Dropsy

[Miah002]

What are the early signs of dropsy?

I'm just asking.

 

[minxfishy]

Fish bloating and the scales starting to protude from the sides. What makes you ask?

 

[nmonks]

Dropsy isn't a disease any more than sneezing is in humans. Dropsy is what is properly called oedema, i.e., abdominal swelling caused by an abnormal accumulation of fluids. Typically it is a sign of infection, either by viruses or bacteria. Aquarists often associate the symptom with "organ failure" in some vague way, but fish health text books tend to put the accent on infections or some type of adverse environmental condition that means that the osmoregulatory system* can no longer work.

In any case, dropsy rarely comes out of the blue. Fish maintained in good water and given a balanced diet rarely develop the symptom. By contrast, dropsy is very common when fish are kept poorly. The classic examples are goldfish in bowls, mollies in freshwater, and Malawi cichlids in tanks to which aquarium salt has been added (this is called Malawi Bloat).

Associated with dropsy are other symptoms such as lethargy and loss of colour. Fish that are repeatedly getting things like finrot are also more likely to develop dropsy since at least some bacteria (e.g., Aeromonas) are responsible for both.

Realistically, when a fish develops dropsy, it's dying. I have yet to see a small fish respond to treatment. Big fish like koi may recover when treated with antibiotics, assuming the cause is bacterial, but a viral case will of course be impossible to treat. Improvements in living conditions may allow the fish's own immune system to put things right, but this seems to me very unlikely where small fish are concerned. So for all practical purposes, if a fish develops dropsy, it should be painlessly destroyed.

Do bear in mind not all abdominal swelling is dropsy! Constipation is very common and produces similar symptoms, though usually not with the erect scales on the flanks. Goldfish and (most) cichlids are very prone to constipation because they are herbivorous, at least in part, but rarely given enough fibre in the aquarium. Also, a few fish swell up naturally from time to time. There are some killifish that do so when spawning, right down to the erect scales, and things like gulp-feeding catfish can look very swollen if allowed to gorge themselves (not something I recommend, even though they may do so in the wild).

Hope this helps, Neale

*The system that balances water and salt inside the body, equivalent to our kidneys.

What are the early signs of dropsy?

I'm just asking.

 

[Miah002]

I got a fish from my freind to take care of for a while. He's on holiday and one of his fish has a red spot and it looks extreamly fat.

 

[minxfishy]

What fish, whereabouts is the red spot, gills, body, fins? Is it in your tank if so what are your water stats, knowing these can rule out any water quality problems, what are you feeding, how is the fish poo looking, have you tried to feed some cooked shelled peas as it could be constipated?

 

[Miah002]

I havn't seen it poo.

The red spot is on the body.

The water stats are Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0 and Nitrate 20 ppm. Ph 7.0

I will be doing a 20% water change today.

 

[Miah002]

I think it is dropsy so i've sent my sister to go get some medication.

Would i treat the whole tank or the fish on it's own?

 

[nmonks]

You can't cure dropsy. Any retailer who sells you an over-the-counter med is selling you a dream. A vet may have access to erythromycin, but that's about all that will work.

Cheers, Neale

I think it is dropsy so i've sent my sister to go get some medication.

Would i treat the whole tank or the fish on it's own?

 

[Miah002]

Ok so what do i do?

 

[nmonks]

If its a big fish like a koi or an oscar, contact a vet. Anything smaller, euthanasia is the only humane option. Note that "dropping a fish in ice" and other such methods aren't humane.

As stated earlier, make sure you confirm it is dropsy. It often isn't!

Cheers, Neale

Ok so what do i do?

 

[Miah002]

No it's not a big fish. It's a small one.

The kois are in a pond. I'm talking about one of my small tanks.

The fish did have dropsy and it passed away today morning and it was a Lampeye Killifish.

I got some anti-bacterial medication, and i treated the whole tank, during this peroid would i feed them?

 

[nmonks]

The fish did have dropsy and it passed away today morning and it was a Lampeye Killifish.

Sorry about that, but no surprise.

I got some anti-bacterial medication, and i treated the whole tank, during this peroid would i feed them?

Antibacterial medicine will have no affect whatsoever on dropsy, and certainly won't prevent it. In the UK at least, you can't buy antibiotics from a pet store. You have to go to a vet. Any antibacterial medicine your retailer sells will be either for external or internal infections. The external infection ones (like eSHa 2000) are pretty good, and generally work well to treat finrot and mouth fungus, the two common bacterial infections that effect the skin and fins of fish. The internal infection ones are completely useless and I have yet -- in 25 years of keeping fish -- to see or be told about (from someone reliable) of an instance where they have actually cured a fish of anything. I wouldn't bother with them. If you have money to waste, they please go ahead and buy them. Do your bit for the UK economy! But they are about as useful as crossing your fingers and making a prayer to the Fish Gods.

Next time you're in the US, or have a friend visiting there, get some Maracyn. It's a product based on Erythromycin, and worth having around the place. Being an antibiotic, it works well against internal and external bacteria, and tends to be much more reliable than the so-called "anti-internal bacteria" rubbish sold in England. Otherwise, you can of course go to a vet and get some Erythromycin. It's not expensive, but it is a hassle, and not every vet knows anything about tropical fish (though ones who treat koi should do).

Cheers, Neale

 

[Miah002]

It's called INTERPET ANTI INTERNAL BACTERIA. This is what it says:

Internal systemic bacterial infections (pseudomonas, aeromonas, vibrio bacteria sp.) are a common cause of death in aquarium fish, previously only treatable with veterinary prescribed antibiotics. Anti Internal Bacteria is a breakthrough product, on general sale, which halts the progress of bacterial problems and prevents them spreading. For use with coldwater and tropical fish in marine or freshwater systems: Effective new active ingredients Does not colour the aquarium water Harmless to filters and all species of fish and plants.

I treated my tank just in case.

Can i feed them during this time?

Can i feed them during this time?

 

[nmonks]

This is precisely the product I'm thinking of. I have never, ever seen it cure anything. I'd love to be corrected! Reliable stories to the contrary warmly welcomed.

Cheers, Neale

It's called INTERPET ANTI INTERNAL BACTERIA. This is what it says:

 

[lily-rae]

not sure if dropsy is curable, but we have treated any infections or what eva they have caught with...melafix an antibacterial fish remedy or even separated the poorly fish 2 or 3 times daily in a small dose of methylene and they get better. so next time maybe you could try it. b