Tetras sick again....

[plecoperson]

This just happened a few weeks ago (see http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=81134) -lost two of the eight, treated in hospital tank w/Melafix, then Clout, then Maracyn II. Not sure if any of those things helped/cured. Six were left, and now two are sick again, as are many of our danios....Any ideas?

Sickest tetra-bloated, scales standing off a bit (not pinecone-y, though), gasping

Other sick one-note patchy whiteness on back half.

Well one for comparison


1~What type of fish is afflicted?
Two of six pristella tetras, two died of the same thing several weeks ago. Most of the danios are unwell, too. (see http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=83086)

2~What are your tank parameters?
Tested 8/5:
pH 7.0
nitrite -0-
ammonia -0-
nitrate 5-10
temp set at 78-80

3~ How large is the tank?
55 gallon

How long has the tank been set up?
Nearly 5 months.

4~What type of filtration are you using?
Rena XP3 canister and Penguin 330 HOB

5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes?
12" pl*co (common)
11 zebra danios
6 pristella tetra
3 sparkling gourami
1 female betta
1 horseface loach
10 brig snails, MTS

6~When is the last time you did a water change and vacuum the gravel? 8/4

How often do you do this?
Weekly

How much water do you remove at a time?
30-50%

7~How long have you had the fish?
Some for about 12 weeks, some about 8 weeks (I think)

8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?
The new XP3, about 2 months ago now

9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?

Frozen bloodworms/brine shrimp etc 1x/week
NLS flake
vegetables (for pl*co)
the odd shrimp pellet
algae wafers
Nothing new.

 

[dskidmore]

Dropsey is a bugger to cure. It's just not well enough understood to find the root cause in each case and tackle it.

It seems you've tried the antibiotic route to no sucess. You could try anti-fungals next. Some people report sucess with this.

 

[plecoperson]

Update 8-13

The sickest tetra now has pimple-like bumps that come to a point. It almost looks like something inside is coming out. Weirdly, while looking like a train wreck, this fish is active and eats readily. The other sick tetra's cloudy patches are staying about the same, maybe a bit worse.

Three dead danios-they suddenly get very thin and then die.

I decided to just treat the whole tank with Melafix; there are lots of snails in there and I know Melafix is safe for them. On day five of treatment. If they improve I will keep dosing Melafix; if they don't I'll try Pimafix. No further fish have gotten sick-the rest of the tetras and the few unaffected danios are all fine.

 

[dskidmore]

Could be internal parasites. Try anti-parasitic foods on them since they're still eating.

 

[plecoperson]

The sickest tetra still acts normal other than mild gasping. Still schools, eats, gets excited over food. I thought it was looking better; now we have an actual through-and-through hole just at the base of the tail. Perfectly round, about the size of the head of a pin. This isn't in the fin, it's through the "meat" of the tail base.

I cleaned out all the snails last night in preparation for treating the tank. The tetras refuse medicated food-they are very picky eaters. So many fish are affected that I think the tank needs treated.

I planned to use "Jungle Parasite Clear"....any other suggestions?

Active ingredients: praziquantel; N-[[(N-Chlorophenyl)amino]carbon 1]-2,6-difluorobenzamide; metronidazole; acriflavine.