Flowerhorn eye infected, worse than cloudy eye

Hello fellow fish keepers. I need your help!!!!!!!

One day I saw a string of blood inside my flowerhorns one eye. In a week, the blood filled all the way up the eye and got swollen. Now there's like a hole in the center of the eye and is leaking a bit of blood. His swimming is also slightly tilted. One ete is ONLY infected. He has injured the same eye in the past by also got cloudy eye, thought it cured. A month later that incident, THIS HAPPENED, and this event is so much worse. Like something is literally eating away the layer of his eye.

I clean his tank every two weeks, give him 10 pellets day and night, has good oxygen and temperature, so I don't know why this happened all of a sudden and is not getting better.

I put methalyne blue for 2 or 3 weeks already. I tried putting epsom salt in the tank rather than putting him in high concentrated bath in a bucket, because he gets stressed supper easily. Is it too late to put him in one even after his stressing condition?

I don't want to lose my flowerhorn or wait until it's too late, please help.

 

Aquarium salt may do more good than epsom salt. Maybe something more like maracyn or kanaplex instead of meth blue as well if something stronger is needed. And very frequent water changes, like 20-30% every other day.

 

hes going to lose the eye,.
the only thing you really can do is try to water change heavy, keep it really clean and nitrates low, which will also keep the bacteria really low, and it will allow it to heal over, this will need to be carried on well after the eye is healed up to make sure it's completely healed and can't get reinfected and open up again.
It's very likely by the tilting he is already blind in that eye so the idea is to control the infection of bacteria and get it to close up and heal. if the bacteria isn't controlled it will eat into the eye and further most likely.

theres a couple prescription meds for humans or pets, eye drops that could work, but honestly getting them is such a pain it's not worth mentioning.
Low nitrates, clean clean, and the bacteria count will go down, and the fish can fight off the infection and heal. maybe a month keeping nitrates at like 5ppm or less.

maracyn can work, the salt thing causes stress, and the MBlue is just a mess to use and I don't see real results from it when Ive used it.

the water change thing works and if you can improve the diet, round it out this will help the fish also to recover.

 

Aquarium salt may do more good than epsom salt. Maybe something more like maracyn or kanaplex instead of meth blue as well if something stronger is needed. And very frequent water changes, like 20-30% every other day.

Thank u so much for your response, so I'll first do a big water change and not add anything. I don't know about the kanaplex or maracyn because it is hard to get in dhipped in my region or it'll take a week for it to arrive so I'll just put some aquarium salt.

hes going to lose the eye,.
the only thing you really can do is try to water change heavy, keep it really clean and nitrates low, which will also keep the bacteria really low, and it will allow it to heal over, this will need to be carried on well after the eye is healed up to make sure it's completely healed and can't get reinfected and open up again.
It's very likely by the tilting he is already blind in that eye so the idea is to control the infection of bacteria and get it to close up and heal. if the bacteria isn't controlled it will eat into the eye and further most likely.

theres a couple prescription meds for humans or pets, eye drops that could work, but honestly getting them is such a pain it's not worth mentioning.
Low nitrates, clean clean, and the bacteria count will go down, and the fish can fight off the infection and heal. maybe a month keeping nitrates at like 5ppm or less.

maracyn can work, the salt thing causes stress, and the MBlue is just a mess to use and I don't see real results from it when Ive used it.

the water change thing works and if you can improve the diet, round it out this will help the fish also to recover.

I appreciate your response very much!!!!. By heavy water change, do u mean around half of the wayer? I have like a 15-20 gallon tank, I'm praying it'll get better, but it already seems way worse than the pic just yesterday. I'll do my best. Important factors: big water change. Unfortunately it's hard to get kanaplex or maracyn shipped fast and easy in Mt region, I'll have to wait long, but shall I still order them regardless?

 

Thank u so much for your response, so I'll first do a big water change and not add anything. I don't know about the kanaplex or maracyn because it is hard to get in dhipped in my region or it'll take a week for it to arrive so I'll just put some aquarium salt.

