Sick Oranda!!! :(

[Lunala]

I got a panda oranda from a pet store about 4 months ago, and she was perfectly healthy up until about... 3? days ago. She would sit on the bottom and not really move around much (very unlike her) but would still come up to the top to feed. Then this morning I found her stuck to the side of a big aquarium rock-thing I have in my tank- I thought she had died, but when i poked her with my net she started wriggling around. So I got her out, put her in a separate tank I have, put an oxygen thing in it and a few food pellets, but she still hasn't eaten, and is still sitting on the bottom, and is just acting really weak in general. No balance issues, she just isn't eating right and isn't... moving. And I'm pretty sure being stuck to a rock isn't normal... She also has a little bit of pink behind her gills that I don't think was there a few weeks ago. What should I do to help her?

Background info:: 50 gallon tank, cascade 300 powerfilter
Tankmates: 1 black moor, 3 small fantails, 1 lionhead, (none of the fish are more than 2-3in at this point), 2 weather loaches, 2 snails. All of them seem perfectly fine

 

[jsoong]

H & welcome to AA!!

There is not much to go on ..... except that bottom sitting is generally bad news.

It is good that you isolated her.

First thing to do in cases like this is to check the water, and even if parameters are perfect, clean water is a good thing so pwc's are in order. <And since you moved her to a QT, I would think that you have clean water to start ...>

Second is to do a careful physical exam - looking of any spots, bumps, etc. How fast is she breathing? Is the tummy full or sunken? Scales sticking out? Mucus coat? Any red veins in the fins? Redness behind the gills, is that blood blisters? or just looked inflamed?
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES

So far I have more questions than answers. However, without at least a hint on what is wrong, it is difficult to treat successfully.

 

[Lunala]

Hey there-

I'm looking at her right now, there are no spots or bumps... It does look like she is breathing with difficulty and pretty quickly. Also, the bumps on her head are normally black, and right now they look a lot paler than usual.
Tummy looks fine, not full or shrunken or anything. No scales sticking out, but her fins look a little ragged. I didn't notice anyone in the tank picking on her, so I don't think that's an issue... No red veins in fins, gills don't look inflamed or like blood blisters, they're just pinkish/red behind them (maybe that's normal, just wanted to point it out in case)

She's actually been moving around a little more, but still has extended periods of time sitting there looking blah with labored breathing.

 

[jsoong]

Hard to tell what this is ... can be anything from simple constipation to internal infection. The ragged fins can be from the stress of whatever is ailing her, prob not the primary cause.

At the moment, I think isolation with clean water (daily pwc) and observation is a good start. Perhaps a bit of salt (0.1% or so) (simple treatment for external parasites & some bacteria). Some would try to treat on spec with medicated food (you would need something to cover both bacterial & parasitic infections) ... however, in the absence of further symptoms, that is a long shot.

 

[Lunala]

I put some salt in, and she's not sitting on the bottom as much anymore, but her fins are becoming increasingly ragged. Does this sound like fin rot? I can buy meds for it first thing tomorrow if that is the case... her top fin especially looks like there's a big chunk missing out of it.

 

[Lunala]

Woke up this morning, he's lying on his side, fins look a lot worse. Haven't gotten any replies so I'm going to buy the medicine for fin rot just in case

 

[jsoong]

Certainly sounds like fin rot, although this can simply be the result of whatever is ailing the fish, rather than the root cause of the problem.

If the fish is getting worse, certainly medicated food is worth a try.

 

[Lunala]

Unfortunately, my panda died a few days ago

But NOW one of my fantails has a clear case of dropsy. Scales are raised, one eye is protruding, looks really fat. Put him in hospital tank too with some aquarium salt. What is going on in my tank?? This is the second disease in two weeks- I'm afraid all my fish are going to get something! What should I do?

 

[jsoong]

Sorry to hear about the panda.

As for the fantail with dropsy ... Isolating him is good, but salt will make dropsy worse.

For dropsy, you would want to treat with:
1. Epsom's salt (Mg SO4) at 1/ tsp per 5 gal.
2. Increase heat to 80 or so with extremely good aeration.
3. Treat with medicated food - an anti-parasite food (eg Jungles - containing praziquental, metronidazole & levamazole) or anti-biotic (one with Romet B, Kanamycin) depending on what you think is more likely.
The prognosis is poor, but some fish cna be cured.
BY NAME, DISEASES OF GOLDFISH AND KOI

When more than one fish is getting ill, it is either:
1. poor water quality (or toxins in water) - although it does not look to be the case in your tank, check the parameters, and a pwc can't hurt.
2. something infectious - your cases are likely to be internal infections, which can be:
a. viral - not much you can do for lethal viruses ..... generally more common in koi than goldies
b. fish tb - a Microbacterium infection, very common in goldfish, causing slow growth & sometimes unexplained deaths. Diagnosis by autopsy - granulomas (lumps) in tissue, bacteria acid fast stain on microscopy. No treatment ... although Diane Walstad stated that a UV filter cured her tank of it.
c. internal parasites - another common cause in goldies ... Praziquental is the preferred treatment. Some have advocated treating all new fish with prazi during QT on spec. As most "commercial" goldfish carries some parasites that rears its head when fish are stressed.
d. bacterial - mostly opportunistic when fish are stressed. Most common in fin rot & dropsy. <Hence most likely in your case.> Treat with anti-biotic containing food.

In your case, I think trying a course of medicated food is worthwhile. You might want to treat the whole tank if there is any suspicion of fish getting sick. Certainly close observation & treating at the first hint of trouble is in order. I would definitely treat the one with dropsy. I would suggest using medicated food in the main tank to minimize risk to the bio-filter. If the fish in the QT is not eating then Kanamycin in the water is an alternative.