Will this Discus Survive?

[OrangeG]

One of my discus has stopped eating, was hiding and breathing heavily with one gill wide open.

I have started treating for metro and it is Day 2. He has came out of hiding today but still refuses to eat.

His current condition:
20200706_215108.jpg

How he was before:
20200706_215335.jpg

Will he survive?

[brewmaster15]

Honest thoughts here.... Probably not. While I have seen many turn around cases, more often than not a fish that has declined this much is probably not going to turn around. The fin rot is a sign that there is probably underlying organ issues, and probably had issues with absorbing nutrition from foods. Parasites will damage tissue impairing nutrient uptake. Then the fish starts to waste away.. The color fades, the appetite disappears, and muscles atrophy and fins erode. Its just not a good prognosis. Discus can take months to waste away and go all that time with no food....its heart breaking to watch it happen, but sometimes it just does...sometimes its parasites,other times its tumors etc.

I'm not telling you to not treat this fish, most hobbyists come to the realization sooner or latter when they see little improvement that its time. Personally I would not treat it and would euthanize it...even if it turns around it will probably be the weak link in your tank and odds are it will never get that brightness back in its eyes and scales.

I'm really sorry,
Al

[OrangeG]

Honest thoughts here.... Probably not. While I have seen many turn around cases, more often than not a fish that has declined this much is probably not going to turn around. The fin rot is a sign that there is probably underlying organ issues, and probably had issues with absorbing nutrition from foods. Parasites will damage tissue impairing nutrient uptake. Then the fish starts to waste away.. The color fades, the appetite disappears, and muscles atrophy and fins erode. Its just not a good prognosis. Discus can take months to waste away and go all that time with no food....its heart breaking to watch it happen, but sometimes it just does...sometimes its parasites,other times its tumors etc.

I'm not telling you to not treat this fish, most hobbyists come to the realization sooner or latter when they see little improvement that its time. Personally I would not treat it and would euthanize it...even if it turns around it will probably be the weak link in your tank and odds are it will never get that brightness back in its eyes and scales.

I'm really sorry,
Al

Well that's bad...I feel sad because I raised him since he was a juvenile. A discus breeder told me what could have happened. She told me that when discus comes close to being adult the pellets should be presoaked.
I fed pellets without soaking the entire time. While the younger ones get away, The older ones get sick according to her.

[TonySimm]

I'm not an expert but I would definitely say there is more going on here than just eating pellets. Al is an expert however and something internal is definitely going on like he says. This fish hasn't been getting the necessary nutrients for a while.

It looked great prior to whatever issue has overtaken it... sorry to see it this way.

[OrangeG]

I'm not an expert but I would definitely say there is more going on here than just eating pellets. Al is an expert however and something internal is definitely going on like he says. This fish hasn't been getting the necessary nutrients for a while.

It looked great prior to whatever issue has overtaken it... sorry to see it this way.

Now I am concerned about other discus of his size and age. Will they get sick too? I never had problems with younger discus. Since I am new to discus keeping, I don't have experience with older discus. I have never bought any adult discus either.

[TonySimm]

I would fill out the questionnaire that's on a sticky here to get more opinions from folks. There are simple things you can do such as raising the temp in the tank and adding salt that can make a big difference.

That questionnaire though will give the folks here with more expertise than me a chance to give you a more specific answer potentially.

[OrangeG]

DISEASE QUESTIONNAIRE


Problem

1. Please explain the problems with your fish. When did you notice the problems and did anything unusual happen that you think started them?

● I don't know what started the problem. But I think it could be feeding pellets without soaking (according to a breeder) and also I rearranged my tank recently.

2. Symptoms (i.e. turning dark, excess slime, not eating, clamped fins, flashing, darting, clamped gills,*white/yellow/green poop, hiding,*headstanding or tailstanding, white on tips of fins, rotting or fungus,*blisters/white zits on fish, bloated, cloudy eyes, wounds).

● Some discus were getting thin (the most affected/ weakest one stopped eating) and he was also hiding. On 4th day he started eating. On 6th day of metro treatment I noticed one discus with white poop. Discus were excreting excess slime on first few days of the treatment. But now they are fine. The problem now is that they are clamping their dorsal fins.

3. What medications/ treatments have you already tried and what were the results. Include dosage and duration of treatment.

● I used Metronidazole at 1 gram for every 20 gallons (10 days treatment). Currently I am on the 6th day.

Tank/Water

4. Tank size and ages, numbers and sizes of fish.

● 75 gallon tank with 10 discus (not all of them are adult) and 3 denison barbs

5. Water change regime (What percentage and how often).

● Usually 25% twice a week. I also do 50% sometimes (depending on nitrate). Now, due to medication, I am changing 25% everyday.

6. How long has tank been running? Is it bare bottom? If you have substrate, what type and how deep is it?

● Almost a year and a half. It has very small gravel, almost like sand. It's less than 1 inch deep.

7. Do you age your water? If you do for how long and what is the ph swing.

● No I dont age my water.

8. What type/brand water conditioner do you use? Do you add it to the tank or aging barrel? How much do you use?

● I use Seachem Safe after filling up the tank. I dose for entire tank after each water change.

9. Parameters and water source;

Note: Water Parameters are important in diagnosing problems within a tank. If you don't own test kits for the following information, you can purchase them, test your parameters and post this info as soon as possible.


● - temp : 32°C (for medication) usually 30°C

- ph : High (7.5 to 7.8)

- ammonia reading : 0 ppm

- nitrite reading : 0 ppm

- nitrate reading : 5 ppm

What type of water or combinations of water sources do you use? If it is an RO/tap/well water mix, please list percentages in the mix.

● Tap water - 100%

10. Any new fish, plants or inverts added recently.

● No

11. Please tell us what you feed your fish and how often. This can be critical information for solving the problem so be as specific as you can.

● I feed Tetrabits and hikari bio gold
Also some freeze dried tubifex worms which I dont feed anymore.

[OrangeG]

I had my questionnaire in another thread but I think it is more relevant here. Any help will be appreciated