I appreciate your response very much!!!!. By heavy water change, do u mean around half of the wayer? I have like a 15-20 gallon tank, I'm praying it'll get better, but it already seems way worse than the pic just yesterday. I'll do my best. Important factors: big water change. Unfortunately it's hard to get kanaplex or maracyn shipped fast and easy in Mt region, I'll have to wait long, but shall I still order them regardless?

By heavy water change I mean like half the water, but ideally what i mean is doing water changes so nitrate never get above 10ppm and the lower the better because if it's not building up nitrates it's not building up bacteria either. By keeping the nitrates low, nothing else is getting higher either and this will mean the water is as "fresh" as it could be and will help with healing just like changing to a clean bandage would help a wound you have.

If you can do a series of 20% water changes or 10% water changes that gets your nitrates way down to near nothing, and doesn't allow them to build up, that is heavy water changing. It's getting it really low and keeping it there that matters, the lower the better.

Honestly a lot of fish problems don't even need meds, the fish can usually fight whatever it is off and heal itself if a person can give the fish optimum conditions.

Flowerhorns get BIG. 15-20 gallons isn't enough space for one, as it grows it starts running into things and it gets harder and harder to maintain the water quality. 75 gallon is the minimum size tank for 1 flowerhorn really so they don't get injured and maintenence is manageable long term.

 

By heavy water change I mean like half the water, but ideally what i mean is doing water changes so nitrate never get above 10ppm and the lower the better because if it's not building up nitrates it's not building up bacteria either. By keeping the nitrates low, nothing else is getting higher either and this will mean the water is as "fresh" as it could be and will help with healing just like changing to a clean bandage would help a wound you have.

If you can do a series of 20% water changes or 10% water changes that gets your nitrates way down to near nothing, and doesn't allow them to build up, that is heavy water changing. It's getting it really low and keeping it there that matters, the lower the better.

Honestly a lot of fish problems don't even need meds, the fish can usually fight whatever it is off and heal itself if a person can give the fish optimum conditions.

Flowerhorns get BIG. 15-20 gallons isn't enough space for one, as it grows it starts running into things and it gets harder and harder to maintain the water quality. 75 gallon is the minimum size tank for 1 flowerhorn really so they don't get injured and maintenence is manageable long term.

Thank you lots SparkyJones. You mentioned some things I never knew about. I pray this will get better with the help of yours. I'll start the heavy water changes and see if anything changes within the week. About the size of tank, I definitely agree with you, but at the moment it is challenging for me to provide a very big tank. But one day he'll be able to swim in a bigger tank. Cheers to you!

 

if it's a regular flowerhorn it can grow 12" length. if it's a "balloon" or "bonsai" short body variety they grow around 6" or so. either type they are going to fall into the 1 to 2 pound weight range as adult.

If nitrates are kept super low through water changes, this also keeps bad bacteria low, and stress low. If the fish has low stress, it's not wasting it's immune system and nutrients on other things to counter stress or fight attempts at infections, and that immune system can then be used to repair and heal damage, or fight back infection.
in essence, you have a limited amount of water, that limited water volume will get "dirty" or concentrated faster than more volume would. the frequent water changes sort of simulate more water volume, it's "fresher" and as a result the fish is happier and healthier, the thing is though, there are limitations, it's still a big fish species that is growing, and its in a small tank. if it darts, it's going to hit a wall. This will increase the chances of damage and stress and infection. it will stop trying to dart and limit it's movement to not run into things and as a result get weak and just sit there instead of being able to swim and move all day and maintain it's strength.

I have healed up damaged eyes, a puncture even that destroyed it by just doing water changes and keeping the nitrates low, it does work, however if there were some underlying condition that isn't seen or known, a tumor behind there, popeye from fluid retention (it would be both eyes if it were) , something like that then it's a different story. The water changing is just for a damaged eye from injury that is getting infected. Fish are monocular, they don't use both eyes to see at the same time, one looks to the left, the other to the right due to the position on the head, there is no quality of life difference for a one eyed fish, they get used to it and will just start leading in the direction of the good eye they can see out of and turn to that direction and stuff and stop turning and leading on the bad eye side.

