Skirt tetra rapid breathing, gill infection?

[Numerous_Fish7573]

Hi! I have a GloFish tetra (yes I know, booo) who started glass-surfing in the corner of the tank, breathing rapidly, and has become very jumpy whenever something moves even a little. I thought he had swim bladder issues because he seemed to be a bit unbalanced, but after fasting, raising temperature, etc., he hasn't improved. Today I found him stuck under the anubias and I thought he was dead, but when I tried to pick him up, he woke up and bolted away. Throughout the day he's gotten worse, and I had to confine him to a breeding box because he kept spinning upside down and into things. He isn't lethargic, but he won't move when he's stuck on something. I also feel like his eyes are a bit more... protruding than normal, though that might just be paranoia. I was treating the tank with MelaFix since I noticed it, but it hasn't helped either.

There are three other skirt tetras in the tank, and they look completely fine. All my fish were added more than a year ago. I did a 30% water change for the 10 gallon this morning, and my parameters after the whole day are as followed (it is similar to what it was before the change):
- ammonia: 0ppm
- nitrite: 0ppm
- nitrate: 20ppm
- pH: 7
- temperature: 78F

I think it's a gill infection since they look really red (but I can't tell if it's because he's a GloFish) and I'm worried about misdiagnosing it. What should I do? Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[Andy Sager]

Hi and welcome to the site.
What you describe sounds like an internal bacterial infection. The bulging eyes is the clue. Prophylactic meds like Melafix will not treat this. You need an antibiotic that works in your water's parameters and it needs to be done in a separate hospital tank.
I will give you the directions on what to do but to be candid, the cost and labor involved in treating this fish will far exceed the cost of replacing the fish so it's up to you as to whether you want to proceed or just euthanize this one since you have others that are doing okay. It's your choice because if the diagnosis is correct ( which I believe it is) , the fish will not get better on it's own.
If you want to continue, I lay out the proper way to set up a hospital tank in this thread, post #2: Quarantine tanks and Hospital tanks, are they really different?
To recommend the proper medication, I would need to know your water's pH and GH ( general hardness) as different antibiotics work in different parameters.

Let's start there:

 

[Numerous_Fish7573]

Thank you for your input! Unfortunately I'm unable to set up a hospital tank (family won't allow me to). Is there really no other way for me to treat him? I'm very attached to all my fish so I'm making sure there's absolutely no other way I can help

 

[Andy Sager]

I'm afraid not. Antibiotics will suppress or kill the nitrifying microbe bed so if you treat the whole tank, you stand the chance of a much bigger problem down the road. ( i.e Ammonia/nitrite issues, having to recycle the tank, etc. ) My suggestion is to euthanize this one fish to save your other fish. Internal bacterial infections can be spread when healthy fish eat a dead or dying sick fish and that is a natural thing for them to do. As long as you already have this one separated from the other fish, you are ahead of the game. If you let the fish die in the tank, you run the risk of a bacterial bloom happening in the tank if you don't remove the dead fish fast enough. It's really a no win situation. Sadly, those genetically manipulated fish ( Glo-fish, Balloon fish, etc. ) have a higher rate of issues than " normal" fish. They are a good money maker for shops but they can be very expensive to keep for the hobbyist.
Wish I had better news for you.

 

[Numerous_Fish7573]

I see, thank you for the advice.

 

[Aiken Drum]

Can you temporarily set up a hospital tank? A bucket or tote box with a heater + airstone? Something you can keep out of the way when in use and store away completely when its not being used? Something 3 to 5 gallons (10 to 20 litres)?

I have a cheap kids aquarium that spends most of the time in the boiler cupboard.

 

[Andy Sager]

Can you temporarily set up a hospital tank? A bucket or tote box with a heater + airstone? Something you can keep out of the way when in use and store away completely when its not being used? Something 3 to 5 gallons (10 to 20 litres)?

I have a cheap kids aquarium that spends most of the time in the boiler cupboard.

I lay out all those choices in my thread.

 

[Numerous_Fish7573]

Can you temporarily set up a hospital tank? A bucket or tote box with a heater + airstone? Something you can keep out of the way when in use and store away completely when its not being used? Something 3 to 5 gallons (10 to 20 litres)?

I have a cheap kids aquarium that spends most of the time in the boiler cupboard.

I unfortunately do not have an extra heater or airstone.

 

[Aiken Drum]

If economics is a factor and you cant buy a small heater and airstone, euthanasia and buying a new fish is going to be the most cost effective solution.

 

[Numerous_Fish7573]

so actually after a couple hours of searching my basement, i happened to find an old heater and airstone...
I've started setting up a bucket with the equipment, but I'm also working with limitations on how much water I'm allowed to put in (again, my family isn't pleased with my insistence on healing my fish), but it has to be better than nothing, right?

As for my pH and gH, they're 7 and 60ppm respectively.

I unfortunately do not have an extra heater or airstone.

 

[Andy Sager]

so actually after a couple hours of searching my basement, i happened to find an old heater and airstone...
I've started setting up a bucket with the equipment, but I'm also working with limitations on how much water I'm allowed to put in (again, my family isn't pleased with my insistence on healing my fish), but it has to be better than nothing, right?

As for my pH and gH, they're 7 and 60ppm respectively.

With that being the case, you want to use a combination of Kanamycin ( seachem's Kanaplex) and Nitrofuracin green. You are going to have to adjust the dosage based on the amount of actual water you have in the bucket. Keep in mind that when a direction states " per X gallons of water", it means actual measured gallons of water. So using a dose for 10 gallons would be too much for a standard 10 gallon tank because it doesn't hold 10 actual gallons of water. And even less when it has substrate, decorations , etc. that displace the water.
If you can't get the Kanaplex & Nitrofuracin combination, using minocycline ( Fritz maracyn 2) would be a second choice. Both Kanamycin and Minocycline are absorbed through the skin or gills so the fish does not have to take in water to be treated.

To be honest, I can see your family's point in regards to this particular fish and maybe when you see how much these medications are you might feel differently. Sadly, there is a cost vs replacement factor that many need to face. It's not always easy but in the end, your wallet may be the deciding factor. Keep us posted on your outcome.

 

[Numerous_Fish7573]

Unfortunately, my tetra passed away a few days into treatment. Seemed like it was way too late for the little guy to recover from. Thanks for everyone's help. RIP Mustard

 

[Andy Sager]

Unfortunately, my tetra passed away a few days into treatment. Seemed like it was way too late for the little guy to recover from. Thanks for everyone's help. RIP Mustard

Sorry to hear but not too surprised tbh. Like I said, it's tough when you have to decide between medicating and replacing but with the cost and availability of medications, often, if you don't have the right medications and diagnosis quickly, it's already too late to safe them. I strongly recommend you download this book: Handbook of Fish Diseases (Smaller Size) PDF | PDF | Gallon | Litre to help with diagnosing. It's an older book so some of the newer diseases aren't in it and some of the meds it recommends are no longer available in the hobby but for diagnosing the vast majority of diseases our fish get, it's one of the best for the average hobbyist.