Questions about meds/switching meds and culling fish

[jlbfish]

I am currently battling what I am pretty sure is cotton mouth with a neon tetra. He is in a QT tank with 14 other fish (4 more neon tetras and 10 black neon tetras). It is an iso tank and they may be a bit cramped. It is 10 gallon filtered with an Aquaclear 20. I am currently treating with a pimafix/melafix combo. That may change in the future to a furan 2 or jungle fungus treatment.

I can't really tell well if it is fuzzy with a mouth like a little neon tetra. It looks like he was sucking on a milk bucket.

I am on day 3 of the treatment and haven't seen any improvement in fact one other neon has a bump on his mouth and I am almost positive that is how it started for the first one.

My questions are:

When do you cull a fish? I am assuming that in this case they have been in the iso tank for over a week. The neons were at the store together. I assume that the whole tank is affected. What circumstances are made when a fish is not at deaths door?

When treating bacterial infections you want to finish up the antibiotics in order to not create a resistant strain. Is that the case with fungus as well? Should I complete the current treatment before starting another?

Thanks!
Jana

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by jlbfish

I am currently battling what I am pretty sure is cotton mouth with a neon tetra. He is in a QT tank with 14 other fish (4 more neon tetras and 10 black neon tetras). It is an iso tank and they may be a bit cramped. It is 10 gallon filtered with an Aquaclear 20. I am currently treating with a pimafix/melafix combo. That may change in the future to a furan 2 or jungle fungus treatment.

I can't really tell well if it is fuzzy with a mouth like a little neon tetra. It looks like he was sucking on a milk bucket.

I am on day 3 of the treatment and haven't seen any improvement in fact one other neon has a bump on his mouth and I am almost positive that is how it started for the first one.

My questions are:

When do you cull a fish? I am assuming that in this case they have been in the iso tank for over a week. The neons were at the store together. I assume that the whole tank is affected. What circumstances are made when a fish is not at deaths door?

When treating bacterial infections you want to finish up the antibiotics in order to not create a resistant strain. Is that the case with fungus as well? Should I complete the current treatment before starting another?

Thanks!
Jana

In the case of Fungus, if the treatment you are using is not working and more fish are getting sick while under medication, there already is resistance so you do no harm by switching meds. I'm pretty sure that Primafix and melafix are natural substances but I would do a 25% water change and run new carbon for 12 hours then would switch to the Furan -2 after removing the carbon.

Culling, or in your case euthanizing, fish is a judgement call. If there is a chance that the fish is going to respond to the meds, I'd leave them and see what happens. If you see the fish listless and panting or not swimming horizontly or breathing but lying on a side or upside down, you would be doing the fish a favor by euthanizing it.(IMO)
If the fish are still swimming normally, there is a chance.

Natural "medications" have a short window to prove effectiveness (IMO). if fish continue to break down while in their presence, I go with the big guns (meaning stronger medications. ) The longer you wait to use them, the more advanced the disease gets and you might not be able to save what was a salvagable fish. I know there are many on here who promote "natural" and "holistic" but I have yet to see any study that shows that holistic meds work BETTER and MORE OFTEN than old time antibiotics and fungicides. (No letters please holistic users, I already know and respect your positions )

Hope this helps...