IF you have a petco nearby you, a few times a year they have a 50% off tanks sale. it's a good time to buy a larger tank if on sale. a 15-20g tank is going to be like 24", as an adult the fish will fill a quarter to half of that tank and not be able to swim, it's really recommended to have 48", and a width of more than the 55g" that is 13", so the fish can swim and turn without hitting things.

I understand if you just can't due to money or space limitations, I'd just say maybe think about rehoming the large fish after it's healed up if it's just not in the cards to have a tank that it can be happy and healthy in for it's lifetime, and instead get fish that won't outgrow the tank.
No offense meant, and I'm not bashing you, We all have gotten in over our heads at some point when keeping fish, most with an oscar or a pleco or a iridescent shark or knife fish and found it to be becoming massive in a small tank.

 

if it's a regular flowerhorn it can grow 12" length. if it's a "balloon" or "bonsai" short body variety they grow around 6" or so. either type they are going to fall into the 1 to 2 pound weight range as adult.

If nitrates are kept super low through water changes, this also keeps bad bacteria low, and stress low. If the fish has low stress, it's not wasting it's immune system and nutrients on other things to counter stress or fight attempts at infections, and that immune system can then be used to repair and heal damage, or fight back infection.
in essence, you have a limited amount of water, that limited water volume will get "dirty" or concentrated faster than more volume would. the frequent water changes sort of simulate more water volume, it's "fresher" and as a result the fish is happier and healthier, the thing is though, there are limitations, it's still a big fish species that is growing, and its in a small tank. if it darts, it's going to hit a wall. This will increase the chances of damage and stress and infection. it will stop trying to dart and limit it's movement to not run into things and as a result get weak and just sit there instead of being able to swim and move all day and maintain it's strength.

I have healed up damaged eyes, a puncture even that destroyed it by just doing water changes and keeping the nitrates low, it does work, however if there were some underlying condition that isn't seen or known, a tumor behind there, popeye from fluid retention (it would be both eyes if it were) , something like that then it's a different story. The water changing is just for a damaged eye from injury that is getting infected. Fish are monocular, they don't use both eyes to see at the same time, one looks to the left, the other to the right due to the position on the head, there is no quality of life difference for a one eyed fish, they get used to it and will just start leading in the direction of the good eye they can see out of and turn to that direction and stuff and stop turning and leading on the bad eye side.

IF you have a petco nearby you, a few times a year they have a 50% off tanks sale. it's a good time to buy a larger tank if on sale. a 15-20g tank is going to be like 24", as an adult the fish will fill a quarter to half of that tank and not be able to swim, it's really recommended to have 48", and a width of more than the 55g" that is 13", so the fish can swim and turn without hitting things.

I understand if you just can't due to money or space limitations, I'd just say maybe think about rehoming the large fish after it's healed up if it's just not in the cards to have a tank that it can be happy and healthy in for it's lifetime, and instead get fish that won't outgrow the tank.
No offense meant, and I'm not bashing you, We all have gotten in over our heads at some point when keeping fish, most with an oscar or a pleco or a iridescent shark or knife fish and found it to be becoming massive in a small tank.

No worries! I completely understand this and am thankful for the info because i now I want to consider a better space for my fish if i want him living in a healthier place while we both dont have to deal with anymore stressful senarios like this. To add , I very recently got his tank, somehow the petshops said such as size would be temporarily okay. I'll have to double check and search for bigger tank sizes at this rate.

Now I believe it's just the eye that's infected and nothing else is affecting his behaviour like activness and hunger (other than the way he searches for the food by turning with the good eye ) As of now the nitrates are above 10 ppm so I'll make that heavy water change. I never encountered big sales in my local petores, so I'll ask them about it.

this'll be my last 2 question and all concerns are done: is it okay to just add a bit aquarium salt to be on the safe sidE? and how long till I'll be able to see results from the water change? I appreciate this so much and hope you have a great day!

 

No worries! I completely understand this and am thankful for the info because i now I want to consider a better space for my fish if i want him living in a healthier place while we both dont have to deal with anymore stressful senarios like this. To add , I very recently got his tank, somehow the petshops said such as size would be temporarily okay. I'll have to double check and search for bigger tank sizes at this rate.

