Home-study of fish disease/parasites

Maritimer · Jan 2, 2017

Humblefish said:
TRUE STORY. A LFS I advise was feeding his triggers dead chromis which had succumbed to Uronema. I was like what are you doing.

That's not asking for trouble, it's begging. On bended knee. With hat in hand.

I give you a lot of credit for being willing to advise that fellow, instead of just walking out. Forever.

~Bruce

Humblefish · Jan 2, 2017

Maritimer said:
That's not asking for trouble, it's begging. On bended knee. With hat in hand.

I give you a lot of credit for being willing to advise that fellow, instead of just walking out. Forever.

~Bruce

He's come a long way since then.

SaltySue · Jan 3, 2017

GHsaltie said:
So I have a not so good update this time (don't worry he's not dead!), I had noticed about a week ago that he developed a "lump" on his dorsal fin. I decided to monitor it for a little while since he wasn't showing any other symptoms. It has definitely gotten larger in size, not huge but noticeable. I suspect Lymphocystis, and so I am not too worried about that, but would appreciate a second opinion. The other development that worries me a great deal more is that his sides appear to be flaked? I'm not even sure how to describe it, but it's almost as though the scales appear to be raised or separating from the body. His fins are also very ragged and his color has dulled again a little bit. These symptoms I have noticed for about two maybe three days, but I didn't realize just how bad he appears until today when I took a good long look at him. He is still eating very well, mysis and nori, his color is mostly vibrant, despite the slight recession and he is swimming well, although I have noticed a slight twitch or vibrate every now and then. I am not entirely sure why he is doing that, he hasn't done any twitching or scratching for about two weeks now. He is on day 18 of copper treatment and the last dose of Kanaplex was the 13th. Copper treatment has remained stable throughout treatment, although I have a hard time seeing the difference between the 2.0ppm and the 4.0ppm colors, so it is possible that it's higher than 2.0ppm.

The first pic shows his sides the best, the other three you can see the suspected Lympho, ragged fins, and general appearance. Out of about 120 pictures these were the only four that turned out somewhat decent .

Scales sticking out from the body is called "Pineconing"

GHsaltie · Jan 14, 2017

Update: Rabbit already has a home lined up and waiting! He's done with the metroplex treatment and now I'm going to observe him for about another week before sending him to his new home. He's gaining weight nicely and is filling out again, especially on nori he's finally figured out how much he likes that stuff! On another note the niger trigger also appears to be healthy, he's been through metro treatment as well and although I haven't seen any signs of ich or velvet I'm still going to be putting him through copper starting tomorrow. He's still pretty skittish but is slowly coming around and getting used to me. I haven't been able to get any pictures of him because his tank is set up in a very dark area of the room but I'm going to work on that tomorrow as well

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melypr1985 · Jan 14, 2017

GHsaltie said:
Update: Rabbit already has a home lined up and waiting! He's done with the metroplex treatment and now I'm going to observe him for about another week before sending him to his new home. He's gaining weight nicely and is filling out again, especially on nori he's finally figured out how much he likes that stuff! On another note the niger trigger also appears to be healthy, he's been through metro treatment as well and although I haven't seen any signs of ich or velvet I'm still going to be putting him through copper starting tomorrow. He's still pretty skittish but is slowly coming around and getting used to me. I haven't been able to get any pictures of him because his tank is set up in a very dark area of the room but I'm going to work on that tomorrow as well .

Wow. He looks great!

GHsaltie · Jan 22, 2017

Soooo I think I already found my next project.

This guy has been at the store for 3-4 weeks? I can't remember. Anyway, so about 2 weeks ago he started developing pale patches on his body, the one that is now a gaping hole and two others that are on the opposite side. Yesterday the pale patch had developed some noticeable redness to it and what looked like a very small open wound. Now with my limited knowledge to me it looks like he has a bacterial infection, but what started it is my question? He has been with various types of fish over the weeks, mostly pajama cardinals, a yellow tang, chalk basslet and one or two other small peaceful fish. Also, this ain't the first time I have noticed this trail of events, http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2542734&highlight=hole+in+my+goby, there was also a member on here a few months ago that had the same thing happen to their watchman goby. This is the second time that I have seen this type of wound here at my store.
So what do you guys think @Humblefish @melypr1985? Once I get him home I'm going to treat with the assumption of bacterial infection. I've got kanaplex and furan-2, I know there is a third med that you guys like to use for nasty bacterial infections but for the life of me I can't recall.... Time to go searching!

melypr1985 · Jan 22, 2017

GHsaltie said:
So what do you guys think @Humblefish @melypr1985? Once I get him home I'm going to treat with the assumption of bacterial infection. I've got kanaplex and furan-2, I know there is a third med that you guys like to use for nasty bacterial infections but for the life of me I can't recall.... Time to go searching!

