Hole in Head Disease

[MaryEllen]

I believe my pleco has hold in head disease. I have taken him out of the main tank (with 8 cichlids) and hope I haven't caught it too late. Is there anything I could do to help treat him of is it too far gone?

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

That is not hole in the head disease.

Is the eye still there and covered with a white film, or is the eye ball missing?
If the eye ball is missing, the fish has had its eye eaten by the cichlids.

What cichlids do you have and what other fish are in the tank?

Keep the pleco separate from now on and feed it well on a variety of foods.
Make sure you have some driftwood in the tank for the pleco to graze on. they need the fibre to help their digestion.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a couple of weeks. This will help reduce the chance of infection.

 

[MaryEllen]

Hi and welcome to the forum

That is not hole in the head disease.

Is the eye still there and covered with a white film, or is the eye ball missing?
If the eye ball is missing, the fish has had its eye eaten by the cichlids.

What cichlids do you have and what other fish are in the tank?

Keep the pleco separate from now on and feed it well on a variety of foods.
Make sure you have some driftwood in the tank for the pleco to graze on. they need the fibre to help their digestion.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a couple of weeks. This will help reduce the chance of infection.[/QUOTE

Thanks for your quick response - I have attached another photo. I believe his eyes are still there. The holes are on both sides of his head. There are 10 African cichlids in the tank with him and as of now, I have removed him from the main tank. I will add a piece of driftwood to the tank and replace the water. I do hope it helps.

 

[MaryEllen]

Thanks for your quick response - I have attached another photo. I believe his eyes are still there. The holes are on both sides of his head. There are 10 African cichlids in the tank with him and as of now, I have removed him from the main tank. I will add a piece of driftwood to the tank and replace the water. I do hope it helps

 

[FishGuest5123]

I agree with Colin. Hole in the Head usually begins as small holes like pin holes in the head. This is much bigger and looks like injuries.

 

[flipperfeet]

This is not hole-in-the-head disease. Hole-in-the-head is not symmetrical, and for it to cause wounds of this size it would be so advanced there would be numerous holes on both sides of the fish. The fins are in tatters as well, the poor fish has been blinded by its tank mates. Do a Google image search on plecostomus and you will see that these holes are in the same location as the eyes of nearly every species of Plecostomus.

There are topical treatments for fish wounds, but the fish's own antibodies are already at work trying to fight off infection and seal the wounds. The good news is, that if the sockets do not get infected and you can stave off an infection on the fins, your Plecostomus could still live a happy decades-long bottom-feeder life. Just not in your tank of aggressive cichlids.

Keep the water clean in the treatment tank with frequent water changes, and treat with a broad spectrum antibiotic to prevent secondary infection while the fish's immune system works to close the wounds.