Now I believe it's just the eye that's infected and nothing else is affecting his behaviour like activness and hunger (other than the way he searches for the food by turning with the good eye ) As of now the nitrates are above 10 ppm so I'll make that heavy water change. I never encountered big sales in my local petores, so I'll ask them about it.

this'll be my last 2 question and all concerns are done: is it okay to just add a bit aquarium salt to be on the safe sidE? and how long till I'll be able to see results from the water change? I appreciate this so much and hope you have a great day!

truth be told I do not use it ever. the reason being is that tapwater contains some level of sodium to begin with and if it's treated, it's usually treated commonly with sodium hypochlorite. which is Sodium, Oxygen and Chloride (chlorine) .
when you dechlorinate, this bond breaks, and the chloride is oxidized out leaving behind anegative xcharged Oxygen molecule and a postive charged sodium molecule.

A tank has sodium that the fish and all life need if water changes are being done with tap water. There is some medicinal benefit to using aquarium salt (sodium chloride) but as far as wound care goes, if you have ever used salt in your own wound, it's less than a pleasant feeling and I can't imagine it being a positive experience for a fish either. If I did decide to use it personally, I would use it as a last resort, I can't imagine it would be "stress free" to increase the salt content of an aquarium.

others may disagree of course, even say it's harmless. Just my personal feelings on it is that actual medications would work better if needed at all than aquarium salt would it's basically just to treat mild bacterial infections or as a strong dip for some parasites.
What I do know is that it does promote slime coat shedding and the production of more/new slime coat as a result.

if it's maintained lowand clean, there will be noticeable improvement in a couple days to a week and the eye will go from cloudy to clear and not look so puffy. And in a couple weeks it will be significantly improved.

I think this fish won't lose the eye completely but maybe won't be able to see out of it anymore. honestly though it needs a good 30 days, maybe 6 weeks for a full heal to where it won't rupture again if hit and to be scar tissue at the wound and no longer tender and vulnerable, like a newly healed wound would be.
At that point he will either still be blind and favoring the good eye, or it was caught in time and his vision issue is temporary due to the injury and cloudiness. it's just really hard to tell but since the eye hasn't popped yet, that it's still there and round,t here is some hope to it gaining it's vision back when it heals up completely

I just don't want to get your hopes up too high in case it doesn't gain vision back in that eye but I'm optimistic. if he's eating and not getting lethargic it's not a very serious infection yet. best of luck, let me know how it goes.
Remember, if it's not getting worse, it's improving.

 

truth be told I do not use it ever. the reason being is that tapwater contains some level of sodium to begin with and if it's treated, it's usually treated commonly with sodium hypochlorite. which is Sodium, Oxygen and Chloride (chlorine) .
when you dechlorinate, this bond breaks, and the chloride is oxidized out leaving behind anegative xcharged Oxygen molecule and a postive charged sodium molecule.

A tank has sodium that the fish and all life need if water changes are being done with tap water. There is some medicinal benefit to using aquarium salt (sodium chloride) but as far as wound care goes, if you have ever used salt in your own wound, it's less than a pleasant feeling and I can't imagine it being a positive experience for a fish either. If I did decide to use it personally, I would use it as a last resort, I can't imagine it would be "stress free" to increase the salt content of an aquarium.

others may disagree of course, even say it's harmless. Just my personal feelings on it is that actual medications would work better if needed at all than aquarium salt would it's basically just to treat mild bacterial infections or as a strong dip for some parasites.
What I do know is that it does promote slime coat shedding and the production of more/new slime coat as a result.

if it's maintained lowand clean, there will be noticeable improvement in a couple days to a week and the eye will go from cloudy to clear and not look so puffy. And in a couple weeks it will be significantly improved.

