be repaired, but from experience I gotta say that's complete BS. My oscar had a relatively mild case a while back, and while he has a little scarring, the wounds are anything but wide open like most people would have you believe they stay.... the healing process is slow, but it does heal up with time and TLC. You probably wouldn't be able to tell he ever had it without being previously informed.

 

[jollysue]

I have mice running around under my chair! EEK!!

That said, thankfully, miracles happen. I think it's the advanced cases that have a problem restoring.

Where is GD? We have hijacked his thread.

 

[tttnjfttt]

Whey you say his spine has become slightly bent, do you mean that he has become a hunch back or that his spine has began to bend like an S? Does the white growth look like scales have fallen off? The reason I am asking these questions is a bent spine is one of the trademark signs of fish TB, which besides being very hard to cure, and you can also catch it.

here are some other symptoms taken from http/www.4qd.org/Aqua/disease/tb.html#symptoms which has alot of good information.

Symptoms can include:

* Loss of appetite
* Progressive thinness
* Sluggish movement
* Folded fins
* Eye protrusion
* Dark coloration and granular appearance of the cornea (this is the first sign in Angelfish).
* Skeletal deformity
* Hanging at the surface
* Skin defects, including blood spots and open wounds that may ulcerate
* Black spots, or overall dark coloration (in Cichlids particularly).
* Fin rot, characterised by the outer rays falling out.
* Scales loosening and falling out
* General swelling and scale protrusion (as in Dropsy)

 

[jollysue]

"But the bacteria that cause fish TB only cause TB in cold-blooded animals. Human tubercle bacteria are not pathogenic for fishes."

This is a quote from your linked article. Mind you, I have repeatedly heard that it is contagious to humans.

 

[tttnjfttt]

further down in the same section "However - there are lots of different organisms that cause fish t.b. and I have heard reports of some people being infected by freshwater varieties, so it may be rare but not, it seems, impossible! "

The bacteria does not cause the human version of TB, but rather it causes a very nasty skin infection. While the link i gave does seem to question this a little, it is commonly believed that it can infect humans. I would rather tak a better safe than sorry approach and wear gloves and protect yourself.

 

[jollysue]

Agreed, besides there is the need to contain the spread of the infection to other tanks.