Hey funkman! (or anybody else who knows)

[Laura Foster]

Thanks for the advice! Now- I've got a really weird problem on my hands, and NOBODY seems able to help me. Tut is doing great...except... he has these weird...I'd almost call them dimples- little circular depressions, esp.in his face and head, that began as little white dots in groups of two and three. He's tucking his fins some too, but still eating like an Oscar. http://petshub.com/ubb/smile.gif Also, there are these WEIRD little white dots with tails, about the size ot tiny pinheads, clinging to the walls as swimming arond in the tank. some of them are like three tiny dots in a pyramid. Under a magnifying glass, they look almost like little humpbacked shrimp or something. I have encountered them once before in another tank. I had the filter off for some fungus medication suggested by the pet shop (which has NOT worked) when they appeared. I turned it back on and they've mostly disappeared, but what were they? Were they parasitic? How did they get in the tank in the first place? Oh- and why does occasional cleaning of the tank introduce "nasty stuff" that kills them?
Sorry so long, and thanks for the help!!!
Laura

[funkman]

Laura,
I'm sorry but I really don't know.
That sounds pretty freaky to me. I'd hate to give you advice on something I've never seen. It sounds like some kind of organism, not fungus or bacteria. Its probably parasitic if they are clinging to your fish. If they aren't bothering the fish then it must be just some kinda creature that got into the tank. It could be nematodes or some type of roundworm or something. I think I had some in a terrarium once, and I let them be. I'd be a little more careful with fish though. Its been a while since I studied worms, but they are everywhere in the world. If the entire world disappeared (except for the worms) you would still see an entire shell over the world made of tiny worms.
I'd call around to a few different pet shops, and maybe you'll find a guy that is very helpful. Its my experience that most chain-type pet shops haven't a clue when it comes to most animals. The privately owned and operated well-established and respected pet shop guys are the smartest.
IIRC, I think our oscars always had tiny little dimples around their face, little depressions that increased in appearance as they got huge and fat, but they never looked malignant in any way. They would sometimes get fungal infections, and if we caught them soon enuff and medicated them properly they would be fine.
Nasty stuff - I mainly know only from experience the cause and effect, but am not certain of what is exactly going on. Possibilities include: a sudden change in temperature is stressful for the fish, a sudden change in temperature can trigger fungi etc. that you didn't know was there, perhaps the mixing of the water triggers fungi or something, fish need to maintain their electrolytes that are in the water (so if you get rid of their water it disrupts them). Those are just ideas, I have just found it easier to avoid water changes. Usually if my fish tank is dirty, I wipe off the glass, wipe off the rocks, turn over rocks to the clean side, grab any big chunks of dirt the best you can, and basically tidy up and it looks good as new. This has worked well in my saltwater, I haven't kept freshwater in a long time. And like I said before, if you leave a lot of food laying around the water does need partially changed often.

I hope that helped some,
your best off to find a pet shop owner that knows what they are doing.
Kevin Funk

[Laura Foster]

Thank you so much! You did help- a LOT! Those little whatever-they-were's are gone now- I've been dosing the tank with Maracide and that SEEMS to have fixed it. But you really alleviated my biggest worry- those little dimples on his face and in a neat little patten on the margin of his gill plates. He's 5 inches now, so I guess that qualifies as "big and fat" http://petshub.com/ubb/smile.gif He isn't acting sick at all- so you're probably right- it's natural. Also, none of a spectrum of medicines used has effected them at all- so that's probably an indication of normality as well. Thanks again so much for your help!!! Laura Foster