Q: Hi there!
I bought a colony of Kiku from a friend of mine who is still holding the last female in his hospital tank. I noticed in your title that you're a marine biologist. I am
hoping you might have come across this before and potentially know what
to do.
This fish has now had this problem for about 8 months and is still
eat/fighting with the neighbor in the tank etc.. wants to play etc. I
want to take her home and re-introduce her to the colony, and the fish
that has been in the hospital tank with her has not gotten anything
from her. We have tried almost every medication you can think of, but I
am looking for any insight and potentially know a way to diagnose the
problem so we at least know what the problem is so we know either what
to do with the fish or if we can safely return it back to the colony.
Potential surgery?
Hope to hear from you.
Thanks
Jesper
A: Hello Jesper!
From what I have seen in your pictures and what you have explained (it grew in a few weeks, she behaves normally, the growth is hard, and that she eats and poops normally) I would agree it is a tumor. Since she is happy and showing normal behavior you can easily introduce her back into the colony. The only thing about the tumor is that you could do is give her surgery, but since she is a small fish, she would probably not make it. So, just make sure she is having a happy life and that is about all you can do for her.
Thanks for the question!
Merritt Adkins
© Captive Aquatics / CA Blog