I think this fish won't lose the eye completely but maybe won't be able to see out of it anymore. honestly though it needs a good 30 days, maybe 6 weeks for a full heal to where it won't rupture again if hit and to be scar tissue at the wound and no longer tender and vulnerable, like a newly healed wound would be.
At that point he will either still be blind and favoring the good eye, or it was caught in time and his vision issue is temporary due to the injury and cloudiness. it's just really hard to tell but since the eye hasn't popped yet, that it's still there and round,t here is some hope to it gaining it's vision back when it heals up completely

I just don't want to get your hopes up too high in case it doesn't gain vision back in that eye but I'm optimistic. if he's eating and not getting lethargic it's not a very serious infection yet. best of luck, let me know how it goes.
Remember, if it's not getting worse, it's improving.

Thank you so much for your time to write and assist me in this situation. At this rate, I have no clue what the outcome of my fish's eye will turn out to be, I'll just have to experiment and observe him day by day. I can't even tell if it is actually improving or not, it does seem like he can't see from it anymore, but who knows what may miraculously happen.

I do really want to get that kanaplex just in case, that's why it'll be on my online orders. I understand, having high hopes may not be the best, but even a tiny bit means there's no giving up. I'll best keep you updated after 3-4 days, until then I appreciate all the things you've mentioned Sparky. Props to you!
As you can see... but on the bright side his kok is growing big again meaning something positive! My bad if the photos are blurry, he moves aggressively

 

truth be told I do not use it ever. the reason being is that tapwater contains some level of sodium to begin with and if it's treated, it's usually treated commonly with sodium hypochlorite. which is Sodium, Oxygen and Chloride (chlorine) .
when you dechlorinate, this bond breaks, and the chloride is oxidized out leaving behind anegative xcharged Oxygen molecule and a postive charged sodium molecule.

A tank has sodium that the fish and all life need if water changes are being done with tap water. There is some medicinal benefit to using aquarium salt (sodium chloride) but as far as wound care goes, if you have ever used salt in your own wound, it's less than a pleasant feeling and I can't imagine it being a positive experience for a fish either. If I did decide to use it personally, I would use it as a last resort, I can't imagine it would be "stress free" to increase the salt content of an aquarium.

others may disagree of course, even say it's harmless. Just my personal feelings on it is that actual medications would work better if needed at all than aquarium salt would it's basically just to treat mild bacterial infections or as a strong dip for some parasites.
What I do know is that it does promote slime coat shedding and the production of more/new slime coat as a result.

if it's maintained lowand clean, there will be noticeable improvement in a couple days to a week and the eye will go from cloudy to clear and not look so puffy. And in a couple weeks it will be significantly improved.

I think this fish won't lose the eye completely but maybe won't be able to see out of it anymore. honestly though it needs a good 30 days, maybe 6 weeks for a full heal to where it won't rupture again if hit and to be scar tissue at the wound and no longer tender and vulnerable, like a newly healed wound would be.
At that point he will either still be blind and favoring the good eye, or it was caught in time and his vision issue is temporary due to the injury and cloudiness. it's just really hard to tell but since the eye hasn't popped yet, that it's still there and round,t here is some hope to it gaining it's vision back when it heals up completely

I just don't want to get your hopes up too high in case it doesn't gain vision back in that eye but I'm optimistic. if he's eating and not getting lethargic it's not a very serious infection yet. best of luck, let me know how it goes.
Remember, if it's not getting worse, it's improving.

Hello Sparky! Hope you're doing alright! I'm here to update you that I did get my kanaplex just today. I added some and hoping it'll further improve something on my fish.

Speaking of my flowerhorn, his eye does look better, seems like that tiny hole in his eye closed and the size is pretty normal. It's just that it's still super cloudy as if he's blind. However what's concerning me more is that he's always sitting down at the corner of his tank!! He's not as active like always being at the top, he only goes to the top if I approach his tank for food.

At the same time, there was like something white growing on his fin, it's not as visible anymore, I'll try to see if I have a photo, but something filmy white did grow on his fins and I don't really know what it is.

 

All and the best you can really do is keep the tank clean and nitrates low low which will also tell you that infecting bacteria is low. You can try meds but from my experience they cause more stress than necessarily a benefit. Diet and water quality are everything and the cleaner you can keep the water from building up negatives the healthier the fish is, a lot like pollution in general for everyone. Less pollution and toxins, and stress better quality of life and health.

