The mysterious diesase is back again!!

small fry

NO! It is back! Let me explain...

Awhile back, afew months after I started fish keeping (august 2010), I was faced with a huge problem. A strange diease no one on this forum was able to identify. It claimed the life of 5 Lemon Tetra, 2 Swordtails, and 1 Albino Corydoras. A diesase that I thought was destroyed months ago: dead with the fish...or so I thought.

It is back! Back again and this time I have more to lose! One of my Lemon Tetras (possibly one that I got last week, could be a mature one) is showing the same symtoms of this mysterious diesase. I am so upset because (s)he is in a QT with 5 other Lemon Tetra, 3 Albino Corydoras, 1 Bronze Corydoras, 1 Julii Corydoras, and a Ghost Shrimp. The total cost of all these fish from my LFS has been astronomical! $6 per corydoras, $3 for lemon tetras, and I bought the ghost shrimp as a feeder from walmart, not my LFS.

Now that you all know what I have at stake, let me explain the symtoms. I know a pic would be great, and I will try to get a picture up later. Anyway, it starts from the mouth -- a white color, sometimes has a pink sore -- and works its way up the top lip. The tetra will soon lose interest in food and will start to fade in color. After afew days (usually about 8), the fish will show symtoms of Swim Bladder Disorder. Then the tetra will suddenly die.

The alternative to this diesase looks like a cotton patch that is on the inside of the tetra. You can only see it with a light shined on it. The fuzz patch will get bigger until it grows and literally pokes out of the scales, grown literally from the inside out. All of the sudden, the tetra goes to somehwat healthy looking to floating dead at the top of the water. I have lost 2 tetra to this diease aslo. None of my tetra have this, but I would like to know what it is. I know I have a movie of the diesase from a past tetra that didn't survive it.

If you have any kind of guess for either diesase, please post it! Don't hesitate, even if you don't really think it is what you think it is. I will research it and find out. There is no dumb answer. Please guess away! All the fish in my QT depend on it!

Thanks guys!

small fry,

PeeG

Here's an interesting page with fairly detailed information that I have referred to in the past on different fish diseases. I hope it can help shed some sort of insight into what your mysterious disease is. Best of luck!

Fish Diseases

PeeG

Glugea might be something to look into.

jeaninel

Sounds like Columnaris to me.
Common Fish Diseases

small fry

I don't know if it is any of the diesases above. It very well may be, but I am just not sure. All the diesases suggeted contained the term,"usually only seen in poor water quality". That makes me wonder if it isn't based on the toxicity of the water.

I just got back from testing my water, and I was a little bit suprised. The ammonia tested 0ppm as I expected, but the nitrates were at 50ppm. I guess this can be considered "poor water quality", but I wouldn't think I'd be getting this infection again from the nitrates at 50ppm (which was pretty recient because I tested 2 weeks ago and it was at 5ppm. I guess those new fish I added really effected the nitrates).

I am thinking that it was probably something that was bought over from the LFS, or something that I had in my tank several months ago and didn't effectlively sanitize.

The diesases mentioned are not out of the question yet and I really appreciate your suggestions. I will be researching these diesases further to see if I can determine a possibility.

Thanks guys!

1077

Adding fishes to quarantine tank with other fishes is better than adding them to the main tank, but same problems can occur.Best to quarantine one group at a time otherwise ,new additions can bring parasites to fishes being quarantined.
I'm no fan of medicating but have on occasion done so. Were it me,,(and it ain't) I would consider treating all of the fish in quarantine with medicine (CLOUT).
Would not share same net's tools,syphons,across quarantine tank(S) and main tank or display tanks lest disease be transferred this way.
Hard for sick fish in quarantine to transfer disease to main tank unless diseased fish are placed in the tank or sharing of afore mentioned tools,bucket's etc takes place across all tanks.

BlackGoldfish

I do wish I had room for another 10g QT so I wouldn't have to mix Qed fish with non-Qed fish. Unfortunately, I still have to. I had to get more because I had 5 and one of them died (I knew I needed to get some more anyway, because 5 isn't enough). My LFS isn't the best at having healthy fish, but I guess it isn't all their fault because lemon tetras are commonly wild-caught (unfortunately).

I am also not a fan of treating fish. I have worked out all my sick fish problems up to this point since November...all my sick fish problems but the 2 fish diesases I have dealt with reciently.

I think it is time to turn to medication. I really need to know what I am treating before I medicate the fish, though. I feel bad about the idea of treating tetra, because I know they are amoung the most sensitive fish to medication.

I have one of those "treat-all" medications (I think it is called Jungle Fungus Clear), that I used several months ago. I also have a parasite med that I can use.

Let me (or us) come up with a diagnosis for the diesase, and then I will see about treating them.

Bwhiskered

You have a case of what is called mouth fungus. It is a rapid spreading disease that builds up in the mouth and lips choking the fish. The best cure is Jungle Binox. If you can not get that get Nitrofurizone which is the main ingredient. A bit of salt can also be added if the fish will tolerate it. Don't use in a planted tank as it kills plants.

small fry

Sorry guys, this post was made by me. On my Windows account I have to log in, but on the family account it is automatically set to my brother's account, BlackGoldfish. Sorry for the confusion.

"Mouth Fungus" can mean so many different things. It really isn't an accurate term IMO. Very few people who think their fish has mouth fungus actually have fish with mouth fungus. There are an array of diesases that matches the description. Good suggestion, though.

I have never heard of Jungle Binox. My nearest Petsmart is 55 miles away, so I probably need to take action sooner than I can plan a trip. If anyone else would recomend this medication I will certainly pick up some next time I go to Petsmart.

I think I heard somewhere that salt is pretty bad on corydoras also. I may salt the tetra if someone else will recomend the treatment, as I am not quite ceratin if I should use it now.

I am thinking that I may try doesing with a parasite med and a fungus/negative rod bacteria med. Any opposition to this, other than the basic frown on the thought of medicating tetra?

Ideas on treatment anyone? Thanks for suggestions so far! I am just trying to make sure I wont do anything that will hurt my tetra, corydoras, (ghost shrimp if I can help it,) and plants.

1077

Hmmm, Maybe hold back on mixing fishes for a while? On present heading,, Medications can become weekly expense.
Without scrapings from gills(flesh) from dead fish, Proper diagnosis is near impossible and is why I hate medicating fish. It is often 50/50 chance that my diagnosis and choice of med is correct ,and is why I take pains to maintain water quality and not move fishes across main tanks/quarantine tanks.
You don' talways have to replace fish after death of other fishes until certain that other's are O.K.


The parasite/anti fungal approach is as good as another . Would allow three or four day's after parasite treatment with plenty of water changes,fresh carbon, before starting ant-fungal.
Water changes are often more beneficial than folks sometimes,, consider.
I might (were it me) Leave lights off over sick tank(s) and withold foods while medicating.