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Treating sick fish


noyd

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How would you recommend I treat my 3" Frontosa?

It is not eating very much, or maybe nothing at all.

Plus I noticed he was trying to scratch or itch it self along the gravel, scraping it self kind of thing, anyone familiar with this, is it a disease?

Thanks

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It was in a tank with two Poormans Frontosas, and two Clown Loaches, now the Frontosa is in a 3' tank by it's self, the others seem fine.

Looking at him now, he is very aggressive, he is moving alot of gravel from the corner of the tank where he is hanging out very often, when I try to feed him he just ignores it 98% of the time.

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The other 2%, he would taste it, and most likely spit it out!

Isn't this a sign of diseases as it is?

Plus the scratching and all, theres got to be something.

What can I treat it with? Some Aqua Master products?

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Yes all cycled

He never ate properly from day one, thats for sure.

Ive had it for around 2 weeks now, I moved him to the 3ft just today, but I also noticed he was not eating in the tank he was in before today.

And now all the scratching and that, I dont know.

:):

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You could try a treatment of Protozin which is made by waterlife, or you can use another brand ..

Waterlife is just my preference as it doesnt mess with the bacteria in filters as much like some of the others do..

It is very hard to really diagnose anything without seeing the fish :)

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Can't see the redness in the fish's head too well in that photo, but I think I know what you're talking about, and it's not normal. I'd say the redness is inflammation of tissues of the head most likely caused by a bacterial infection. BUT the bacterial infection will be secondary to stress (just about every infection in fish relates to stress).

So, you will need to treat the infection, but also think very carefully about any possible causes of stress for this fish - water quality of course, it's good that you have zero ammonia, but also check nitrate, which should not be above 40ppm and should preferably be below 20ppm and carbonate hardness perhaps too. Then look at behavioural stresses - maybe some of the tank furniture needs to be changed so the fish (which is only a young'un) feels comfortable and safe in the tank. Also consider if the other fish it was in with were hassling it, or if it might be happier to have some other fronties to hang out with (same size of course). There are plenty of other causes of stress too, so keep thinking.

To treat this fish, there are lots of options for medications, but using any of them will be a stab in the dark. The only way to be sure of what to use would be toget a sample of the inflamed tissue from the fish and have it examined to find out whether it's a bacterial or protozoal infection etc. Unfortunately expense and difficulty of getting the sample without harming the fish, and getting someone who knows what they're doing to examine it means that this is not an option.

So we just have to guess, and I guess bacterial (probably Aeromonas sp.) infection. Try treating with metronidazole (Octazin is one brand of it available in LFS), can't remember dose off the top of my head but if you get Octazin it should come with instructions. Keep him on his own ("hospital tank"), but make sure the tank is comfortable for him (not bare, give him a cave to hide in).

Feed very sparingly since he's not eating well - too much food will only foul up the tank and cause more stress to him.

Good luck, hope this helps.

Cheers,

Jess

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Thanks griffin, that was quite some information.

I had a talk to a friend about him trying to itch him self along the gravel and he said he had a problem like that once, and he said it was Fungal Disease.

Anyway I was recommended 'Multi Cure, by Aqua Master' which aids in the treatment of White Spot, Velvet Disease and Fungal Disease.

Trichodina Disease is my best shot, which includes loss of appetite and weight, also the itching thing, so I bought this Multi Cure product, and see how I go.

I fed him something just before and he looked to be quite interested this time, since I never fed him yesterday, he looked to eat a bit, I hope he is getting better.

And about being comfortable, despite he is only young, he has been very busy moving lots of gravel around, so I assume he won't be so stressed, once I've stopped using the medication and have cleaned the water, I will add another Frontosa to keep him company.

I'll keep updating.

Thanks :p

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