Fluffy White Feces - TX?

[gardenho]

I have been working on a stubborn issue with my Discus for about 2 months. (see http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?107407-Help-with-diagnosis-treatment&highlight=)
I ended up losing the sickest fish, but the rest of the tank seemed ok. The only change in conditions is I am now able to age my water for changes, which I am doing daily. A couple of fish reverted & turned dark & began hiding again. I have been treating with Prazi & Metro with good results. It has now stopped working, & I am seeing white fluffy feces & slightly distended bellies on 2 fish. Nothing major, but I can assume it is not overeating as one is not eating. (2-3 days now, with some body wagging as well) I tried epsom salts, but there was no change. What medication should I use next? I am not certain if it is bacterial or columnaria or ? I hate to simply toss meds in the tank without a concrete plan - I know there are people who have much more experience with many more Discus that myself. What is your opinion for the next step? This is a planted tank with Assassin snails & Amano shrimp.
Thanks so much!
Julie

[White Worm]

I'm no expert on meds but metro works better in food and maybe you could up the dosage. I've recently studied some of the schedules here on Simply for Prazi and Metro and it is crucial to do water changes, re-dose and do it 2-3 weeks. If you treated and you see them expelling "stuff", it could be working. How do you know it stopped working?

[Mgardner]

How much water are you changing daily?
What meds have you been using, for what timeframe, exactly over the last two months?
How long are you aging and what's your process?
How often are you feeding? What are you feeding?

It sounds like something's going on, but I think more details are needed. If you've been treating for two months, that's way too long.

Also wouldn't hurt to browse through the disease section to see if you find something... This has come up before.

[gardenho]

The more I read, the more confused I get! This could be a couple of things... The fish perked up & their color brightened after the 1st 3-4 days of Prazi & Metro, & I kept it going for 1 week. During the next 3-4 days off the Prazi (I kept the Metro going) they seemed to relapse. I thought I saw what appeared to be pinholes around the upper head @24 hours after each dose or Prazi, so I re-started it again. During this time, I began aging my water & doing 50-75 % water changes each night, temp up to 88 degrees. Water is aged 24 hours with aeration & temp to 87 degrees. In the past, I have lost fish when I raised the temp to 90 so I am cautious in this aspect. I feed beef heart mix,, bloodworms & occasionally mussels. The fish that died would only eat the mussels for me. I lost that fish, & the others have remained the same since then, so I assume I am treating the wrong thing/the wrong medication. I feel like I am doing the right things, but perhaps it is something unaffected by Prazi or Metro? (Prazi 1 tsp dose, replenished fully after water change. Metro 1 1/2 tsp every 8 hours) I was hoping the aged water & daily changes would turn them around, but now I see the fluffy poo & distended bellies - This is something I have not seen before. I am using a salt/methylene blue mix now to comfort/soothe them until I can figure the next step. I have flake food with Metro, Prazi, Levamisole, but the one is not eating now. He did go after the food today, but did not eat. I have minocyline on hand, but I am not certain it is appropriate for this situation. Levamisole perhaps? I need to nail this - The fish I lost I had for several years. It stings.

Julie