Can anyone help my Gourami?

[SilverDragon]

I have an earlier post titled "Constipation??" and Ive decided that its not constipation. I am totally baffled. My flame dwarf gourami has been sick for almost 3 weeks now.... hes being treated with Coppersafe, Melafix and Maracyn Two and this is the last day of treatment with no change in his illness. I tried aquarium salt before all this as well.

More details are in my earlier post about his condition, but he will not eat, and he sits in one place in mid tank and rarely swims around. The only thing he gets jazzed about eating is those tiny white worms that come from too much wasted food in the tank (which happened cuz he hasnt been eating and I was still feeding as normal.. duh) His poop is totally clear and his colours have faded a bit, and his fins seem flared all the time. His belly looks full, but the rest of his body is thinner. The new thing Ive noticed is, hes been going over to the filter intake tube and shimmying across it as if hes enjoying the vibration....Ive even got out the magnifying glass to examine him for parasites or raised scales. Im pretty sure his scales arent raised, especially if you look down on him from the top.

If it were Dropsy, wouldnt he be dead by now after 3 weeks?
Does anyone have any idea what could be his problem?

 

[Devilishturtles]

Flashing (aka the shimmying) is normal for a fish who is being externally irritated, be it from parasites or poor water conditions. If you have a bunch of food hanging on the bottom of your tank enough for the nematodes to pop up, I'm curious as to your water quality. Have you tested recently? It's always good to test after treating with antibiotics anyways, because they sometimes can alter your water chemistry.

Otherwise, if everything with your water tests out ok, try raising your temp to over 86F, and adding in an extra air stone, since the gourami isn't moving around much. That way, you can rule out ich as a problem, which can irritate but show no signs of being present, for a while.

Dropsy is not an illness in itself, but rather a side effect of an internal infection. Soo, 3 weeks is not out of the question.

HTH

 

[SilverDragon]

I cant find any test kits for ammonia and nitrates. All I have is one for pH and its always over 7.4.. but Ive had these fish for quite a few months and theyve always been healthy. I know the water quality might not be that great cuz of the food in the bottom... but I only feed once a day, and I make them fast for 24 hours every here and there.

I thought if the gourami had an external parasite , hed be scratching himself on the other ornaments and stuff in the tank, but he only does it to the filter intake tube. The Coppersafe should take care of any external parasites I hope.

86F... Isnt that high? I raised it to 80F while the aquarium salt was in the tank.

So would you recommend more water changes?

 

[Devilishturtles]

A test kit is always a good thing to have on hand. It can tell you alot about your tank, and solve alot of health issues. They are even more important when you are treating with medication, for the reason already mentioned.


The coppersafe should have taken care of the parasites, but it still seems something is wrong with your fish, otherwise it wouldn't be flashing. Maybe it does flash on other objects besides the intake, and you just haven't seen it.

86F isn't high at all. People use it all the time to treat ich, with no ill effects. What do you keep your temperature at now? I assume your tank is heated? Bump it up a degree or so an hour until you reach 86F, and see if that doesn't help your fish any.

More water changes would definitley be good. If your fish is sick, a dirty tank isn't helping it any. Good water quality can go a very long way in treating illness, and alot of people don't medicate at all, and just do daily water changes.

About the test kit, you can pick one up anywhere. A master kit, which tests pH, nitrate, nitrite, ammonia and usually GH and KH can be found for usually less than 20 dollars online. If need be though, take it to a LFS and have them test it for you.

HTH

 

[SilverDragon]

I keep my temp at around 78.. but i raised it a bit today. I just did a 90% water change and wow was that water dirty! The gourami seems to have perked up in the fresh water.... I really thought he was on deaths door last night since he was sitting at the bottom for the first time in 3 weeks.. but this morning he was back up near the heater again. All I put in the water this time was the coppersafe and the water conditioner.

I would just like to thank you Devilishturtles for making your replies so thorough... they really help a lot.

