Randomly found one of my kuhlis with an open wound. Need help determining cause.

I found one of my black kuhlis laying on the bottom of my tank today with open wounds on the stomach and loose skin hanging off the injury. When I checked on it a few hours prior to this, the injury had not been there. The tank is currently being treated for a mild case of ich.

The tank mates include 5 other kuhlis, 2 farlowellas, 7 clown killies, 6 albino cories, a bristlenose pleco, various shrimp/snails, as well as 9 phoenix rasboras and about 15 c.habrosus that are temporary inhabitants in a planted 55 gallon. There have been no issues with fin nipping or aggression that I have noticed.

I have no idea what could have happened. My best guess might be a pleco bite, but I don't even know if that's possible since everything I've read mentions how peaceful bristlenose plecos are.

 

Sorry, don’t know how to respond. Just numbing this up so you can hopefully find someone that does

 

It looks like a wound. One of my dojos lost a ventral fin a few days ago. I'm new to this hobby, but have observed that loaches can twist and contort their bodies unlike other fish. That alone, may make them more vulnerable to wounds??????

 

Do you have any decorations in the tank? Could have been caused by the something sharp in the substrate possibly.

 

It looks like a wound. One of my dojos lost a ventral fin a few days ago. I'm new to this hobby, but have observed that loaches can twist and contort their bodies unlike other fish. That alone, may make them more vulnerable to wounds??????

I've noticed that! Only thing I'm unsure about in regards to that is the fact that the only decorations in the tank are sand, plants, and one straight smooth piece of driftwood with some buce. I can't imagine what it could have gotten caught on!

Do you have any decorations in the tank? Could have been caused by the something sharp in the substrate possibly.

Only think in the tank is sand, plants, one straight, and one smooth piece of driftwood with buce and anubias. The only equipment in the tank is the canister filter inflow/outflow pipes and a sponge filter.

 

I see loaches are being able to do the 'jitterbug'. Most fish do the 'tango'. The jitterbug dancers subject themselves to all kinds of physical contortions.

 

I’m looking at that and it looks like teethmarks to me. Google “Bristlenose pleco are my goldfish”.
Pleco do occasionally attack, they are a member of the catfish family so eat slow moving fish.

Clean water is best, just keep infection from setting in, no need to medicate yay.

 

I’m looking at that and it looks like teethmarks to me. Google “Bristlenose pleco are my goldfish”.
Pleco do occasionally attack, they are a member of the catfish family so eat slow moving fish.

Clean water is best, just keep infection from setting in, no need to medicate yay.

I honestly wish this was the case. Pretty sure now that it's columnaris, which has made the previously minor case of ich worse. Have had several more deaths since the kuhlI yesterday.

I have a school of albino cories that have been tanks through everything and have turned into my fav little guys, but I'm pretty sure 3 are now infected.

Waiting for medication that I ordered yesterday to get here tomorrow, but I'm not even sure what to do at this point bc I have blue bolts, bamboo shrimp, and snails in the tank which will probably die if I go that route. Can't up the temp to kill the ich since that apparently speeds up the spread of columnaris, but lowering the temp to the point that it slows the spread of columnaris doesn't help the ich.

So I'm stuck watching my fish die one-by-one while I try to figure out what to do.

I'm honestly kicking myself for not making the columnaris connection sooner. I kept having what I thought were random, possibly unrelated symptoms with different fish and honestly this fits perfectly.

Thanks for the help everyone.