Oscar's mouth stuck open

[ravenoftheflock]

Well I thought I would ask around and see if anyone has some advice on my poor oscar. He managed to eat a pleco that he could not eat, I read on a number of websites what to do and was informed that the pleco was a goner, so I waited and hoped the oscar would eat it soon or maybe spit it out. With that I gave the oscar a day to see what he/she would do, well the poor pleco was a goner, but did not get digested and with the poor oscars mouth open wide all the time I decided to intervene. Me and the girlfriend worked to remove the fish, me holding it in cloth in the water well she cut pleco fins, with a little luck the pleco was removed. The oscar all though probably relieved to be free of the pleco, is in some very bad shape to say the least; his mouth seems to be stuck open and there seems to be some very bad wounds in his mouth though he/she does have energy and is more or less the same as before except for feeding. So the question is what should I do for the poor oscar? Help relocate the jaw? medicate? separate from tank mates? etc.. any suggestions would be appreciated.
I've included some photos of the poor Oscar

[Momobobo]

That looks horrible, I imagine such damage were caused by the spines of the pleco.

(Am I allowed to link to a different forum?)
Well heres a relvelant thread.
http://http://www.cichlid-forum.com/...c18a873a322678

This reminds me of the "broken jaw" injuries and from what I've read if it can't clsoe its mouth to eat its a "goner." Definatly seperate from other tank mates as they will start bullying him (if they simlar agression types), his own tank, clean water, salt wouldnt hurt. I wouldnt imagine he'd be able to make it unless you provide some kind of "surgery" on him? I dont't know anything about those sorry...

Best of luck.

[ravenoftheflock]

Thank you for the response, the oscar seems to be getting better. There is a large piece of flesh that is inside the mouth that is slowly falling off, I know that sounds bad but it should heal better with it removed than having some random flap of flesh to be constantly in the way and getting infected. It also seems to me his jaw is loosening a little.. not very much but still something. The trouble still remains he cant eat, though on the plus side he was the most aggressive oscar I have so no one seems to mess with him. I feel bad when he does try to eat, the oscar uses all his might and yet it just floats right back out, just seems like one of the many levels of hell an oscar could expect in a bad afterlife. Well maybe he will get better with time..

[tony1928]

Fish can go a long time without eating, especially a big fish like an oscar. However, it will be critical for the fish to try to avoid infection. Maybe quarantining him in a separate tank to medicate if necessary or at least add some salt to the water to help reduce risk of infection.

[eternity302]

Hope I'm not too late to reply.
Dun give your hopes up as I think you're completely fine.
I have a oscar that done it to a pleco and an ID shark. The oscar is about 12-14", maybe bigger as he looks pretty giant right now, and he stuck a 10" ID shark in his mouth at that time, stuck in there for 3 days, have the shark wuz spat back out and his jaws look pretty much like that for a few days, he's happily living for a year since the incident. I wouldn't worry too much, or maybe I've just seen it too often with my oscar... he even swallows wood~

Good luck, dun worry, he'll be fine! I did alot of water changes during that time, maybe 20% per day and dosed melafix to help heal and added some salt. Usually I dun worry as long as your water is in good condition! =) Good luck!

[ravenoftheflock]

well his mouth seems to be closing up a bit more so I think he may get better, there is still a flap of flesh/skin that was removed inside his mouth but it seems to be falling off so with some luck he will be back to good in a little while.... once again ty all for the help with my oscar

[Morainy]

Poor fish!

I would suggest going to the WCAS meeting at UBC on June 14th. The Vancouver Aquarium's fish veterinarian is speaking there about fish diseases. You might be able to show him your pics and ask for an opinion.

Dr. Martin Haulena, the Vancouver Aquarium’s Staff Veterinarian, will be speaking for the Wet Coast Aquarium Society. He’ll review some of the problems that aquarists and veterinarians encounter in a large, diverse fish collection, and will highlight infectious diseases, some of which are common in home aquaria.

Next Meeting of the Wet Coast Aquarium Society

Date: Tuesday, June 14th, 2011 (note change to accommodate Stanley Cup)
Time: 7:30 PM
Place: Douglas Kenny Building, 2136 West Mall, Room 2010, UBC Campus

[Elle]

how's the oscar doing? Hopefully he's learned that his eyes are bigger than his stomach and won't do this again!

[ravenoftheflock]

We are happy to say he's doing well, his mouth can now fully close, has a hearty appitite, and is back to his grumpy self

[eternity302]

=) Like i said, he'd be fine! Nothing to worry about! Good job!