Fish dying one by one - Cycled tank

[itiwhetu]

The ones we got were sick when put into bags and sent to us. The suppliers were just greedy and didn't want to lose sales.

That is not good.

 

[SarahPar]

I'm not sure if the breeders/suppliers just don't care that the guppies have diseases or if they just aren't aware.

I have talked to Petbarn employee who orders from suppliers and she told me they often come sick and with half their tails missing.

From my experience going to many pet stores and from buying quite a lot of guppies in the past, after buying them the most common issue is gill related. Then there is also a nasty wasting disease in guppies and endlers in NSW. Believe it's mycobacteria haemophilum after extensive research on the matter. More rarely round worm.

 

[Colin_T]

Then there is also a nasty wasting disease in guppies and endlers in NSW. Believe it's mycobacteria haemophilum after extensive research on the matter. More rarely round worm.

Most common livebearers I see in WA have intestinal worms (round and tape), as well as gill flukes. Once the worms and flukes are treated, they usually do well.

All fishes coming out of Asia have the potential to be carrying Mycobacterium species (fish TB), and as more of these infected fishes end up in shop tanks, then more fish will pick up the infection.

I did research into fish TB years ago and found that most shops and importers had confirmed fish TB at least one time in their tanks. Most admitted they had it pretty much all the time and they just tried to live with it. It's a hidden nasty disease that hangs around and kills fish randomly months or even years after the fish is infected and there's no treatment. It's the main reason I gave up keeping fish from Asia and prefer to keep wild caught fish I catch myself. Wild caught being cleaner and having less chance of common fish diseases or TB.

 

[SarahPar]

Most common livebearers I see in WA have intestinal worms (round and tape), as well as gill flukes. Once the worms and flukes are treated, they usually do well.

All fishes coming out of Asia have the potential to be carrying Mycobacterium species (fish TB), and as more of these infected fishes end up in shop tanks, then more fish will pick up the infection.

I did research into fish TB years ago and found that most shops and importers had confirmed fish TB at least one time in their tanks. Most admitted they had it pretty much all the time and they just tried to live with it. It's a hidden nasty disease that hangs around and kills fish randomly months or even years after the fish is infected and there's no treatment. It's the main reason I gave up keeping fish from Asia and prefer to keep wild caught fish I catch myself. Wild caught being cleaner and having less chance of common fish diseases or TB.

Hi Colin,

That's very interesting. Hmm yeah I think round worm and gill flukes are pretty easy to get rid of.

So far the worst thing I have encountered is this TB strain. Mainly since it's untreatable.

I suspected it was imported. Unsure who their supplier is or where they get them from but seems to mostly be in endlers.
Annoyingly it can spread to other fish as well and live in biofilm so it's very hard to get rid of.

I don't have experience with other strains of TB like the ulcerans variety but the one they are importing seems to be Mycobacteria Haemophilia which causes wasting until the fish end up dying of anorexia. I believe it infects their stomachs and forms granulomas in there, so they can't digest food. They also have clear/whitish poo and stop eating and just spit food out. Usually takes about 1-2 months to kill a fish.
There's a huge issue in my area in NSW with this disease, makes me so paranoid of buying endlers or guppies. Only takes one fish to spread it to many.

This store seems to have no idea that they are infected.

 

[itiwhetu]

Hi Colin,

That's very interesting. Hmm yeah I think round worm and gill flukes are pretty easy to get rid of.

So far the worst thing I have encountered is this TB strain. Mainly since it's untreatable.

I suspected it was imported. Unsure who their supplier is or where they get them from but seems to mostly be in endlers.
Annoyingly it can spread to other fish as well and live in biofilm so it's very hard to get rid of.

I don't have experience with other strains of TB like the ulcerans variety but the one they are importing seems to be Mycobacteria Haemophilia which causes wasting until the fish end up dying of anorexia. I believe it infects their stomachs and forms granulomas in there, so they can't digest food. They also have clear/whitish poo and stop eating and just spit food out. Usually takes about 1-2 months to kill a fish.
There's a huge issue in my area in NSW with this disease, makes me so paranoid of buying endlers or guppies. Only takes one fish to spread it to many.

