Loach got scratched up

[Xander]

Hey all! I'm looking for some advice on preventative care and such.

So I noticed at feeding time today, all of my loaches except for my one newest addition, who is generally the bravest and most adventurous of the bunch, was out and about. So that was immediately weird, as the bunch I got from Gabe usually make their ways out after this little guy has had his fill. So I went on looking for him.

Knowing Kuhlis have a penchant for going missing months at a time before showing up again, I checked everything - the plants, the decor, the gravel, the HOB filter, the stand itself, the floor around the tank... No silly loach anywhere! Assuming he just buried himself really well, I gave up for a bit, then went to look again a little while later. The little bugger was inside my filter after all!!

So after fighting to get him back into the tank, I gave him a bit of an inspection, and discovered that he's got a couple good scratches on his right side just behind his gills.

I want him to heal up in the best conditions possible. I don't want to see him get infected. I fought like hell for a week to save this little guy from a nasty case of ammonia poisoning (shipment fiasco, I'm still bummed out over it), and I'm not going to let this get him, either!

SO!
Should I set up a hospital tank for him?
Are there any medicines I should treat him with just to prevent anything from taking hold?
Should I just try to keep an eye on him and see if he gets worse first?
I know that aquarium salt is a no-go for loaches.
Not really certain I could get one, but should I post pics?

Honestly, I am very prone to making mountains out of mole hills, and these scratches on him could be very shallow and minor. I freak out over nothing all the time with all my furries and scalies/nonscalies.

[Xander]

Also, does anyone have any pre-filter sponges I could buy at the meeting this Sunday?? One that will fit an AquaClear 30 intake?
Since I'm seeking out preventative measures and all... lol.

[gabor129]

First off sorry to hear about your loach getting all scratched up. I would not worry too much about it, since I had one of the buggers live in my canister filter for a month, with no light, food or anything at all. I'm sure it had its own scratches from the way he made his way in there.
Second I do have a pre filter that I am not using, but I'm not sure it would fit your needs. With that said I do have another solution for you. What I use on the tank with hob, and shrimps is an aqua clear sponge turned on its end with a hole in the middle. It works wonderfully!

[Xander]

Ah! I didn't even think about repurposing a filter sponge. Thanks for the tip!

[gabor129]

No problem, that is the main reason I love this forum! Lots of info, if you need something! That and bugging Les!

[Xander]

Well, dinnertime made for a good photo opportunity.

So the damage is on both sides, not just his right - you can see the long scratches within his first two saddles/bands. I don't think they're very deep.

[phish]

Doesn't look too bad. Just watch out that it doesn't develop fungus... I suggest keeping the water very clean with water changes so it will heal as quick as possible.

[phish]

When I got my red tailed black shark, he was only about 2 inches long and skinny. After a couple days he went missing. I looked everywhere and couldnt find him. I didn't have any holes in the lid since I know they are jumpers but somehow the little bugger jumped upstream of my HOB filter and got inside. I had thought of looking in the filter and didn't see him in the basket where the media goes so I gave up looking. A couple days later I was doing maintenance cleaning out the filter and low and behold he had jumped from the basket and into the intake area right above the motor housing. I have no idea how he got in there since the clearance from the top of the basket and the filter lid is less than his girth. I guess he must have briefly pushed up the filter lid when he jumped. He was perfectly fine when I got him out. One week later, he did it again!! So I had to put a mesh over the hood opening where the filter water falls into the tank. Now he's too big to do that so I don't have to worry anymore.

[freshwater]

Yes water changes would be the best way to keep the Kuhlis healthy and healing. Keep an eye on the wound if it start to look worse then consider the hospital tank and Meds.

[freshwater]

Yes water changes would be the best way to keep the Kuhlis healthy and healing. Keep an eye on the wound if it starts to look worse then consider the hospital tank and Meds.

[freshwater]

not sure why it posted twice ?

[phish]

not sure why it posted twice ?




Just kidding... maybe you did back then forward on your browser and it posted again?

[Xander]

Ah, my RTB Shark that I had a decade ago never jumped out of the tank itself, but she sure hit the lid hard sometimes! Woke me up out of a few dead sleeps.

The first time I looked in the filter for the kuhli, I lifted the media basket and everything, but couldn't see anything inside. The lighting I have in that area is pretty bad, and the debris might have been too thick. When I went on my second search, I didn't even open the filter. I took the aquarium light behind the tank, and thank god the AquaClears are translucent, because there he was squirming around in the quarter-inch clearance underneath the media basket. I pull everything apart and go to fish him out, and he's missing again - He, too, made it into the gap above the motor housing, and took forever to coax back out!

Thank you all so far for keeping me from overreacting too much

[gabor129]

Hope you have good luck with healing up the cuts. From the picture they do not look too bad, like above mentioned clean water is the best solution.

[lesfromlakeshore]

Is that a piece of lave rock behind the loach in the first picture you posted today . If so maybe it scratched itself along the side of it . They can have sharp edge .