[Created5thday]

Hey all, I got two Oscars in a 210 gal tank, they seem to have some type of disease on their body. anyone know what it is and how i can go about helping them?
thanks gary

 

[Sakura8]

Hi Created. Can you describe some of their behaviors? Do they dart and rub on things? Will they eat still? Are they lethargic or do they clamp their fins?

Without that info, it's hard to make even a semi-accurate diagnosis but there are a couple of possibilities and a few things you can do in the meantime.

The possibilities are external parasites such as flukes or costia or the beginnings of columnaris. Either way, the best treatment would be to give them a salt bath for an hour. I'm not too familiar with oscars and how well they tolerate salt but I'd say 1 tsp per 2 gallons OR whatever the directions on the packaging say. If they show no signs of distress, you may want to increase the dosage. Because your tank is so big, I would definitely recommend carrying out this treatment as a bath in a hospital tank.

 

[Created5thday]

Hi Created. Can you describe some of their behaviors? Do they dart and rub on things? Will they eat still? Are they lethargic or do they clamp their fins?

Without that info, it's hard to make even a semi-accurate diagnosis but there are a couple of possibilities and a few things you can do in the meantime.

The possibilities are external parasites such as flukes or costia or the beginnings of columnaris. Either way, the best treatment would be to give them a salt bath for an hour. I'm not too familiar with oscars and how well they tolerate salt but I'd say 1 tsp per 2 gallons OR whatever the directions on the packaging say. If they show no signs of distress, you may want to increase the dosage. Because your tank is so big, I would definitely recommend carrying out this treatment as a bath in a hospital tank.

thanks for your reply, they don't seem to be rubbing on anything in the tank, and they are eating very well! (hog's) they are swimming normal. so should i do the salt treatment?

 

[Sakura8]

Yes, I think salt treatment is a good way to go for now because it will help if they DO have external parasites and aren't showing symptoms and it will also help them produce slime coat so they can fight off bacterial infections.