Need diagnosis for BST

[lindabrooke]

Woke up this AM and found all 4 or 5 of my black skirted tetras with this on their face. All other fish seem normal. I have many medications in my arsenal and just want to know what we're looking at, and what the best course of treatment is. Thank you everyone so much.

 

[Colin_T]

How long have you had the fish for?
What have you added to the tank in the last 2 weeks?
Have you checked the water chemistry for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate & pH?

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It looks like fungus but could be Columnaris, however it is not on their mouth and it's odd that they all have it in the same spot and at the same time.

If you have only had the fish for a few days they probably had it before you got them. I would try a broad spectrum medication that treats, bacteria, fungus and protozoans.

If it spreads rapidly in the next 24 hours it is Columnaris and will need anti-biotics but they will wipe out the filter bacteria so you will need to monitor the water quality during and after treatment.

To work out the volume of water in the tank:
measure length x width x height in cm.
divide by 1000.
= volume in litres.

When you measure the height, measure from the top of the substrate to the top of the water level.

There is a calculator/ converter in the "How To Tips" at the top of this page that will let you convert litres to gallons if you need it.

Remove carbon from the filter before treating or it will absorb the medication and stop it working.

Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate. Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration when using medications because they reduce the dissolved oxygen in the water.

 

[lindabrooke]

How long have you had the fish for?
What have you added to the tank in the last 2 weeks?
Have you checked the water chemistry for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate & pH?

---------------------------
It looks like fungus but could be Columnaris, however it is not on their mouth and it's odd that they all have it in the same spot and at the same time.

If you have only had the fish for a few days they probably had it before you got them. I would try a broad spectrum medication that treats, bacteria, fungus and protozoans.

If it spreads rapidly in the next 24 hours it is Columnaris and will need anti-biotics but they will wipe out the filter bacteria so you will need to monitor the water quality during and after treatment.

To work out the volume of water in the tank:
measure length x width x height in cm.
divide by 1000.
= volume in litres.

When you measure the height, measure from the top of the substrate to the top of the water level.

There is a calculator/ converter in the "How To Tips" at the top of this page that will let you convert litres to gallons if you need it.

Remove carbon from the filter before treating or it will absorb the medication and stop it working.

Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge. Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate. Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

Increase surface turbulence/ aeration when using medications because they reduce the dissolved oxygen in the water.

A few weeks-other than adding a few fish all at the same time a few weeks ago (and they've all been fine and every other fish seems fine except for the group of BST). All levels are fine, a water change was just done yesterday. I test my water weekly and do weekly water changes. I have a handful of medications on hand, and was trying to decide if I felt like it was Columnaris or not, this tank has been set up for years. The filter was just cleaned a few weeks ago as well, as was all the substrate, everything in the tank, etc for my ~3 month deep cleaning. I have Hexshield, Kanaplex, and Metroplex on hand. Any suggestions?

 

[Colin_T]

Hexshield has magnesium and some other stuff in but no idea what. I doubt it will work on this.

Metroplex contains Metronidazole that won't do anything to this. Metronidazole is used for internal protozoan infections and will also wipe out filter bacteria.

Kanaplex is an anti-biotic that will kill bacteria including filter bacteria. This would be the one to try of it is Columnaris and spreads over the face and head during the next 24 hours. If it doesn't spread rapidly then do not use this.

If it spreads slowly over a week then use a broad spectrum fish medication that treats, bacteria, fungus and protozoan infections.

You can try doing a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate each day for a week. This will clean the water up nicely and might fix the problem without using medication. However, if the white patch spreads rapidly then just do a big water change and gravel clean and add the anti-biotic.

If you use the Kanaplex monitor the ammonia and nitrite levels during and after treatment and do a big water change if you get any ammonia or nitrite readings.