Why is my fish fuzzy?

Question

My tank cleared up.

I got test kits and everything is normal.

I did a partial water change because it was at stressed.

But, all of my fish like different PH levels, so, i avereged it about a 7.0/7.1

And thats EXACTLY what its at.

Also, the amonia levels are perfect.

I added a tiny bit of aquarium salt to help their gills.

But, it seems that my female guppy is growing something "fuzzy" on the top of her head?

I've seen it happen before, but the fish had been dead for a day or so.

One of my mollies died, but, i took her out right away.

Whats wrong with my fishiiee?

Answer 1

I'm afraid it's too late for your poor female guppy. what appears to be a little harmless fuzz is actually a dangerous, rare strain of the fish fungus solanum. This fungus spreads through underwater "spores" ingested by your fish through it's diet or poorly maintained aquariums.

once the strain has entered your fish's body, the process is a slow, but painful one. it lodges itself in the brain, and grows upwards towards the head through the skull, seeking light. Once it has fully manifested itself in the fungus form, it slowly begins to eat away at the fishes cortex, destroying the non-vital functions first, essentially turning it into a mindless husk of a fish.

I'm afraid the best solution is to quarantine the fish to prevent spreading of the fungus to the other aquarium-mates. however, in my personal experience, i find it saves the fish from a great deal of pain if you just flush it down the toilet.

EDIT: SOUP n**i IS A DOUCHE

Answer 2

I bet Soop is right but if not...it could be velvet. This disease has to have light so one of the major treatments for it is turning off the light during treatment time. The signs of velvet are similar to other diseases but include rapid gilling (or heavy breathing). A way to know for sure if it is velvet is turn off all the tank, and room lights and shine a flashlight into the aquarium. In this light the spots should look yellow or rusty.

Treatment include turning off light, raising temp, add salt, treating with copper sulfate for 10 days, and stop using carbon in the filtration cycle.

Answer 3

I'm not sure; I'm no fish expert.

But I DO know one thing that cures nearly everything - trying giving her a salt bath. Leave her in salt water for around 10-20 minutes. The salt and kill a lot of bacteria germs etc.  

Answer 4

Columnaris is a bacterial infection that appears very similar to fungus and tends to infect the fish's mouth or the top of the head first, earning it several names, from cotton mouth, to mouth rot to saddleback.  The best thing to do would be to separate the infected fish and treat it with Maracyn 2, Furan 2, Maracyn TC, TC Capsules, Triple Sulfa, Trisulfa, Kanaplex, acriflavine, or similar medications.  I would not recommend treating the main tank, as many of the medications will destroy the biofilter you worked so hard to establish.  Be sure to remove any activated carbon during treatment, and if using tetracycline or minocycline based medicaitons, keep the tank dark, as these drugs degrade with exposure to light.

Columnaris: http://www.reefs.org/library/aquarium_ne...

http://www.flippersandfins.net/Images/Fl...

EDIT: "Solanum", mentioned by the below user, is a fictional virus from the book 'The Zombie Survival Guide'...  Nice try, though...

EDIT 2: While velvet is a possibility, it tends to cause more uniform slim clouding all over the body, while columnaris would be concentrated in one area, generally around the mouth or top of the head.