Lateral Line Disease, please Help!

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tanki60o

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
May 23, 2020
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2
1~What type of fish is afflicted? In addition, please describe what is wrong with the fish to the best of your ability (i.e. cotton like growth, bloated, etc.).
Parrot cichlid. Lethargic, no appetite, lateral line marks.
2~What are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH)? Please give exact values.
0, 0, 10, 78, 7,6
3~ How large is the tank? How long has the tank been set up?
40 Breeder, several years
4~What type of filtration are you using? Please give the name and number (i.e. Fluval 304) and amount of gph if known.
Marineland emperor (big one), unknown large canister filter
5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes?
2 - Parrot cichlid and pleco, both fairly large
6~When is the last time you did a water change and vacuum the gravel? How often do you do this? How much water do you remove at a time?
A few days ago, about 70 percent. Usually every 2 weeks, as the parameters always stay in check
7~How long have you had the fish? If the fish is new, how did you acclimate it/them?
A couple years
8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?
No
9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?
Always feeding Omega One cichlid pellets

My parrot cichlid almost certainly has lateral line disease. I have ParaGuard and Melafix with me right now, with Praziquantel arriving Monday and Metroplex arriving Wednesday.

I don’t know how to treat it. Everyone says Metroplex, but it’s not going to be here until Wednesday. Do I wait for Metroplex? Do I treat right now with Melafix? Do I treat right now with ParaGuard? A combination maybe?

Please advise!!
 
ParaGuard won't do much. Just wait for the metro to arrive. I also like to use epsom salt as it is proven to kill off the bacteria that causes hole in head so if you have some available it isn't a bad idea to dose to the tank at a rate of 1tbsp per 2 gallons of water. The problem with lateral line erosion is that a lot of time external treatment isn't super effective. What I would recommend is to soak pellets in the metroplex solution before feeding them to the sick fish as long as it is still eating. In extreme cases where the fish is not eating anymore you can orally administer the medication by using a pipette to squirt the medication down the fish's throat. You are on point with the metroplex as the active ingredient is metronidazole. It is the best known treatment for hexamita. People have also had success using epsom salt to help treat the sickness. If I can add something else it would be that it appears that you only feed one food. Dietary deficiencies are known to make fish much more susceptible to lateral line erosion. I would recommend beginning to feed a variety of foods including several dry foods and frozen foods in order to ensure proper nutrition. Also I saw that you have two parrot cichlids and a common pleco in a 40 gallon tank. Although your parameters look fine, it is well known that questionable water quality can also cause hexamita. I have seen common plecos in excess of two feet and parrot cichlids the size of frisbees. These fish are all capable of creating enough waste to keep a 40 gallon tank overwhelmed with waste. I know your parameters look good, but there are plenty of other metrics for water quality that we are incapable of testing for and understand poorly. Despite all of the advice I provided above, proper nutrition and good water quality oftentimes cause lateral line erosion to halt and heal naturally over time. I hope this helps and please feel free to ask anymore questions! :)
 
Thanks for your reply. I think you misunderstood, I only have one parrot cichlid. I don’t know if I could use a syringe for the medication because the fish is still fairly active. I decided to use ParaGuard until metro arrives and it seems a little better. I’ll stop ParaGuard and start metro as soon as it arrives. If I was to use a syringe, I would first dissolve the metro, right? What would the dosage for that be?
 
Thanks for your reply. I think you misunderstood, I only have one parrot cichlid. I don’t know if I could use a syringe for the medication because the fish is still fairly active. I decided to use ParaGuard until metro arrives and it seems a little better. I’ll stop ParaGuard and start metro as soon as it arrives. If I was to use a syringe, I would first dissolve the metro, right? What would the dosage for that be?

Ok yes I did misunderstand the number of parrot fish you have. Either way just make sure to keep up on the water changes like you are currently doing since both produce huge bioload. As far as the dosage for the metro, I usually just mix some into water and squirt it down the the fish's throat. I don't really have a specific dosage I use. Just dissolve a decent amount into a cup of water. However, if the fish is still active and eating, soak some pellets in water that has metro dissolved in it and then feed them. (y)
 
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