Fish Tb?

[badfish]

Hi all,

I have some sick fish on my hands; they are wasting away and my oto looks crooked. It's all my fault because I was impatient like two weeks ago and bought a fish at PetCo (I KNOW!! I'm soo stupid). The guppy I bought at PetCo looked fine until the day after I put it into my tank, when I noticed some white fuzz around its mouth, and then it was having trouble swimming. I removed it and euthanized it immediately because I didn't want to infect the rest of my tank any more. I noticed long whisker-looking things hanging from my danios' mouths, and one died immediately. The other one still has these whisker like things hanging from his face, but he's too spastic and I can't catch him to do a salt dip.

My one oto was also looking sick, sort of lying on a leaf not moving, so I took him out, along with the other two guppies, and put them in a two-gallon bowl (I don't have a QT tank) to do ich treatment and aquarium salts. I have kept them there for a week or so now, and over the weekend one guppy started having red streaks through his body, his fins were tearing, he couldn't swim very well, then he just wasted away but was still alive. I thought the other guppy had been eating him because he looked like a skeleton. He was then euthanized. The other guppy and oto seemed fine, and I put the oto back in the big tank so he could eat some algae and be happy. But of course I acted too soon and the next day he looked sickly, skinny and crooked. I pulled him back out, and into the two gallon with ich treatment and aquarium salt (with the last guppy who has been there the whole time). The oto has been exhibiting signs for about a day or two now. The guppy that has been in the bowl with the sick (now deceased) guppy and currently sick oto, is fine. He looks happy and colorful and his fins are puffed out.

Tank specs:

18 gallon planted
one zebra danio
3 amano shrimp
levels are right- no ammonia, no nitrite, 20 ppm nitrate
78 degrees
Been set up since November, but I used a filter from a previous aquarium (for cycling) that had been set up for 3 years

So then I started looking up what could be happening to my oto and learned about fish TB! I thought I'd encountered all the fish diseases I could. But this one really freaks me out. Apparently it is transmittable to humans and they recommend that I use gloves to to my tank work. Here are my questions:

1) If I use gloves to do a water change (which needs to be done), which ones are not going to have all kinds of crazy chemicals on the outside that will mess with the fish water?

2) Has anyone had weird whisker-looking parasites (about 1/4 inch long?)

3) I'm hoping this is not actually fish TB, but rather internal parasites, but I don't have much experience with internal parasites either. Poor oto...

Any help or experience is greatly appreciated!!!

 

[Davo86]

sounds much more like columnaris and septicaemia

 

[WILDER]

It sounds like columnaris and maybe internal parasites. Red streaking septicemia.

Signs of internal parsites are.
Long stringy white pop, or clear mucas poo.
Worms prutruding from the anus.
Enlarged anus or red inflamed anus.
Fish will look skinny or bloated.
Bent spine sometimes.
Fish will sometimes swim on its side.
Sunken in belly.


Has anyone had weird whisker-looking parasites (about 1/4 inch long?)

Where were they on the fish.
Did they have a forked tail.

Link to columnaris.
<a href="http/www.flippersandfins.net/flexibacter.htm" target="_blank">http/www.flippersandfins.net/flexibacter.htm</a>

Camallanus
Info taken from here.

http/www.fish-disease.net/diseases.htm

Symptoms:

When the fish is stationary, deep red worms can be seen protruding from the anal pore. They are only visible when the fish is still because the worms retreat into the intestine at the fish’s slightest movement. Other signs may include an inflamed and enlarged anus. In severe infestations, the fish may become emaciated and spinal curvature may also occur.



Cause:

The parasitic worms Camallanus Cotti and Camallanus lacustris. These small, livebearing parasitic worms attach to the intestinal walls and rectum with pinchers. The worm’s grip is so tight that any attempts to remove it forcibly will rip away tissue from the intestinal wall. The worm’s pinching causes ischemia (reduced blood flow) to that part of the intestine. In time, the tissue to that part of the intestine will die, at which time the worm will migrate to another part of the intestine. This causes perforations throughout the intestine, which allows other pathogens to gain entry. If the fish is not treated, either the parasite or bacterial will kill the fish. Camallanus infestations occur most often in livebearing fish such as Guppies and Mollies, though infection is possible in all fish. Camallanus infestations are contagious. All fish, including those not yet showing visible symptoms, as well as the aquarium, should be treated.



Treatment:

Treat with Internal Parasite Guard, Pipzine, Disco-Worm, Trichlorfon or Fluke-Tabs as well as a medicated food to prevent a bacterial infection.

 

[badfish]

Thanks. I hope it's internal parasites rather than TB. I will get some internal parasite medication. My oto has a shrunken belly, so that would be consistent with internal parasites I guess? Maybe he is missing some scales? His skin looks a bit messed up...

I am familiar with columnaris, and I don't think it's that. Any white spots are gone now anyway.

As to the whisker-looking things, they are only on the danio's face.

What about cleaning the tank with gloves? Does anyone have an opinion about the risk of fish TB transmitting to humans and/or what type of gloves would be ok to use in the aquarium?

Thank you!!

 

[WILDER]

I would treat for internal parasites.
As I kept guppys and they went skinny with bent spines and they had internal parasites.
Also internal parasites cause bacterial infections.

Columanris can cause septicemia. It sounds like columnaris to me.
Also columnaris can cause peeling skin on a fish.

You have to be exposed to tb along time to catch it.
Fish tb different from human tb.
You are only at risk if you have a weak immune system.

What's your location.

[URL="http/www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/hdcolumn.htm"]http/www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/hdcolumn.htm[/URL]

 

[WILDER]

Your fish could have internal parasites with being skinny and bent spines.
The other symtoms are columanris.

I don't think it is fish tb.

Loss of appetite
Progressive thinness
Sluggish movement
Folded fins
Eye protrusion
Dark coloration and granular appearance of the cornea (this is the first sign in Angelfish).
Skeletal deformity
Hanging at the surface
Skin defects, including blood spots and open wounds that may ulcerate
Black spots, or overall dark coloration (in Cichlids particularly).
Fin rot, characterised by the outer rays falling out.
Scales loosening and falling out
General swelling and scale protrusion (as in Dropsy)

 

[badfish]

I'm in San Diego.

Ok, thanks. I won't worry too much about the TB thing. I will treat them for internal parasites and columnaris.

 

[WILDER]

Try and get hold of levaimsole if you can. That treats camallanous worms.
If you can't get hold of it you will have to try one of the meds suggested in the article I left.
Good Luck.

 

[WILDER]

For columnaris maracyn one and two.

 

[badfish]

Thank you!

 

[WILDER]

Once you got rid of the columnaris treat for internal parasites.
Good Luck.