I had perfectly healthy discus from Dennis and perfectly healthy discus from Al. Both groups in my care for over 6 months. When I did the hero fish strategy I had some sick and 1 dead discus within 48hrs. I was shocked as both groups were strong and healthy apart. I guess the 1 group was immune to a pathogen they carried that nearly wiped out the others. Like you, Brian suggested i salt the tank at 1tbsp/1gal. I was nervous but had nothing to lose. With my temp at 82 I added the dissolved salt and within another 48 hours all the fish were saved. Over the next week I did daily 75% water changes and replaced the salt at the same concentration. After 1 week I reduced the salt concentration by 25% with daily water change. I also treated the tank the carrier discus came from as it was the destination tank for combining the 2 groups. After a further 4 weeks of good health, color and eating habits I successfully United the 2 groups.
Last edited by danotaylor; 11-30-2019 at 01:36 PM.
Increased temps promote bacterial multiplication so if you're battling a bacterial problem increase temps make it worse...
LOL. The reason we become febrile when we are fighting an infection is the result of release of cytokines that promote a revved up immune response Fish are cold blooded and even more dependent on ambient temperature. Therefore and increase in temperature promotes a vigorous immune response.
It does the same for bacteria
Most of the diseases we humans have to deal with started about 10,000 years ago when humans began to domesticate and genetically manipulate livestock. Hunter/Gatherers did not face polio or strep throat...etc because millions of years led to immune systems that took care of us.
Discus husbandry, say about 100 years, hasn't had the time to develop strains that "have no immune systems to all common variety pathogens"
My gut sense is that what we often see is the result of the overall health of the fish just prior to and the result of shipping stress.
JMO
When a persons immune response causes their temp to shyrocket dangerously we treat the fever to prevent injury to the brain as well as the bacterial or viral infection at the root of the issue. The human body can heat up to the point of causing severe brain damage due to increased oxygen demand. The problem with dealing with cold blooded fish is you cannot raise the temp enough to inhibit the life cycle of the bacteria without killing your discus. It's the same in humans, and why we use cold therapy to protect the brain from damage caused by overheating.
Last edited by danotaylor; 11-30-2019 at 04:08 PM.
Wow, really? You put 2 unrelated groups together on the day they arrive from reputable sources and this is your out?
You said you didn't want a lecture about the most likely cause of your problem, so noone said anything. Now your making subtle suggestions about the health of Hans & Kenny's discus?
Wow...
LOL. Kenny’s fish are fine. The two others are the ones not doing well. Sometimes things happen. It’s is always important to critically evaluate. I happen to have a masters in Biology and a Medical Degree from Yale so I try to analyze things with critical thinking and not shooting from the hip.
I have great regards for both vendors but things happen.
At least when I make statements about fish biology they are based on the Merel Veternary manual and books from breeders from abroad.
The last comment is truly shameful but maybe you’re just angry because of Cincys football team
Go Browns
Jeanne
First thing that comes to mind is that the Asian discus carried something that the German discus never came in contact with before.. Hence the not so well Germans. Carries may not look and act sick, because they have antibodies for that pathagen. We were carries of disease when we arrived in North America not all showed signs of disease but were carriers. The native population were just about wiped out.
Fish all looking great this morning and eating this morning. All I did was, per Pats advice, add the salt and I also kept temp at 31.C
Twice a day water changes. Guess it was the stress of shipping.