I dont know how to keep the water clean when the food sits in the bottom... I keep hoping that he will eat so i throw in a few flakes for him as well as the other two fish. I guess a daily water change would help... how much water should I change daily? 25%?

The gourami still doesnt look any better physically... I dont know what to do.

PS. My LFS is almost an hour away and I dont own a car so its hard to get anything. I try to stock up whenever I do get there.

 

[Devilishturtles]

No problem, glad I could help.

Daily water changes would be good, but if it isn't feasible, every other day woud be fine. That food that decays on the bottom releases ammonia when it sits too long. That's why it's not good for it to sit there.

Is the fish flashing anymore? Does it look like a water change fixed it?

IMHO, I'd ditch the coppersafe completely. It takes weeks of medicating with that stuff for it to even work, and rumor has it that your fish doesn't like it much as well. Do another water change to remove the coppersafe, and slowly bump your temperature up to 86F/87F (if you still see the fish flash).

About the internal stuff, it sounds like an infection to me. The bad thing about maracyn-two, even though it can be amazing, is that some bacterial strains are immune to it. So, that being said, if you can get to your LFS soon, or even order online from Big-Als, and get another medicine...that's be good. This time, I'd try Tetracycline or something like Seachem's Focus.

http://www.bigalsonline.ca/catalog/product.xml?product_id=28207;category_id=3463;pcid1=2233;pcid2=

http://www.bigalsonline.ca/catalog/product.xml?product_id=28229;category_id=3443;pcid1=2233;pcid2=

Good luck!

 

[SilverDragon]

Hes not really flashing anymore now, because hes mostly sitting under the fake plant near the bottom

Would Quick Cure be better than coppersafe? I think he must be immune to the Maracyn Two since it didnt do any good. Unfortunately, by the time I ordered something online or got to the LFS, hell probably be dead.

What about a salt dip?

Ugh, Im so depressed over all this :S

 

[Devilishturtles]

You can try going to the store (something like wal-mart, kmart, etc) and get epsom salts. (I think they are usually in the pharmacy...I think). Add in some of that, and see if it works. It will help draw fluids out of the body of the fish, incase it is severe constipation.

Edit to add: The dosage is 1/4 teaspoon per 10 gallons.

 

[SilverDragon]

Well, I think my gourami is on deaths door today.... he is sitting at the bottom very lethargic... I am so frustrated about it, cuz its been a month now which is plenty of time to cure him, and Ive had no luck. He just wont eat anything.. I tried peas again and the other fish ate them. He is extremely skinny and his poop is still clear and whispy. I dont think theres anything I can do now unfortunately.

Could severe constipation cause death ? I guess if hes starving himself it will.

Does anyone know what this could be?

Oh, and about the epsom salts, if I put him in a one gallon tank, how much salt should I use and for how long should he be in it?... that is, if he makes it long enough for me to buy some.

Oh, and I just noticed as of today that his gill(at least on his right side) are more pinkish than normal, as well as where his pectoral fin joins his body.

Is that a symptom of something? This is the first time its shown up.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Sorry.

I guess you couldn't get to the LFS to get any more medicine? It could be so many things. Internal infection. Constipation issue. A tumor. Sometimes we just don't know.

About the epsom salts, I'd add a few grains and see how it does. All it will do is draw moisture out of his body. Will help he has a fluid buildup problem.

Hard to say with the discoloration on the fish. Could be an infection on him. How often have you been doing water changes?

 

[SilverDragon]

Well unfortunately, my Gourami died on March 4th (my birthday :S....) I am still baffled as to what ailed him. He was a great fish. RIP Sunset...

So now we have a new tank member, a little Tiger Barb. I know youre supposed to keep them in groups, but I think hell be ok... hes getting along with the female betta and cory cat... I just feel better knowing hes been rescued from a Walmart tank.

Thank you to all who gave their best knowledge on the Gourami matter.... It really did help.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Gees, sorry SilverDragon.