The white growth on fins is usually fin fungus this also goes away as the water quality and diet improve and the fishes immune system can fight it off. When they don't feel good and not moving so much, maybe just chillin towards the bottom taking it easy they might not move too much and of their immune system is busy they can get these external bacterial or fungal infections.

Like I said though you can use meds, I just never personally saw much of a benefit unless it just happens to be the right med for the right problem. Diet and water quality as well as low stress boosts their immune system and allows them to cure things that affect them on their own and is the best method unless they are severely bad.

Most common causes for early deaths in flowerhorns are underfeeding/low nutritional value, overfeeding causing digestive issues, or poor water quality due to slacking water changes a too small of a tank for the fish and not being able to keep up on water quality or just not keeping it clean enough.
All of these things cause stress and stress is the real killer in the long run. When injustices and symptoms are all over the place, it's a ign of a poor immune system, and likely stress related so while meds will work short term the problem returns when the meds stop because the stressing environment is still there.

 

All and the best you can really do is keep the tank clean and nitrates low low which will also tell you that infecting bacteria is low. You can try meds but from my experience they cause more stress than necessarily a benefit. Diet and water quality are everything and the cleaner you can keep the water from building up negatives the healthier the fish is, a lot like pollution in general for everyone. Less pollution and toxins, and stress better quality of life and health.

The white growth on fins is usually fin fungus this also goes away as the water quality and diet improve and the fishes immune system can fight it off. When they don't feel good and not moving so much, maybe just chillin towards the bottom taking it easy they might not move too much and of their immune system is busy they can get these external bacterial or fungal infections.

Like I said though you can use meds, I just never personally saw much of a benefit unless it just happens to be the right med for the right problem. Diet and water quality as well as low stress boosts their immune system and allows them to cure things that affect them on their own and is the best method unless they are severely bad.

Most common causes for early deaths in flowerhorns are underfeeding/low nutritional value, overfeeding causing digestive issues, or poor water quality due to slacking water changes a too small of a tank for the fish and not being able to keep up on water quality or just not keeping it clean enough.
All of these things cause stress and stress is the real killer in the long run. When injustices and symptoms are all over the place, it's a ign of a poor immune system, and likely stress related so while meds will work short term the problem returns when the meds stop because the stressing environment is still there.

Whatsup mate! It's been a while since I was here addressing about my flowerhorns case of blind eye. I think it's official to say that he is blind in one eye now, however I'm starting to notice other very concerning signs that I dont know how to fix.

Firstly, I believe my fish has fin rot! And second, I found two of his pieces of his scales fallen and on the surface of the tank!!!!!!

I read articles online stating that most common reason of such results is due to bacterial infections by not cleaning the tank. Although, I never miss a week of cleaning his tank...

Sparky and everyone else, your help is greatly appreciated.

 

Well firstly it's probably related to the run down immune system from the eye damage.
Do you have all bases covered with the fishes diet?
If the immune system is run down they won't be able to fight off even a little bit of bacteria.
An antibiotic like erythromycin, or maracyn should work. But the underlying cause needs to be figured out.

We know the tank is too small and needs to be more volume of water long term for the fish 55g at a minimum a 75g would be better or larger though.

Check diet, are all bases covered for this species nutritional needs and being fed appropriate amounts for its size? and is the food "fresh"? Nothing old and poor in nutrients and vitamins?
Check the temperature, is that consistent?
You mentioned water changing once a week. How much water change are you doing? What are the nitrate levels before and after a water change? The water volume is small being a small tank, wondering if it gets high by water change day.
Finally filtration. Is there good water movementand circulation?

The antibiotic will knock it out but if the cause isn't addressed, the problem will return once you stop the meds for a bit. Fritz, Mardel, API all make these antibiotic treatments and can be bought in a lot of countries over the counter that aren't tightly regulating antibiotic meds.

 

Hello i didnt have time to reply sooner but thank you once again! I do agree with the theory that his immunity was worn off due to the blind eye incident.

He has been eating the same food pellets even before the blind eye so I don't think that is the main cause.