This store seems to have no idea that they are infected.

The fish in the right-hand tank have clamped fins, so I wouldn't buy any of them. There are neon's with guppies in the left-hand tank so I wouldn't buy any of them. So, your fish won't have a problem.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

A general question in regard to the supply of fish to the trade

With all the travel restrictions due to the virus pandemic, do you think that the fact that traders cannot visit suppliers (both in their own country and abroad) that standards of breeding, selection for sale and health/welfare standards have dropped due to trade not being able to inspect suppliers as much as they might have done before the pandemic?

My suppliers breed their own fish and only import on special order. If an illness or disease occurs they will remove that fish from sale completely and deal with it in-house cos they have the facilities and knowledge to do so. They would normally inspect, usually without warning, their external suppliers when special orders come in or when they need new bloodlines.

With the travel restrictions being in place worldwide for the last almost 2 years, has that caused a reduction of inspections of suppliers to the extent that the standard of fish being supplied has dropped so dramatically that whereas two years ago 90% of external fish arrived at trade level fit and healthy and now often (it seems) barely 50% manage it?

 

[itiwhetu]

A general question in regard to the supply of fish to the trade

With all the travel restrictions due to the virus pandemic, do you think that the fact that traders cannot visit suppliers (both in their own country and abroad) that standards of breeding, selection for sale and health/welfare standards have dropped due to trade not being able to inspect suppliers as much as they might have done before the pandemic?

My suppliers breed their own fish and only import on special order. If an illness or disease occurs they will remove that fish from sale completely and deal with it in-house cos they have the facilities and knowledge to do so. They would normally inspect, usually without warning, their external suppliers when special orders come in or when they need new bloodlines.

With the travel restrictions being in place worldwide for the last almost 2 years, has that caused a reduction of inspections of suppliers to the extent that the standard of fish being supplied has dropped so dramatically that whereas two years ago 90% of external fish arrived at trade level fit and healthy and now often (it seems) barely 50% manage it?

The pandemic should have no effect on the quality of fish reaching the retail shop. The two things are not related in anyway.

 

[Colin_T]

Not many importers travelled overseas to inspect the fish they were buying before the pandemic so it's unlikely to be the issue. Once or twice a year the boss might go to Indonesia and check up on the fish or find/ make new contacts but the quality of the fish should remain stable.

If there are crap fish in the shipment, the importers will ring the suppliers and find out what is going on. If it continues to happen the importers find a new source.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

OK so another scenario

Again with the pandemic in mind that has caused a drop in workforce to maybe a less experienced workforce doing the shipping......could that have an impact on the standard of fish being shipped to trade?

 

[Colin_T]

They might have new staff but the bosses will be the ones treating fish and they won't have changed. Also most Indonesians (where fish are farmed) didn't really have lock downs and many continued to work while infected.

 

[itiwhetu]

OK so another scenario

Again with the pandemic in mind that has caused a drop in workforce to maybe a less experienced workforce doing the shipping......could that have an impact on the standard of fish being shipped to trade?

No impact, these people do what they can to protect their lively hood.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

Only reason for asking is that the pandemic has impacted pretty much every industry in regard to shipping and quality issues...so wondered if the problems affecting fish that have arrived sick or damaged is a direct or indirect result of the pandemic locally to where the fish originate from

 

[Colin_T]

It might have impacted the quality a little bit, but I doubt it would be significant.

Fish are flown around the world so the shipping issues (with ships) would not have impacted them.

 

[SarahPar]

The fish in the right-hand tank have clamped fins, so I wouldn't buy any of them. There are neon's with guppies in the left-hand tank so I wouldn't buy any of them. So, your fish won't have a problem.

They all have TB (or most) that's why they are so thin and slender, and there's multiple carcases in there.