Calamnaris or Mouth Rot or something else?

[Lifeoffroad]

How do you tell if your fish has calamnaris or mouth rot or something else all together?

I am not new to keeping fish, however, ive been having an issue with my rainbowfish. I have a rainbow fish that has white saly like growths on his mouth. The reason I think its Calamnaris is the fact that he also has a white string that hangs from it and moves in and out as he breathes. Also, I wiped the white stuff off with a q-tip and it seems to have removed a bit of his lip.

I have treated with parasite clear and fungus clear by jungle. I also used Furan II when i had something similar I the past on a danio. With the danio, it never went away, however, it would get better and come back weeks later

Anyone have similar experience? I would love to hear of a remedy

Parameters
Amonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrates - between .25 and. 40 I think that's the next line.

 

[jlk]

Hi! Lower the temp, add atleast .1% salt (if the fish can tolerate it) & treat with kanamycin sulfate (which can also be combined with furan2). You can also topically apply methylene blue daily or use it as a daily bath. This will help as well. Heres a link with more info:

Columnaris (Flexibacteria); Aquarium, Pond Treatment, Prevention; Fungus, Saprolegnia

 

[Lifeoffroad]

Hi! Lower the temp, add atleast .1% salt (if the fish can tolerate it) & treat with kanamycin sulfate (which can also be combined with furan2). You can also topically apply methylene blue daily or use it as a daily bath. This will help as well. Heres a link with more info:

Columnaris (Flexibacteria); Aquarium, Pond Treatment, Prevention; Fungus, Saprolegnia

Great thank you. I've read that website but as I said, you read so much all the diseases start sounding like eachother. Do you think this is indeed columnaris and will this recipe prevent it from coming back?

Thanks a lot!

 

[jlk]

It sounds like it. Mouth rot & columnaris are different names for the same thing. It is possible that it may be another type of bacterial infection causing the tissue to decay but its impossible to determine what without a microscope. This course of treatment should address the infection but it will not guarentee it from returning again. The white strands sound like a secondary fungal issue which is common with a bacterial infection already present. Good luck!

 

[Lifeoffroad]

It sounds like it. Mouth rot & columnaris are different names for the same thing. It is possible that it may be another type of bacterial infection causing the tissue to decay but its impossible to determine what without a microscope. This course of treatment should address the infection but it will not guarentee it from returning again. The white strands sound like a secondary fungal issue which is common with a bacterial infection already present. Good luck!

Okay. Thanks again! Man you are quick on these replies! Thanks a lot. It is greatly appreciated.

 

[Lifeoffroad]

It sounds like it. Mouth rot & columnaris are different names for the same thing. It is possible that it may be another type of bacterial infection causing the tissue to decay but its impossible to determine what without a microscope. This course of treatment should address the infection but it will not guarentee it from returning again. The white strands sound like a secondary fungal issue which is common with a bacterial infection already present. Good luck!

Check out one of my Cory catfish. Do you think this is related?

If you notice in the picture his top fin is looking pretty bad and he ha no side fins left. In fact, on of the side fin in this picture it is broken.

Believe it or not this is better than he did look after I treated for parasites and fungus. My other catfish is totally normal. When i first nituced this I thought it was in a fight.

 

[LyndaB]

Fin rot is one of the symptoms of columnaris. It is a highly contagious disease. I had it once in my community tank. As soon as I saw it, I culled the two symptomatic fish, did a 50% water change, added 1/2 recommend dose of salt and no one else got sick.

 

[Lifeoffroad]

Fin rot is one of the symptoms of columnaris. It is a highly contagious disease. I had it once in my community tank. As soon as I saw it, I culled the two symptomatic fish, did a 50% water change, added 1/2 recommend dose of salt and no one else got sick.

Yeah I've done that to however, I didn't notice it on him cause he usually hides in caves. I think I got it under control as I have a pretty big community tank and no others have gotton it. Its mostly associated with my rainbowfish. Which is an illness they are subseptible to. I think the cat has something else. JFK what do you think? Im not ruling out columnaris.

 

[jlk]

Hmm... Looking at the pics, it looks like he was in fight or got caught somewhere & struggled to get free. I don't see any fuzziness or white areas but in person, this may be a different story. You more typically would see the fins degrading & tissue sloughing off- his look cleanly broken. It doesn't mean they won't become infected because the injured areas are open for infection. Keep an eye on him & be prepared to treat if necessary.

 

[Lifeoffroad]

Hmm... Looking at the pics, it looks like he was in fight or got caught somewhere & struggled to get free. I don't see any fuzziness or white areas but in person, this may be a different story. You more typically would see the fins degrading & tissue sloughing off- his look cleanly broken. It doesn't mean they won't become infected because the injured areas are open for infection. Keep an eye on him & be prepared to treat if necessary.

That's what I was thinking and that's how it looks to me. These guys are very tuff so i don't know.

Here is a list of meds from the site link you provided. I think I am leaning towards the triple sulfa. What would you do?

By using broad-spectrum treatments such as a*Furan Two*&*Kanamycin*combination against diseases with similar symptoms affecting fish, precise identification of specific bacterial or fungal pathogens causing the disease that often display similar symptoms may not be absolutely necessary.Pimafix*shows some promise as a natural treatment for*mild*cases of Flexibacteria (I would not recommend it for more serious cases). Pimafix is effective for a broad range of bacterial and fungal diseases that typically afflict fish and other aquatic animals (especially gram negative). Fish diseases that may be treated in accordance with this product include bacterial fish diseases, such as fin and tail rot, mouth fungus (often caused by the bacterium Flavobacterium Columnaris); fungal fish diseases (such as those caused by microorganisms of the genera Saprolegnia and Achyle) and the like.*Triple Sulfa*may also yield positive results for treatment of Columnaris if used early (although this is not as effective of a treatment for Columnaris as it used to be or as the Kanamycin/Nitrofurazone combination).My professional use of Triple Sulfa has found that it is a good choice along with baths and some salt for mild to moderate infections and is rarely harsh on aquarium environments including plants.

 

[Lifeoffroad]

Yeah I've done that to however, I didn't notice it on him cause he usually hides in caves. I think I got it under control as I have a pretty big community tank and no others have gotton it. Its mostly associated with my rainbowfish. Which is an illness they are subseptible to. I think the cat has something else. JFK what do you think? Im not ruling out columnaris.

Ooops. Sorry jlk not JFK. Lol.