figure 8 puff needs help

[ananda1]

Our figure 8 puff is not doing well at all, and we're afraid we may lose him. He's in the 5g hospital tank (he's ~2" long, so he does have room to move around). Just checked the tank levels... s.g. is 1.010, ammonia and nitrite are zero... couldn't find the nitrate test kit, but we've been doing 40% water changes every day or two, so nitrates should be low. We use Prime to dechlorinate; I also gave his tank a shot of AmQuel+ tonight. Tank temp is about 80.

He's trying to hide under the sponge filter (which is rated for 10g -- we also have an Azoo mini filter on the tank). He's looking too thin; he hasn't been eating lately. He wasn't interested in live blackworms tonight. His tailfin looks a bit ragged. His belly looks dingy in places. He looks like he might've gotten a bruise on his chin, though I can't figure out how an actual bruise could've happened. (Not from the heater; it's got a guard on it.) I can't see his teeth.

I've got various fishy meds on hand, but can't figure out what the problem is. We've had him for over five years -- is he just getting old?

Any ideas or suggestions?

 

[WILDER]

Sorry he is not sounding good, if he hasn't been eating, the bruise any bleeding beneath the skin, could just be old age.

 

[Raz]

5 years is old age for most fishes...and that sounds like the cause..
Puffers are brackish water fish..so you might try a 50% salt mix and see how he does....

 

[smooth_bourbon]

Why do you keep raising the salinity? It was 1.008 on your other topic? Have you taken him out of hiding? I still think it would be a big shock to be put into a cabitnet even if he gets some light thru the cracks, he isnt able to see anything around him. My Puffer fish where always very alert and watched everything I did. He might just be giving up from depression.

 

[ananda1]

The puff had been more responsive/seemed to be happier when we were adding the saltier water into the tank. We decided to take the s.g. from 1.004 up to 1.008, thinking that the extra salt might kill off any unwanted parasites or bacteria. The s.g. went up to 1.010 when we accidentally got more salt than planned into his new water for the previous water change.

We do have a light down there for him. It's a 9w compact fluorescent with a 5500K bulb. He's got plenty of spots to hide in (fake plants, couple of PVC pipe elbows), so he can hide from the light if he chooses.

He is still responsive to my husband's voice (he does most of the feeding and much of the tank maintenance, as I work long hours).

Last night I had a long discussion with a fish-fanatic friend (one who wants to be a fish pathologist!) who just got back from vacation. She asked a bunch of questions I thought kind of odd, but put it all together and came up with "skin slime disease" -- which can be caused by costia (aka ichthyoboda), childonella, trichodina, and other similar parasites (takes a skin scrape and a high-powered microscope to tell which one). They're all parasites that are common in the aquarium, but in a case where there's an injury or other stress -- in this case, from the GSPs in the tank they all used to share -- they can get a foothold and cause what is apparently an illness in the affected fish.

I then dutifully looked the parasites up in Untergasser*, who suggests a bunch of puff-unfriendly meds (acriflavine, malachite green, formalin, basic green, and methylene blue among them). My would-be fish pathologist friend checked them in Gratzek* and Noga* when she got home, and the other thing that is suggested for all three parasites is a salt bath (for fw fish) or a fw bath (for sw fish). So we're going to keep raising the salinity. Also, costia dies if you take the temp to 30C/86F, so we're boosting his tank temp.



* Books mentioned:

Deiter Untergasser: "Handbook of Fish Diseases". Has a nice diagnostic chart that's been duplicated on the net on various sites. Problem is that (1) it's translated from German, and some of the meds are hard to find; (2) it's old, so in some cases there are now better meds; (3) it's sometimes difficult to translate the dosages into something that makes sense given the strengths of the meds we can get.

Dr. John B. Gratzek, ed: "Aquariology: The Science of Fish Health Management." It's a textbook for college-level aquariology courses with very good information.

Edward J. Noga: "Fish Disease: Diagnosis and Treatment". This is the ultimate book in fish diseases. Unfortunately, costs about $100.

 

[WILDER]

Not the writer of this information below.



Costia



Symptoms:

Infected fish have soft, film-like skin turbidity. A grayish white film of excess mucous covers the entire body of the fish including the eyes. Severe infestations can lead to skin inflammation and deterioration. Reddening of the skin and bleeding, most often occurs on the underside of the mouth and the pectoral area of the body. Sick fish often rub or scratch against objects in the aquarium in an attempt to relieve irritation. Severely infected fish may become reclusive, listless, lie on the bottom of the aquarium and stop feeding.



Cause:

The parasitic flagellates Costia necatrix and Ichthyobodo necatrix. Costia is a small bean-shaped flagellate which attaches tightly to all areas of the skin, destroying the flesh. This parasite can only survive for approximately one hour without a host and does not tolerate temperatures above 86 - 90 F.



Treatment:

Raising the water temperature to 86 - 90 degrees may be helpful if your fish can tolerate the high temperatures. Quick Cure, Formalin, Malachite Green and Copper Sulfate are the drugs of choice for Costia. Costia infestations are highly contagious. All fish, including the aquarium, should be treated.

 

[ananda1]

Not the writer of this information below.

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I'm curious -- where did you find it? Most of this suggests the diagnosis is a definite possibility.

Quick Cure, Formalin, Malachite Green and Copper Sulfate are the drugs of choice for Costia.

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All of which are *not* something I would ever want to use on a scaleless fish... even at half strength, for a puffer.