No other signs of sickness, puffy gills?

[Visionist]

In my 55g dirted tank all my fish seem to show some puffiness in their gills(except my bristlenose and featherfin cat). My ctenopoma has very visible gill plates observed breathing from behind or below(though he can close them). All my kuhli loaches seem to have slightly puffed out gills that are pinkish and my angels seem mostly normal. The fish show no signs of being sick though. They are not lethargic, they are very active and eating like pigs. They are not laying on the bottom or gasping at the surface.
The ammonia in the tank is very low/non existent.
Ive treated the tank with 2 rounds of Sulfathiazole and 4 rounds of prazi pro over the past 10 days and nothing seems to have changed? Could there just be nothing wrong?

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[Delapool]

Nothing pops up to mind. Did you check nitrites? Also what are nitrates value?

Have they gotten any better or worse at any point?

 

[BBradbury]

Your Fish

Hello Vis...

What's your water change routine? Most if not all problems with tanks are water related. If you have a small tank, regardless of how many fish you have, half the water should be changed every few days. Tanks up to 30 gallons should have that half change weekly and the larger tanks, should get that change every 2 weeks at least.

The reason is simple, the fish do everything in the water. Small, infrequent water changes do little to sufficiently "flush" the toilet. By flushing large amounts of pure, treated tap water through the tank, you guarantee stable, safe water conditions for the fish and plants too.

The water change can literally fix most, if not all tank problems.

B

 

[Delapool]

Yes plus 1. Some extra water changes never go astray.

 

[Visionist]

Nothing pops up to mind. Did you check nitrites? Also what are nitrates value?

Have they gotten any better or worse at any point?

Nitrites and nitrates are both very low/0ppm. They haven't seemed to change really. My ctenopoma was the first fish in the tank, before he was put in I treated him with heat for ich(which he had badly) and then a secondary treatment of cupramine. I noticed the gills and treated with parasite guard. I'm guessing at this point there really cant be anything treatably wrong with him or the other fish as theyve gone through so many meds.

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[BBradbury]

Using Medications

Nitrites and nitrates are both very low/0ppm. They haven't seemed to change really. My ctenopoma was the first fish in the tank, before he was put in I treated him with heat for ich(which he had badly) and then a secondary treatment of cupramine. I noticed the gills and treated with parasite guard. I'm guessing at this point there really cant be anything treatably wrong with him or the other fish as theyve gone through so many meds.

Sent from my LG G2 using Aquarium Advice mobile app.

Hello again Vis...

Medications are a last resort. You don't know how they'll affect fish, plants or the good bacteria. The easiest and best way to treat anything in the tank is the simple water change. By flushing the "toilet" often, you remove any toxins before they build to a level that will hurt the fish.

If you don't have multiple tanks that take a lot of work, then I'd suggest changing half the water every week. I have several tanks, so the best I can do is a 50 to 60 percent water change every 2 weeks.

The more water you change and the more often you change it the healthier the fish and plants.

B

 

[Visionist]

I do change the water often, I have a python so its very easy. Water changes do not solve everything.

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[Delapool]

Hmm, can't think of much else as you have tried meds already. Most water conditioners take care of heavy metals which was my other thought. Maybe see if they settle down with just running the tank as normal for a week.