Help with disease id - Ich? Velvet? Nothing??

[missmonday]

Hello guys,

I know I've been making probably a few too many threads in this subforum, and I apologize, but I just really want to figure out what's up with my platys and what I should do. As I'm a new fish owner (purchased these platys on Sept 8th) I'm not too familiar with fish illnesses other than what I've read online.

The day I brought them home, I noticed one platy (orange fin) had very long white stringy poo, and after 2 days, quarantined it after I noticed some sort of reflective scale and feared it was ich. Then the day after that (the 11th), I noticed another platy had 2 reflective spots, and added it to the quarantine tub (see picture). The last platy does not show any signs of illness nor any reflective spots, so I've left it in the main tank. No other fish show signs of illness or reflective spots (other occupants include 9 gold mountain minnows and 1 honey gourami).

From a previous thread I made, I suspected the platys might have internal parasites (from their long poo) and gave them medicated fish flakes (metronidazole). Three more days and they'll have finished that treatment, so I'll switch back to normal flakes/pellets. I've also been adding aquarium salt and kordon ich attack--it's the very mild herbal stuff that is reef and invertebrate-safe.

I'll try to get more pictures in the next few days, but can anyone tell if they actually HAVE anything? Or am I being a paranoid new fish owner? :<

Other info: one of the two platys in quarantine is very pregnant. They do not appear to be flashing or gasping for breath. The little white spots are not raised, and look like reflective scales.

 

[brennae]

The Kordon herbal ich attack doesn't work imo. I can't tell from you pic if its ick but here is a pic of a fish with ich. Notice the clamped fins also. It literally looks like rice stuck on the fish and is raised. Sorry I keep responding on all your posts, I'm avoiding the fish room by being overly helpful. :/

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[missmonday]

The 2 platys are in a 16 gallon plastic tub right now and so it's difficult to take pictures of, but I'm going to do a water change tomorrow, so I'll try to take better pictures tomorrow. The platy with the orange fin has 1 spot, and the other one has either 2 or 4...on both fish it's only on their body, not their fins or anything.

The fish are such a pale/translucent color it's so hard to tell! Haha, but to me they don't look like classic ich spots.

And thanks for the responses! You're obviously way more experienced than I am and that's what I need

 

[brennae]

Well 25 years of screw ups and reading tons instead of doing what I should be doing...

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[missmonday]

Well I just have no idea if there actually IS something going on with the 2 platys or if I'm freaking out about nothing :') But I can understand

 

[brennae]

I really dont know either and o get quite paranoid also. Not sure if you've seen my build thread under the Breeding section but I have to euthanize an entire tank tonight. I can't figure out the pathology and don't have an accessible microscope. Most people don't have one so it's all an educated guessing game really.

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[missmonday]

Ohh! I'm so sorry about that. I hope it won't be too hard on you.

Putting things under a microscope sounds like intense biology heh

 

[brennae]

Yeah its technical and I normally am not technical but I also don't like to be left wondering and guessing.

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[missmonday]

Okay!

So I took a few more pictures, hopefully they'll be a little clearer? Sorry about the glass distortion, I just wanted to put them in something while I was doing a water change in the hospital tub.

As I said before, the spots/scales AREN'T raised, and are actually a little difficult to see. They're rather reflective and under light show up as white or sometimes with a tint of blue.

I quarantined these two (to a 16 gallon tub, NOT this jar!) because I was afraid those spots/scales were ich, but now I just have no clue what it is. I originally purchased 3 mickey mouse platys, and the one still in the main tank does not have these spots/scales.

Since they're hard to see, I can't quite tell if the fish had them originally and I just never noticed them before, or if they showed up out of nowhere :/ At this point, I also can't tell if they're spreading. There appear to be the same number and at least in the same places as they have been the past couple of days. I originally purchased these guys on Sept. 8th.

I have since stopped giving them metronidazole because their poop looks 100% normal to me.

What do you guys think? Am I freaking out over nothing?

 

[Matt68005]

Okay!

What do you guys think? Am I freaking out over nothing?

I would say yes.

 

[missmonday]

Should I just chalk up to the reflective scales as injury or something then?

Would it be a good idea to reintroduce them to the main tank in a couple of days? I've noticed the remaining mm platy in the main tank has gotten shyer since I've transported its friends.

 

[sinibotia]

I don't think the reflective scales are even injury related, let alone a disease. Probably just like.... the fish equivalent of a grey hair? I've seen them on lots of fish and they never have led to any sort of issue. You're in the clear

 

[missmonday]

Thanks!
I think I just freaked because I didn't notice them there before, and I just wanted to be on the safe side.

 

[sinibotia]

Thanks!
I think I just freaked because I didn't notice them there before, and I just wanted to be on the safe side.

No worries! I've been at this for 11 years and I still do the same thing- my heart stops when I think I see ich, and then it turns out to just be an grain of sand or a bubble.

 

[brennae]

I agree with the others. I've noticed in my mother's goldfish they have an odd scale here and there and it's turned out to be nothing. It's understandable to be paranoid because if you don't catch things right away it could be very bad.

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[missmonday]

Thanks for the help, guys!

I now plan on putting the 2 platys back into the main tank when I do a pwc tomorrow.

 

[brennae]

Good plan. Really if they all came from the same place at the same time they would all be exposed and susceptible to the illness.

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[missmonday]

Yeah I thought about that too... The platys were in a special platy-only tank and the gourami was in a gourami-only tank, so I appreciate that at least from the lfs I went to.

The only time I saw species mingling was in certain biotopes, usually with tannins in the water.

 

[brennae]

Here is the thing about fish stores, most of the big establishments are on a central filter system so the same water is circulating through all the tanks. Supposedly my independent lfs can shut off any tank in their system but then they need another source of filtration. I really have only been to one very small and very specialized in oddball fish store that had individual hobs. So places like the big box stores have rooms behind the walls if fish with this central system.

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[missmonday]

Hmm yeah, I've heard that too! That's one of the main reasons why I'll never purchase live creatures from Petco/Petsmart.

I've only purchased my fish from two places: one being the wet spot in Portland (which apparently is really well regarded?? hooray! Plan on doing more shopping there) and a little independent place run by this guy in his free time. The second place is where I got the platys from.