Still Sick

[chago09]

OK my turq x leop and my orange snake have been sick since the begining of time... since I have got them they are still not coming out. For the first like 3 weeks I never mentioned anything on here because I thought maybe the fish are still shy but now its getting a little out of hand. Its been like 5 weeks and still. I have tried treating for some illness by raising temp and adding salt. Nothing happened.... then I was thinking I saw some ick spots on them one day I added some maracide and bam within a few hours they actually came out and ate something. I throw in some carbon the next day for about 24hours and removed it so I could remove meds. Then the next day back to the corner they went. Now they look like there starved. When you look at them from the side you see there spine and then above and below the spine you see the flesh go in. Both fish look like they have pinched forehead but they didn't before it's just there so skinny now. Should I just cull them like i'm scared to keep adding meds in my tank because all my healthy fish are taking in all these meds too because I'm afraid thet might get what the two sick ones have. Please someone tell me what to do.

[lkleung007]

Hi Chago,

Sorry to hear that your Discus are still sick. I do not claim to be a disease expert but what I would do is separate the two sick ones into a 20 gallon tank. If maracide really did help then you may be dealing with a protozoan/parasite problem. A pic may be helpful here but other meds that have worked for me when it comes to a protozoan/parasite problem is Quick cure (formalin with malachite green), clout and fluke tabs. Another option would be parasite clear. If you do decide to use something like clout, I would dose every other day for 7 days.

HTH, Lester

[chago09]

well i have prazipro which kills parasites so should I try that??? cause that stuff is safe to put your hands in the water. I know maracide and stuff your not supposed to because it can cause cancer. Or is that just a rumour??

[joenaustin04]

I recently experienced a bit of a bug in my tank that actually took the life of one of my fish. I finally got the tank in order by turning up the temperature to 90 and treated the tank with Metrinidazole. The temperature will certainly stress your fish so make sure you have plenty of airation. This will also speed up the lifge cycle of whatever bug you have in your water which should assist you with treating. Without having much information this is all I would be able to recommend.

[chago09]

see that's my main problem is I can't find any signs or tips to help me figure it out either. There is no spots, fungus, or any other signs. They are scratching on anything, not swimming around into walls. There just sitting in the corner all dark and skinny and not eating a thing. Can't see them poo either because they are not eating anything.

[lkleung007]

Based on your observations and the fact that maracide worked, I think the most likely pathogen would be a protozoan/parasite. Certainly, flagellates may also be a cause but maracide does not treat this. If you have not yet treated with metro then maybe this would be a good next step. Also, raising the temp on the tank to 92-94F can also help treat some parasites. I would do a long treatment with metro (for 10-14 days) then I would follow that with piperazine/panacur/levamisole for internal roundworms.

HTH, Lester