Wasting Away

[AliSab]

I had seven healthy rummynose tetra, and now I have five remaining with on it's way out. One by one, they seem to be wasting away.

I treated with prazipro for the recommended amount of time and then vacuumed the daylight out of the gravel during a water change, so I thought I might have been in the clear. But Lo and behold, another tetra seems to be slowing succumbing to this sickness.

I don't know what to do to save the remaining fish in my tank. Initially I had isolated the first two fish as they became sick, but in due time another fish in the main tank would start to show symptoms. So quarantine didn't help protect the others.

There are also CPD, oto cats, and a pleco that I want to save from whatever this is... Should I dose with prazipro again?

Water parameters are as they should be for a 30 gallon. Running an aquaclear 50, regular water changed.

 

[Potluck]

Every tank no matter the size should have the same water parameters

0 ammonia
0 nitrite
5-40 nitrate
Ph most fish will acclimate to very well with the occasion but 6.8-8.0


Could you describe the symptoms of the fish, post an image of the fish?
Explain exactly what you see going on with the fish if you cannot post a picture there's many many things that cause fish to die, I know a lot of people that try to keep neon tetras but those are one that cannot tolerate a high pH and like warmer water Temps
Could you please tell us your water parameters ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, water temp?

 

[AliSab]

All 0
20 nitrate
76°F
Ph 7.5

Literally, wasting away is the only symptom. They continue to swim around and are active, eating a little but not much. They go from being healthy to really skinny and then they're dead.

I've posted a picture in another thread I started for the same issue a while back, I'm at work atm and don't know how to link to it.

 

[Potluck]

What type food /brand food do you feed how many times a day?

 

[AliSab]

Tetra flake twice a day, occasionally micro pellets, and there are also shrimp pellets and algae wafers there for the bottom feeders. On top of that there are live plants that I see them nibble on from time to time.

 

[AliSab]

Link to the original thread


Emaciated RummyNose Tetra?

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/showthread.php?t=357878

 

[coralbandit]

How old is tank?
Assuming it is 'mature' as rummies are not beginner fish I would give Levamisole HCI a go ?
I would also get it from Charles and give him your fishes description.
Possibly flubendazole will be more appropriate but I leave that to Charles...Your fish may have heximieta ?
Levamisole, Flubendazole & other chemicals for the aquarium
Charles is good people..
Wasting disease will take your whole tank given enough time...

 

[AliSab]

Thanks for letting me know. I'll do some research on heximieta.
I'm going to be moving some fish around between tanks and I'll put the tetras alone for now.
Thanks!

 

[Andy Sager]

There are a couple of causes for "wasting disease" and I would suspect that if the praziPro didn't help the other fish, it's because you are dealing with a bacterial disease not a parasite. I would add a good antibiotic ( ie Kanamycin) to your medication routine and see if that helps.
FYI, Wasting disease is not an easy disease to cure and at some point, you may need to decide whether to restart the tank and sacrifice these fish. You could spend a lot of money on meds and still not cure this problem. It may come down to what you are most comfortable doing.

I would also suggest getting this book for your library. www.amazon.com/Handbook-Fish-Diseas...F8&qid=1497112334&sr=1-1&keywords=untergasser
It's greatest asset is a diagnostic flow chart to help you diagnose your fish's problems. Some of the medications mentioned in the book are no longer available but once you know what you are dealing with, you can then ask for current available meds for that problem.

On a side note, any future new fish should be quarantined to ensure that they are not the carriers bringing in new diseases to your tank.

 

[AliSab]

I may restart it. I plan on changing my substrate and during that time the fish will all be in separate smaller tanks.

Super quick question out of curiosity, if I did restart how would I handle the plants? Could I just put them back in or would I have to get new ones? They are live and the species I have aren't commonly available in my fish store (I've seen them only twice by chance).

Thank you for the book suggestion, I will definitely have a look at it.

Would erythromycin be a recommended antibiotic to try? I have it in ample quantities because I used it to combat BGA and got an extra package in case.

 

[Andy Sager]

Wasting disease is more an internal disease and most internal bacteria are gram negative. Erythromycn is effective against gram positive bacteria ( numerous external issues). I suggest Kanamycin ( or Seachem's Kanaplex if you can't get straight Kanamycin) because it is absorbed through the skin. Even if the fish aren't eating or eating very little, this med is effective.
As for the plants, I would isolate them in another tank for at least a 6-8 week period to ensure that any parasite that might be on/in them have run their life cycle. After then, I would introduce a test fish or two to see if they come down with any issues similar to what you are going through now. If they do okay, then I would have no issues with placing the plants back into the main tank. You might also want to do a peroxide dip before adding them as well.
When it comes to post disease, I always use the "better safe than sorry" approach.