sick discus

[daveycrockett]

I have a discus that was being picked on for awhile so I moved it to a different tank with smaller discus. It doesnt eat. if at all rarely. It goes up to feed but it just lets the food fall past his face. Its gill plates look pink but breathing seems normal. I dont know if that is how it is supposed to look. It is a gold diamond. He is not active and is at a 45deg angle alot. Treated recently with salt because of bloated stomach and that cleared up. No other visible signs just looks gloomy and not happy. Hope you can help. I d hate to lose him. I just hope I am not too late.

[captainandy]

You'll likely get more expert advice on this site than mine, but I've followed simplydiscus advice in a similar situation.
1) You need to set-up a quarantine tank
2) Raise the temp to 90
3) Add aquarium salt 1-2 teaspoons per gallon
4) I treated with metro
5) Did nearly 100% water changes every day
6) Attempted feeding black worms once a day
7) Kept the light on 24hrs/day
8) Kept my fingers crossed

It took about two weeks before the fish began to eat and now -eats like a horse, beautiful color returned, eyes bright orange. Point is, you can't adequately treat a fish without a dedicated tank. LOL

[discus_nw]

The overuse of salt as a medication amazes me. Why? Salt (sodium chloride) has no effect on bloated discus. Epson salt (magnesium sulfate heptahydrate) does, however. Which did you use?

It's hard to say by what you posted as to what your problem may be. I would not guess metro as a cure for this ailment. Could be Hex, but it doesn't sound like it to me.

I would isolate the discus. Then see if I could get him to eat. Collect a fresh stool sample and look at it under a microscope. Note color and texture of the sample. If it wouldn't eat for me, I'd treat with a sulpha/neomyacin combination. If no change, I'd treat with a roundworm medication.

All this would change if the fish passed white, gelatinous feces after first isolating it. Metro and 94F temp would then be my course of action. No. I would not use salt in any of these treatments. :)

[daveycrockett]

Thanks but I used epsom salt.
I have discus isolated now and am treating for int. parasites. It had white feces.