Glow Light Tetra Mouth rot?

I have a glow light tetra who was being cared for by a friend while I was on vacation, and when I came back he was covered in white spots. I assume it was ick. I immediately quarantined him and treated with Ick-X. A week later and he's pretty much cleared up. However, it appears that the lower half of his mouth is gone. This has happened before and I've never understood why. Did the Ick eat away at his mouth tissue? Will it grow back? He is having issues eating because it is difficult to draw in food with only a top lip, so I'm worried he will starve. I've searched the internet and found no results for a fish losing half of its mouth from a fungal infection.

 

Does it still have a bottom jaw? If its only the lip then it can regrow but not the bottom jaw. Isolate either way

 

Not sure. Here's a pic. Looks like he has a nose and no mouth. He's so small it's hard to tell.

 

Can anyone comment as to whether his mouth will grow back. Otherwise he looks in good health. He's active and eating. I have to feed him first bites because he can't suck anything larger into his mouth in its current state. Here's another shot.

 

If it’s just tissue damage it should grow back with time , it’s hard to tell if it’s deeper from the picture but I’d imagine if he’s eating fine and acting normal he should be ok

 

I had something strikingly similar happen to a glowlight tetra just two weeks ago. Three became pretty stressed, likely due to the water chemistry of cycling a new tank, and began to have signs of illness: small, white, fuzzy growths on them. Two of the fish were hit pretty hard and I wasn't sure what to do; I ended up euthanizing them. One of them appeared to have lost its mouth to the fungus, and the poor guy would dart at food but was unable to eat it!

The remaining glowlight seemed better after the cycle stablized and a 50% water change. I also gave him a weakened salt dip (sea salt 1 TBSP per gallon) in a clean, separate bucket for 3 minutes. I've done this salt dip for three days in a row, and the fish appears to be much better. The area where the fungus was almost now looks like a scar (darker scales) and we're still carefully monitoring him.

Be mindful that I'm new to all of this so please check all of what I've said with a more knowledgeable person! I know that some fish (like glowlight tetra) are harmed by salt, and only did what I did out of quickly running out of options and hours of research.

Good luck!

 

Speaking of which, this was a newly setup tank, but I caught it within a few days. I've had this happen to Glowligjts before and had to euthanize, but I'll admit I didn't put much effort into it last time. This time I'm really trying to help this guy.

 

Any luck on this matter? I'd rather not have to euthanize and I'd like to know what others have done.

 

Fish is still alive but I don't see much of any regrowth of his lower mouth/jaw. Not sure what I'm going to do.

 

Fish is still alive but I don't see much of any regrowth of his lower mouth/jaw. Not sure what I'm going to do.

If it is eating and healthy leave it.
Looks as if it misses its jaw. Doubt it is mouthrot

 

If it is eating and healthy leave it.
Looks as if it misses its jaw. Doubt it is mouthrot

Will the jaw grow back? He can't eat regular flake food. He can only get first bites and can o' cyclops in his mouth by swimming into them. Sorry to say this, but I'm not going to nurse this fish for the remainder of its life.

 

Will the jaw grow back? He can't eat regular flake food. He can only get first bites and can o' cyclops in his mouth by swimming into them. Sorry to say this, but I'm not going to nurse this fish for the remainder of its life.

No it won't grow back.

 

mossman did it grow back? How is the fish doing?

 

Hey there. His jaw did not grow back, but he seems happy. I introduced him back into the community tank and he looks pretty good. He is abele to peck at food on the surface to get it to sink then sucks it into his mouth. I think he's going to be okay.

 

Hey there. His jaw did not grow back, but he seems happy. I introduced him back into the community tank and he looks pretty good. He is abele to peck at food on the surface to get it to sink then sucks it into his mouth. I think he's going to be okay.

Aw that’s great ! Mine lasted at least another year like this , could of been old age in the end that he died of but I doubt it was his mouth issue. I’m glad he’s doing well, he’s a testament to your care and water quality !