Possible parasite

[Capt.Gorilla]

Alright so today when I came home from work I noticed tht my goldie had a kinda orange/pink discolouration under/on a scale (he's silver), I thought this was odd and looked sloser to see a dot at the edge of the scale, like a white pimple.

very small maybe 1mm if even, this is the only one i've noticed.
I last added a new fish about 2-3 weeks ago (1 cory).


Also, my apple snail isn't moving which is very very strange.
I poked his foot and it moved so he is alive but I have never seen him inside his shell since i bought him months ago.

ammonia - 0
nitrite - 0
ph was ~6 but after putting in a large dose of seachem 7.0 regulater its at about 6.4 :?

I realize the low ph is bad for snails especially when I have extremely soft water (prolly why the others died so young), anyone know how to add calcium to the water to help his shell?

 

[Fruitbat]

Keep a careful eye on the 'white pimple' to see if it turns into a thread-like structure. Goldfish (along with other fish) are known to be susceptible to a parasitic copepod commonly called 'anchor worms'. The first sign of an infestation by these pests is a discolored or bloody patch that looks like an open sore. This is followed by the appearance of the thread-like body of the female 'anchor worm'.

I've used Jungle Parasite Clear with GREAT success to get rid of 'anchor worms'.

 

[Capt.Gorilla]

would the jungle parasite clear stuff effect the other inhabitants?

4 cories and a snail.

 

[Fruitbat]

It might kill the snail. You should probably take it out and put it in a temporary container for a week or so if you use the Jungle product.

 

[jsoong]

I realize the low ph is bad for snails especially when I have extremely soft water (prolly why the others died so young), anyone know how to add calcium to the water to help his shell?

You could add Cacium Carbonate to your tank (I am assuming you have low GH & KH with your numbers). Coral "sand" is often used for this. A neat idea I've read is to use crushed oyster shells (which is almost pure CaCO3). You put some in a mesh bag & the acidic water dissolves the shell, releasing both Ca & CO3, thus raising your GH, KH & pH in one fell swoop. This is also self regulating, since very little will dissolve in alkaline water, this system will raise the pH to neutual & then stop, keeping the pH steady.

 

[Capt.Gorilla]

Wow, that sounds cool.
But now i have to find some oyster shells.... and crush them.

and yes the last time I checked my kh/gh they were both extremely low.

 

[Enki]

But now i have to find some oyster shells.... and crush them.

Crushed oyster shell can often be found through landscaping and gardening stores. Clean it really, really well. Some people use it as substrate if their water is very soft and they need stable hard water for the fish they want to keep. Regular sea shells will help buffer as well, but not as well. Crushed=more surface area.

Be careful about changing Ph too fast. It will stress your fish to some degree, some more than others. Slower is better.

I think corys like softer water, you might have trouble with them if you bring ph up too much. Maybe someone else w/ corys will comment.

 

[RogerMcAllen]

Did it look like the pics of my comet with anchor worm? http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=6692&highlight=comet+sore

 

[Capt.Gorilla]

no, the white spot is gone also, now it just looks like an abrasion, just kind of an orange patch over one of his side scales.

 

[Fishy]

Keep a careful eye on the 'white pimple' to see if it turns into a thread-like structure. Goldfish (along with other fish) are known to be susceptible to a parasitic copepod commonly called 'anchor worms'. The first sign of an infestation by these pests is a discolored or bloody patch that looks like an open sore. This is followed by the appearance of the thread-like body of the female 'anchor worm'.

I've used Jungle Parasite Clear with GREAT success to get rid of 'anchor worms'.

Ugh ... I am just reading this post and this is exactly what my Gourami has. I QT'd him on Sunday and started treatments on Tuesday using Maracide. I sure hope I am using the right meds. I stood reading all the packages for what seems like hours!

 

[Fruitbat]

Fishy...

Maracide is supposed to be pretty good for Ich and other external parasites. If you don't see improvement in a week or so you might try to find Jungle Parasite Clear (they're fizzy tablets). It worked wonderfully for me!

 

[Fishy]

Fruitbait ... Thanks. So far I have put in 2 treatments. The third is on Friday (going by package instructions).

 

[Fruitbat]

Keep us posted....and good luck to Fishy and the Fishes!

 

[Fishy]

Third treatment in today and he's a happy camper I think he misses all of his buddies. The spot is shriking. I am hoping that I can put him back in the main tank next week.

 

[mangomerle]

Crushed oyster shells can also be found at farm/livestock supply stores. We buy it for our chickens all the time to help with calcium for eggshells. It usually comes in huge bags (5lbs+), but a lot of the time they have bags that break. They will more than likely let you have the sweepings for free. Just be sure to wash it exceptionally well if it's swept off the floor.

 

[Fishy]

He's back in the main tank and doing quite well. The Angels have been picking on him though. I did see him fight back this mornin so I think he's his old self. Now I have a tetra in the QT Tank. Not sure what is up with him. His gills are sticking out and red and belly is fat. I was FINALLY able to catch him last night during a water change. Using the same treatment so see what happens.