I definitely think infection here. But I also think it may be too late to save him..... it's ALWAYS worth trying though! Metroplex is the last med to round out the trio you are talking about. I'd get him home and start ASAP to have a chance. Ideally, when you start seeing those white patches, you want to start treatment right away to head it off before it gets this far.

GHsaltie · Jan 22, 2017

Thanks, I thought it was metro but wasn't certain. I find it so odd that he acts as though there isn't anything wrong. I would expect a fish with such a bad infection to be at least a little lethargic but he's still swimming and hopping around, eating perfectly fine. What is wrong with you fish, why don't you act sick

?

Humblefish · Jan 22, 2017

melypr1985 said:
I definitely think infection here. But I also think it may be too late to save him..... it's ALWAYS worth trying though! Metroplex is the last med to round out the trio you are talking about. I'd get him home and start ASAP to have a chance. Ideally, when you start seeing those white patches, you want to start treatment right away to head it off before it gets this far.

+1 The Kanaplex + Metroplex + Furan-2 trio is probably your best chance of saving him.

Although I would be tempted to try NFG powder if you had some on hand: http://store.nationalfishpharm.com/Nitrofuracin-Green-59584.Item.html

Only because that antibiotic mix also contains Methylene Blue, which is useful for treating open sores/wounds. However, you could give him a MB bath prior to beginning treatment: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/methylene-blue.257467/

GHsaltie · Jan 22, 2017

I don't have NFG but I do have methylene blue so I will definitely give him a bath before going into quarantine. Thanks for the link!

Maritimer · Jan 22, 2017

GHsaltie said:
Thanks, I thought it was metro but wasn't certain. I find it so odd that he acts as though there isn't anything wrong. I would expect a fish with such a bad infection to be at least a little lethargic but he's still swimming and hopping around, eating perfectly fine. What is wrong with you fish, why don't you act sick ?

That he's eating is a _huge_ point in your favor! Sick wild animals (fish included) absolutely cannot _act_ sick, lest a predator spot their weakness and end their careers. Very often, the first clue we get is that a creature's appetite drops off.

Good luck with this fellow!

~Bruce

Humblefish · Jan 22, 2017

Maritimer said:
That he's eating is a _huge_ point in your favor! Sick wild animals (fish included) absolutely cannot _act_ sick, lest a predator spot their weakness and end their careers. Very often, the first clue we get is that a creature's appetite drops off.

Good luck with this fellow!

~Bruce

You got that right. Fish are merciless. A sick/weak fish is like blood in the water to a healthy specimen. I've often thought one downside to QT'ing is it causes fish to act more aggressively. They feel good, are in "breeding condition" and want to eliminate any competition from their territory.

GHsaltie · Jan 22, 2017

Completed a 30min methylene blue bath and now he's in QT with kanaplex, metroplex, and furan-2. He's pale and appears to be breathing harder as of right now. The wound itself is a really bright red now also, or maybe it just looks that way because of the pale contrast of the rest of his body. Hoping he makes it through the night, I'll give another update in the morning.

melypr1985 · Jan 22, 2017

GHsaltie said:
Completed a 30min methylene blue bath and now he's in QT with kanaplex, metroplex, and furan-2. He's pale and appears to be breathing harder as of right now. The wound itself is a really bright red now also, or maybe it just looks that way because of the pale contrast of the rest of his body. Hoping he makes it through the night, I'll give another update in the morning.

Best of luck!

Valkyrie · Jan 23, 2017

Is it recommended at all to scrape away the dead tissue with scalpel blade? I did that with my koi and it would be my first instinct if I had a fish with a wound.

Is there any medications that can be painted on to help the healing?

Just curious.

Good luck with that little cutie.