What would you do.............

[jimmyjoe]

I had a tank with a cross contamination problem that killed most of my breeding program. Well, I cleaned up my tank and now it is housing my brood of wilds I got from john Snook21. What I want to know is the fish that made it through the disaster, I have them in a 30 gallon tank for now, can they still infect my new discus and if so how and what can I do to prevent it. Jim in Ohio

[LizStreithorst]

If the disease was bacterial they should be safe. If it was a virus that caused the disease it could be up to 6 months before they are safe.

[matt parsons]

I would consider your existing fish as hot and I would consider any new fish as hot.
When you bring in new fish I would keep them in different rooms as fas a part as possible, have 100 percent separate hoses, buckets, towels etc. I would use potassium permanganate to sterilize everything.
Even wash your hands with it using a bucket ( a great way to soak nets, the ends of your hoses and any other smaller items)
I would run a 6-8 week quarantine. Then I would mix one new fish with your existing fish and see what happens.
Sorry you had this happen and for the headaches that come after.
Good luck bud.

[jimmyjoe]

So exactly what does cross contamination mean, if my fish that made it through the contamination survived and they are hot like you say than they will always be hot or what? Isn't there any way I can test to see if they are still carriers by using test fish of some kind or cleaning them up someway? I don't remember when this all happened but I'm sure it's been 6-8 weeks or close is that enough time to try something. How can I prevent another cross contamination? Sorry to sound so disheartening but it's so frustrating I'm afraid to purchase any new discus. Jim in Ohio

[jimmyjoe]

So exactly what does cross contamination mean, if my fish that made it through the contamination survived and they are hot like you say than they will always be hot or what? Isn't there any way I can test to see if they are still carriers by using test fish of some kind or cleaning them up someway? I don't remember when this all happened but I'm sure it's been 6-8 weeks or close is that enough time to try something. How can I prevent another cross contamination? Sorry to sound so disheartening but it's so frustrating I'm afraid to purchase any new discus. Jim in Ohio

I really don't know if I asked the right question here. I'm trying to find out if my fish that made it through this cross contamination are still death carriers. Is there a test fish i can throw in with them to see if they are still hot, or do i have to use one of my other discus . I don't want to use one of my wilds, I just got them settled, any suggestions. Jim in Ohio

[CliffsDiscus]

Did you have the Discus Plague? This virus stays with the Discus for life. Only when they are contiagus(hot) it will infect the other Discus in the same tank and tanks near by. I was given a rare Discus pair that infected some of my pairs after a year, no new fish enter my operation, so where did it come from since all of my stock were my own. Found out the rare Discus pair were treated for the Plague two years ago.
Some importers will usually tell you if the Discus are hot before buying.

Cliff

[Iminit]

Jim I’m pretty sure you dealt with a cross contamination. Usually from new fish added to old or a different bought group. I went through this recently. There is a thread running. But for mine once they got over it I did mix up a few discus from both tanks. All seem adjusted now. So I’ve no problem moving from tank to tank. But I do believe new discus could add a different bacteria that may set them off. So I qt all new discus a little better than last time. Just added 4 of Dennis discus to my tanks without any major problems. If getting new discus I’d invest in rid-ich plus. It and salt did work for me. 24 discus got sick and all made it through it. There are pics in the thread.

[jimmyjoe]

Jim I’m pretty sure you dealt with a cross contamination. Usually from new fish added to old or a different bought group. I went through this recently. There is a thread running. But for mine once they got over it I did mix up a few discus from both tanks. All seem adjusted now. So I’ve no problem moving from tank to tank. But I do believe new discus could add a different bacteria that may set them off. So I qt all new discus a little better than last time. Just added 4 of Dennis discus to my tanks without any major problems. If getting new discus I’d invest in rid-ich plus. It and salt did work for me. 24 discus got sick and all made it through it. There are pics in the thread.

Sorry, but just how did you confirm you're x contamination was over did you have a test fish or did your QT do the trick. I have three discus left that made it that I think was the source of the X-contamination. They have been isolated in another tank for over three months, how can I find out if they are okay now to mix with my other discus, they have not shown any signs of sickness? Jim in Ohio

[Iminit]

My cc hit both my tanks. I knew I got threw it when the fish started looking healthy again. As for the starters I also treated them the same way. I moved hero discus one from each tank into the qt tank and there was no problem.

[seanyuki]

As for cross contamination.It could be many different types of bacteria and or protozoa parasites or a combination of both it’s really hard to say exactly what bacteria they are unless they are sent off to a lab and tested . To my understanding Kordon Rid Ich + ( Formalin and Malachite Green) only treats external. Need to treat internal as well to eliminate all issues.

[jimmyjoe]

So, I have to make a decision on which of my wilds to make a hero discus. What should I have on hand if I detect a problem, and how long would a problem take to occur? Jim in Ohio If I didn't mention it before thanks a lot I really mean it.

[LizStreithorst]

It usually becomes evident in less than a week if it's one of the regular suspects we see. I've always kept Furan II and Metro on hand.

[jimmyjoe]

I have Metro but I'm otta Furan II, just looked can't find it any where's near me that sell's it unavailable on line Amazon, Petsmart all the store's within spitting distance.

[LizStreithorst]

Jehmco will have it.

[seanyuki]

Best to ask John at Jehmco since Jehmco’s website says Nitrofuranzone it’s been discontinued .

https://www.jehmco.com/html/medications.html

Everything Aquatics has Nitrofuranzone in stock.

https://everythingaq.wpengine.com/pr...category/meds/