Please help my Angelfish

[misterc007]

I can't figure out what this is I got these angels 2 weeks ago. From what I can tell they have clamped fins and a mold like substance growing on them. my water is good 0,0,5 tank has been cycled its heavily planted and been running since Feb. does anyone have any ideas? I started Pimafix yesterday but after reading I don't think thats gonna do it. See pics. Thanks

 

[Bbush]

Sorry I can't help, but what r clamped fins?

 

[Andy Sager]

It looks to me....

I can't figure out what this is I got these angels 2 weeks ago. From what I can tell they have clamped fins and a mold like substance growing on them. my water is good 0,0,5 tank has been cycled its heavily planted and been running since Feb. does anyone have any ideas? I started Pimafix yesterday but after reading I don't think thats gonna do it. See pics. Thanks

It looks to me like a case of Costia (a parasite) which causes a heavy secretion of slime and LOOKS like a fungal infection.

Recommended treatment for this is to remove the fish into a quarentine tank at 80-82 degrees that contains a salt level equal to 1 teaspoon per 1 gal of water coupled with a formalin type medication (Quick Cure or Formalin for example.) Once the "slimyness" is gone, you'll want to treat with either an antibiotic or with methyline blue to prevent any secondary infections.
It is not wise to treat the tank with all your plants as these meds will harm the plants. The parasite has a short lifespan without a host so you should be able to leave the main tank running (if it has no other fish in it) and the parasites should be dead by the time the fish can be returned to it. If you have other fish in the tank, you'll need to quarantine them all as they ARE carriers now and will just keep reinfesting the tank.

Hope this helps...

 

[misterc007]

Here's the problem with that. If it is a parasite it was probably already in the tank. There are 14 other fish in there and I'd have to tear it to shreds to get them out. This is the second set of angels biting the dust here. The first set just died didn't have any symptoms. I'm setting up another tank now to pull them out and try to treat them but I'm worried that the main tank has something bad in it and i'm just going to be repeating this over and over.

By the way it says pimafix won't harm plants? I can prove otherwise

 

[Andy Sager]

Here's the solution to that...

Here's the problem with that. If it is a parasite it was probably already in the tank. There are 14 other fish in there and I'd have to tear it to shreds to get them out. This is the second set of angels biting the dust here. The first set just died didn't have any symptoms. I'm setting up another tank now to pull them out and try to treat them but I'm worried that the main tank has something bad in it and i'm just going to be repeating this over and over.

By the way it says pimafix won't harm plants? I can prove otherwise

If it is in fact Costia (and from the pics it sure looks like it) the parasite has a short lifespan without a host. My research shows about a 6-12 hour lifespan without a host. The problem is that it reproduces quickly. If you want to save the plants, remove all the fish for a few days. (Actual treatment time for the fish wil be longer than that.) If you can't move the fish, remove all the plants and put them in a separate tank with no fish in it until you heal the main tank. Do water changes and carbon filtering prior to replacing the plants. If you don't do one of the two things then you will be right. You will be repeating the cycle on a constant basis. Sorry but that's the disease biz Welcome to the fish world

 

[BillD]

It looks to me like a possible Aeromonas infection, which can manifest itself in various symptoms. An antibiotic for gram negative bacteria, such as Kanamyacin would be indicated. The Bacteria is common in fish guts and can cause dropsy and haemoraghic septicima, as well as the gray slime on the exterior. It is believed that stress can be a factor for infection, since the bacteria, Aeromonas hydrphilia is always present.

 

[Andy Sager]

Symptoms of Costia

Please confirm these symptoms:
What are the symptoms?




Image of Costia under microscope. Click image to enlarge.

• Slimy patches around the head and the gills
• Small hemorrhages under chin
• Awkward swimming
• Sudden death
• Gasping at the surface of the water

I'm also looking in one of my older textbooks and clamped fins is another symptom.

 

[misterc007]

If it is in fact Costia (and from the pics it sure looks like it) the parasite has a short lifespan without a host. My research shows about a 6-12 hour lifespan without a host. The problem is that it reproduces quickly. If you want to save the plants, remove all the fish for a few days. (Actual treatment time for the fish wil be longer than that.) If you can't move the fish, remove all the plants and put them in a separate tank with no fish in it until you heal the main tank. Do water changes and carbon filtering prior to replacing the plants. If you don't do one of the two things then you will be right. You will be repeating the cycle on a constant basis. Sorry but that's the disease biz Welcome to the fish world

I think this is a good plan. I'm going to give it a a couple days and see what happens first. Mainly because I just don't have the time to pull something like this off right now. Given the history of the tank thou I do believe that there is a problem. Honestly I hate to say it but the plants are more important to me. Don't hate me they are living things too! I will keep you posted!

 

[misterc007]

Please confirm these symptoms:
What are the symptoms?





Image of Costia under microscope. Click image to enlarge.

• Slimy patches around the head and the gills
• Small hemorrhages under chin
• Awkward swimming
• Sudden death
• Gasping at the surface of the water

I'm also looking in one of my older textbooks and clamped fins is another symptom.

I would say no to most of these, The slimy patches are everywhere including on the fins, There are no hemorages under the chin, there are not swimming akwardly, no sudden death, no gasping,

They seem to swim ok considering the clamped fins they are eating normally they just look like they have mold on them but it does not appear cottony and is more like slimey. its on their eyes, fins and body in small patches.

 

[Andy Sager]

I would say no to most of these, The slimy patches are everywhere including on the fins, There are no hemorages under the chin, there are not swimming akwardly, no sudden death, no gasping,

They seem to swim ok considering the clamped fins they are eating normally they just look like they have mold on them but it does not appear cottony and is more like slimey. its on their eyes, fins and body in small patches.

Then it should be some form of bacterial infection. (Your pics are a bit diceiving as thay look like the fish are at the surface and there is body slime around the head and their fins looked somewhat clamped.) I'd go with furan-2.

Anyway, no hate here for the plants . I've seen some beautiful plant only tanks and they aren't as hard to maintain when there are no fish. Your choice

 

[misterc007]

Then it should be some form of bacterial infection. (Your pics are a bit diceiving as thay look like the fish are at the surface and there is body slime around the head and their fins looked somewhat clamped.) I'd go with furan-2.

Anyway, no hate here for the plants . I've seen some beautiful plant only tanks and they aren't as hard to maintain when there are no fish. Your choice

Thanks for the info. I just got home and their dead. This is frustrating, when I was a kid I bread angels and sold them to all the local stores. I never remember having any problems like this. I think they might be coming from the store with problems already. The QT tank is being set up now and I will figure this out one way or another!

Thanks again everyone.

 

[Andy Sager]

Thanks for the info. I just got home and their dead. This is frustrating, when I was a kid I bread angels and sold them to all the local stores. I never remember having any problems like this. I think they might be coming from the store with problems already. The QT tank is being set up now and I will figure this out one way or another!

Thanks again everyone.

Me too. Angels rule!!!
I can tell you that the fish of today are nothing like the fish of yesteryear. They are genetically inferior and they don't respond to anything like the old ones did. I know people that are breeding all these new color morphs of Angels and I see so many babies with deformities now when I used to have maybe 1 or 2 deformed babies in a spawn of 200 fish. That's all in the genes.

Anyway, sorry for your losses but now you know, you have to be a bit wiser when it comes to keeping fish. Everything should be quarantined before going into a main tank.