Seeking help for baby Oranda

[Reygan2]

Hi all, posting here to hopefully get some help/advice for my little oranda. Here's the facts...
Purchased at Petsmart on shipment day straight out of shipping bag, so fish never went into their tanks
He was active, eating and seemed healthy for the first few days in my tank.

My tank is a planted and cycled 40b, running two 2217 Eheim canister filters. Lot's of surface rippling and an airstone.
Tank mates are 3 baby fantails, active and healthy.
Temp 71
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate ~10-20
pH 7.6

Here's his diet since arriving home with me:
Repashy Solient Green, 1x daily
Saki-Hikari Fancy Goldish pellets, 1x daily
Mysis shrimp, 1x as treat
Peas on occasion

He began bottom sitting a few days ago, appearing listless. I began feeding peas, suspecting a digestion issue. He ate the peas for 2 days, then began eating and spitting them out.

Here's what I've tried so far..
Day 1 when noticing him bottom sitting I did a 50% pwc and epsom salt bath. He perked up, ate a pea.
I dosed API General Cure just for the heck of it.

Following days he stopped bottom sitting, however he appears depressed, for lack of a better word. He stays out in the water column, but he just hangs out, hardly swimming very much. He acts eager to eat, but yesterday he began spitting everything out. I did another epsom salt bath for 20 minutes yesterday. Still haven't seen him poop. Actually I have never seen this fish poop since arriving.

No outward signs of illness at all. No spots, lesions, fungus, clamped fins, etc.
I went by Petsmart to check up on fish that were shipped there with him, but it was hard to tell which ones since they've had another fish order since then. The employee couldn't offer any help.

Please let me know if I've left anything out or if you can offer suggestions. I've read so much about this the last few days, but most of the info out there is about poor water quality, which is not an issue in my case.

 

[Coursair]

Is the mysis Shrimp freeze dried ? I avoid freeze dried food. Had too many cases of stomach issues with Bettas and Goldfish.

No floating food at all. Biting and spitting food is ok as long as they swallow some. That's how they chew.

Are your Pellets sinking properly ? If not, soak them in some tank water.

Try buying Anacharis. Let it float. See if they'll eat it. Blanch a piece of Romaine and weight it down with a rock or veggie clip Or Zucchini ( peeled)

 

[Reygan2]

Is the mysis Shrimp freeze dried ? I avoid freeze dried food. Had too many cases of stomach issues with Bettas and Goldfish.

No floating food at all. Biting and spitting food is ok as long as they swallow some. That's how they chew.

Are your Pellets sinking properly ? If not, soak them in some tank water.

Try buying Anacharis. Let it float. See if they'll eat it. Blanch a piece of Romaine and weight it down with a rock or veggie clip Or Zucchini ( peeled)

The shrimp was frozen, I completely agree with you about freeze dried food, I never buy it.

I've never fed them anything at the surface, I've read about possible issues. Thankfully the pellets and other foods sink immediately. Repashy is a veggie based food, it was recommended by breeder Jennifer Lynx from Solid Gold. It's a powder that makes a type of gel food when prepared. Maybe this could cause a digestion issue at first? I'd think it would help with constipation.

I do have Anacharis and I have a veggie clip with green leaf lettuce, but I didn't blanch it. I'll do that. I've seen the fish nip at the greens, but none of them seem very interested. I plan to keep them available though.

I'm hoping that the little guy is getting something to eat with all the spitting now, he wasn't doing it this much before.

Thanks

 

[Coursair]

The shrimp was frozen, I completely agree with you about freeze dried food, I never buy it.



I've never fed them anything at the surface, I've read about possible issues. Thankfully the pellets and other foods sink immediately. Repashy is a veggie based food, it was recommended by breeder Jennifer Lynx from Solid Gold. It's a powder that makes a type of gel food when prepared. Maybe this could cause a digestion issue at first? I'd think it would help with constipation.



I do have Anacharis and I have a veggie clip with green leaf lettuce, but I didn't blanch it. I'll do that. I've seen the fish nip at the greens, but none of them seem very interested. I plan to keep them available though.



I'm hoping that the little guy is getting something to eat with all the spitting now, he wasn't doing it this much before.



Thanks

Great thanks for clarifying. I know Repashy foods well. I was a Beta Tester before he went wide release. I doubt Repashy would cause impaction.

Avoid Iceberg Lettuce, it's like feeding water. It still has some nutrition. Romaine has most nutrition of the Green Lettuce types AFAIK.

Zucchini
Orange slice ( messy...only when you plan a water change after).

If you don't blanch, you can try freezing the greens them thaw and put in tank. Both methods soften the edges. Or just leave underwater 24-48hours.

See if GF will take Frozen/thawed bloodworm ?

I'd be tempted to do an epsom dip ? Or QT tank with Epsom salts.

 

[Reygan2]

Great thanks for clarifying. I know Repashy foods well. I was a Beta Tester before he went wide release. I doubt Repashy would cause impaction.

Wow, good to know. I was just considering that such a major change in diet versus what he was being fed at the supplier could have disrupted his digestion process. Kind of like switching a dog from a grocery brand dog food to high end food, ya know?

 

[Reygan2]

See if GF will take Frozen/thawed bloodworm ?

I'd be tempted to do an epsom dip ? Or QT tank with Epsom salts.

I have frozen bloodworms, I'll try those.

I've done 2 epsom salt baths so far. I was going to do another today, or either add it to the main tank. I'm just not sure how much to dose in a 40g.

 

[Reygan2]

I just fed the tank, which started a poop fest with all the babies. Unfortunately when I checked out the oranda I found this trailing behind him. He ate a pellet and I didn't see him spit it out, but this stringy poop is not a good sign.

 

[Reygan2]

So it's been 2 days since the last dose of API General Cure. The oranda is still out and about, but not really interested in food. I saw more white stringy poop last night, so I'm wondering if I need to dose another med. I have medicated flakes on the way, but there are so many different types that treat different issues. I'm at a loss as to what I should do. I'm doing another water change today. Hopefully he'll start eating soon.

 

[Reygan2]

It's been a rough couple of days, and more than once I thought she was a goner, but after treating with General Cure and prazipro, along with epsom salt, she is eating and back to normal.