Water circulation works very well, he even has an oxygen pump. Temperature all good. However, I tend to not check the nitrate levels which is my mistake and what I acknowledge.

One more really strange thing I've noticed!!!
( His head has been very giggly than normal. It seems very weird but it is definitely one thing I've found off about. Though I'm not sure if it's a normal thing- or am I just overthinking?)

I've been trying to put kanaplex but I guess I haven't found the main cause yet since it's not really helping... I will attach a few photos just incase. Unfortunately the video is not uploading, so I'll try my best to work it out. Thank uuuu.
Yipee

 

Well firstly it's probably related to the run down immune system from the eye damage.
Do you have all bases covered with the fishes diet?
If the immune system is run down they won't be able to fight off even a little bit of bacteria.
An antibiotic like erythromycin, or maracyn should work. But the underlying cause needs to be figured out.

We know the tank is too small and needs to be more volume of water long term for the fish 55g at a minimum a 75g would be better or larger though.

Check diet, are all bases covered for this species nutritional needs and being fed appropriate amounts for its size? and is the food "fresh"? Nothing old and poor in nutrients and vitamins?
Check the temperature, is that consistent?
You mentioned water changing once a week. How much water change are you doing? What are the nitrate levels before and after a water change? The water volume is small being a small tank, wondering if it gets high by water change day.
Finally filtration. Is there good water movementand circulation?

The antibiotic will knock it out but if the cause isn't addressed, the problem will return once you stop the meds for a bit. Fritz, Mardel, API all make these antibiotic treatments and can be bought in a lot of countries over the counter that aren't tightly regulating antibiotic meds.

Hello i didnt have time to reply sooner but thank you once again! I do agree with the theory that his immunity was worn off due to the blind eye incident.

He has been eating the same food pellets even before the blind eye so I don't think that is the main cause.

Water circulation works very well, he even has an oxygen pump. Temperature all good. However, I tend to not check the nitrate levels which is my mistake and what I acknowledge.

One more really strange thing I've noticed!!!
( His head has been very giggly than normal. It seems very weird but it is definitely one thing I've found off about. Though I'm not sure if it's a normal thing- or am I just overthinking?)

I've been trying to put kanaplex but I guess I haven't found the main cause yet since it's not really helping... I will attach a few photos just incase. Unfortunately the video is not uploading, so I'll try my best to work it out. Thank uuuu.

 

Yes. Just asking for you to check the pellets and make sure they cover the dietary needs or they will run deficient in a nutrient and generally cichlids don't do well if deficient. Also want to keep in mind as he grows he'll need more food per feeding, I've made that mistake myself and caught myself but lots of people don't keep up with their calorie needs for their size and get set in a routine which is fine for fish that are done growing but malnourishing for a fish that have growing to do still.

Nitrates are also going to be a problem for cichlids that are susceptible to HITH/LLE and other issues. The bigger he gets the harder it gets to keep up with the water changes and the worse he becomes, so if it's gotta be small your really have to stay on top of the water changes and keep the water quality up.

In the lump on his head there's just muscle and fat and a canal which I'd suppose he can flood with fluid, the bigger it is and depending on how much fluid he's sending there it could be firm or soft and jiggly.
It going soft or shrinking could be a sign of weakness/illness, but I mean depending on mood they also might not have it on full display.

You could try methelyne blue and take the fish out of the tank and dab the troubling areas with the MB on a cotton ball or swab, whatever is damaged tissue it will stain it blue making it visible.

MB is like a dye so don't get it on your clothes or skin it will be there a while if you do. Don't dose the tank though, it can kill your bacteria colony and cycle, just spot treat the fish.
Kanaplex is more designed to be absorbed by the fish from the water to treat internal bacterial infection, but on the skin it's kind of weak.
Everyone says "I don't want to take my fish out of the water" I know. Just saying that will work, its a strong antibacterial for external bacterial issues. Next step up strongest would be hydrogen peroxide but you can't use that near eyes or gills, otherwise same application method. And just used sparingly in an aquarium It's an oxidizer and just kills infected tissue along with whatever bacteria is there in the wound.