Lifespan of fish w/ fish tuberculosis

[lalalameg]

Could anyone tell me what the lifespan of a fish is once they start showing signs of fish tuberculosis? I have had a platy that has been acting very strange for over a month now, and I just want to rule out what it may be. Thanks!

 

[jlk]

Hi! There isnt an 'expected' lifespan. There is no cure and fish can be asymptomatic carriers of the bacterium for the their entire lives without ever having a symptom. Symptomatic carriers can survive for weeks or even months. Only a lab would be able to ID this positively- if you have the resources, I would take the fish to an aquatic vet or a university veterinary college and have them euthanize the fish and perform diagnostics to specifically ID what you may be dealing with. Otherwise, if you suspect you may be dealing with this, euthanize the fish promptly & dispose of it properly.

 

[lalalameg]

This is what I was afraid of :/ Upon closer inspection of the fish, she is definitely showing signs of TB: curved spine, strange swimming, hiding, anorexia, laying on the bottom and when a light is shining into the aquarium her body looks translucent. I don't think these symptoms point to anything else...do they? I just put a new filter into the tank so I'm going to wait it out until I have to change it again and if she's still not doing well I'll euthanize her. A few other concerns now though:
1. I had another platy in the tank with her ever since I got the pair (about three months) and she seemed to be fine and relatively unaffected except for a few instances of strange behavior that cleared up. I am now kicking myself for transferring her into my new-ish 20g with three other tank mates. I'm just going to keep my fingers crossed nothing develops...
2. I recently did some "maintenance" on the tank (ex: water change and wiping a few spots of algae off the glass) and me not thinking as usual, I didn't wear gloves or anything...I don't have any open sores on my hands/arms so once again, keeping my fingers crossed.
3. I have a snail that hangs out in the tank as well, could it possibly be a carrier of the disease? It hasn't shown any signs of it whatsoever (whatever those may be in a snail) and crawls around as usual. I would really hate to have to euthanize that guy, I've become more attached to him than the platy as she was quite the bully to my other fish.
Any input or suggestions are greatly appreciated!! Thanks a lot!

 

[jlk]

Unfortunately, there are many fish diseases but only a lab would be able to specifically id what she may have. I would err on the side of caution when cleaning her tank & use gloves. How you would like to deal with this situation will be your decision- you can try treating with with antibiotic such as kanamycin in hopes that it may be something else but her symptoms sound very suspicious. I would keep a very close eye on your other fish for anything suspicious as well. Snails/inverts generally are not harborers of fish disease with the exception of a few odd parasite issues (not your case) so I would not be concerned about him. Not sure if this helps but good luck and dont hesitate to ask questions!

 

[bkiggy]

Is it contagious to people? What would be the symptoms?

 

[jlk]

It's very rare but there are documented cases of people being infected via an open sore/wound. It's always a good idea to wash your hands/arms before & after sticking them in a tank even if you don't have open wounds.

 

[lalalameg]

Update: My suspected fish's symptoms have steadily increased and I think I'm going to have to euthanize her soon :/ The fish that had lived in the same tank with her and is now in my 20g is starting to act suspicious but there are three other fish in there who are seemingly fine. What would be the best thing to do? Euthanize them all, even the healthy ones, and just start all over? Or euthanize the sick one and suspicious one and see how it goes with the other ones? I really want to get some more fish for the 20 but not if they're just going to die!

 

[bkiggy]

I had 4 puffers in a tank and 3 had it and the other one is fine. 3 dies, 1 made it an is ok
- treat as necessary, put down the sick ones, wait and see for the others.
No new fish in that tank until disenfected

 

[lalalameg]

So three months later and my fish in my 20g are starting to show symptoms. One has a noticeably curved spine, the other is acting quite strange (doing the 'shimmy' swimming) and the third one seems fine for now...Unfortunately I have quite a few good sized fry in the tank now and one has died with a curved spine. Do I just euthanize the whole tank or wait it out for months? I'm sure they will all get it.

 

[Candiceg]

I would euthanize the whole tank and disinfect everything tank, filters, throw away substrate. And start over from scratch.

 

[boadams87]

I agree, bleach that tank and you need to wear gloves because you can get it to.