Guppy disease. Need help ASAP.

[shaziasadiqah]

This is a female guppy that my husband have in his 25gal fry tank.

she got this weird white spot on her body near the tail about 2 days ago and then i start anti fungal medication, do a 20% water change everyday and put airstone to give more oxygen.

but this morning i saw her dead laying on the substrate. When i pick her up i see her gils kinda peach in color and she was already stiff.

i really don’t know what kind of disease it is, i thought it is fungal infection because about a month ago my corydoras got it too and i treat with the same medication and the cory survive and perfectly healthy now.

do the fry and the other 2 females need treatment, too? What kind of meds i need?

by the way i dose only half with the angifungal medication because i’m worry if i dose too much or even the normal dosage it will hurt the fry, we got 50 fry more or less in that 25gal with 2 females.

please help. Thank you very much

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Eeek, not sure what that bump is, tagging @Colin_T here because he's our disease expert But it doesn't look fungal, looks like an internal bump, not a fuzzy fungus on the surface. But it might just look different to me since the fish is out of water. Did the cories have white fluffy stuff on them, or lumps like the one on the guppy? Are they in the same tank?

How are the other fish acting? Do any seem distressed, fin-clamped, gasping, swimming oddly, doing long white stringy poops, or showing any other signs of being sick or infected in any way?

Please copy/paste the template below and fill out the answers, it'll help those with more knowledge than I have to diagnose what's happening in your tanks, and the best thing to do next


Tank size:
tank age:
pH:
ammonia:
nitrite:
nitrate:
kH:
gH:
tank temp:


Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):

Volume and Frequency of water changes:

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:

Tank inhabitants:

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):

Exposure to chemicals:

Digital photo (include if possible):

 

[shaziasadiqah]

Tank size: 25gal
tank age: 6+ month with the fish and 1 month fishless (shrimps & plants only)
pH: 7
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 10
kH: 120
gH: 120
tank temp: 78f


Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior): white spot but not like ich, bigger and fuzzier, peach and swollen gills (the gills problem only happen to the dead fish, the living ones only have the white spot)

Volume and Frequency of water changes: before meds treatment 50% weekly, with the meds treatment 20% daily

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: none, only use sponge filter

Tank inhabitants: 50 guppy fry, 3 female guppies (now only 2)

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration): none

Exposure to chemicals: melafix (the meds i use)

just to add more, after lots of research the closest thing i could find to what happen to my guppies is probably saddled back columnaris, but since it require antibiotic i really want to ask around for a bit before putting any antibiotic in. i use melafix because at first i thought it was just fungal or bacterial infection and one time my corydoras have almost the same white spot and being treated with only melafix and now the cory is healthy and well.

 

[shaziasadiqah]

Eeek, not sure what that bump is, tagging @Colin_T here because he's our disease expert But it doesn't look fungal, looks like an internal bump, not a fuzzy fungus on the surface. But it might just look different to me since the fish is out of water. Did the cories have white fluffy stuff on them, or lumps like the one on the guppy? Are they in the same tank?

How are the other fish acting? Do any seem distressed, fin-clamped, gasping, swimming oddly, doing long white stringy poops, or showing any other signs of being sick or infected in any way?

The cory have more fuzzy thing going on. in the water the spot on the guppy looks a bit fuzzy, too.

The rest of the fish are doing okay, i just see some flashing but nothing crazy just once a day with few fish, but one fry have so severe white fuzzy thing like this one female and another female is already showing the same fuzzy spot, too but it is smaller and she also have clamed fins. they are still eating well and not gasping or doing anything weird, no white stringy poop, no weird swimming, no distressed at all with the rest of the fish.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Tank size: 25gal
tank age: 6+ month with the fish and 1 month fishless (shrimps & plants only)
pH: 7
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 10
kH: 120
gH: 120
tank temp: 78f


Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior): white spot but not like ich, bigger and fuzzier, peach and swollen gills (the gills problem only happen to the dead fish, the living ones only have the white spot)

Volume and Frequency of water changes: before meds treatment 50% weekly, with the meds treatment 20% daily

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: none, only use sponge filter

Tank inhabitants: 50 guppy fry, 3 female guppies (now only 2)

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration): none

Exposure to chemicals: melafix (the meds i use)

just to add more, after lots of research the closest thing i could find to what happen to my guppies is probably saddled back columnaris, but since it require antibiotic i really want to ask around for a bit before putting any antibiotic in. i use melafix because at first i thought it was just fungal or bacterial infection and one time my corydoras have almost the same white spot and being treated with only melafix and now the cory is healthy and well.

Sounds like the tank maintenance and water parameters are good That's good, means we can rule out ammonia/ntrite problems.

Definitely right to find out more and research before trying antibiotics, so nice work there! Meds are stressful for fish, and antibiotic resistant bacteria have become a huge problem, so only using antibiotics when absolutely necessary is crucial.

I don't have enough knowledge personally to diagnose, I'm sorry, just trying to help information gather so someone like Colin will have the info they need to help.

In the meantime, do you have another tank you can use to quarantine the affected fish?
Is the Melafix still in the tank?
If you could upload photos of the affected fish, that would also help

Sorry for the losses you're having, never fun to have an illness in a tank. You have my sympathies.

 

[Colin_T]

Typical bacterial infection in guppies. Highly contagious and is usually introduced into your tank with new guppies from shops.

Salt and a broad spectrum fish medication should treat it if anymore get the disease. Treat the tank now with salt to reduce the chance of it spreading to the others. If it does spread, then use a broad spectrum fish medication.

----------------------
SALT
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt) or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

If you only have livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), goldfish or rainbowfish in the tank you can double that dose rate, so you would add 2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres and if there is no improvement after 48 hours, then increase it so there is a total of 4 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, Bettas & gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.

The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria but the higher dose rate (4 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres) will affect some plants and some snails. The lower dose rate (1-2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres) will not affect fish, plants, shrimp or snails.

After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.

If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.

 

[Lajos_Detari]

If you suspect tht it's bacterial infection, then it could be due to your water quality problem.
Bacteria thrives in bad water.

How big are your Guppies fry?
50 fry are quite a lot for 25 gallons tank.
Also, did you overfeed them which can make the water condition worse.

I think your 50% weekly water change is not enough.
You may need larger water change and more frequent water change.

Salt can help with mild bacteria infection.
If you want, you can try using salt - 1 table spoon of salt for every 10-20 liters of water if you suspect its a bacteria infection. (25 gallons is about 100 liters)
Treat for at least 1-2 week
But if your bacteria infection is more serious, probably it can't help.

 

[Lajos_Detari]

Just saw Colin post after I posted my msg. Lol
Anyway, please follow Colin's instruction above.

 

[shaziasadiqah]

Sounds like the tank maintenance and water parameters are good That's good, means we can rule out ammonia/ntrite problems.

Definitely right to find out more and research before trying antibiotics, so nice work there! Meds are stressful for fish, and antibiotic resistant bacteria have become a huge problem, so only using antibiotics when absolutely necessary is crucial.

I don't have enough knowledge personally to diagnose, I'm sorry, just trying to help information gather so someone like Colin will have the info they need to help.

In the meantime, do you have another tank you can use to quarantine the affected fish?
Is the Melafix still in the tank?
If you could upload photos of the affected fish, that would also help

Sorry for the losses you're having, never fun to have an illness in a tank. You have my sympathies.

I have two qt tanks, one now i have to house my shrimps and the other one i gave it to my father because he is moving and need tanks to bring his fishes, too.

The Melafix is still in the tank but i do 20% water change this morning and not adding more of Melafix after that.

Thank you very much

 

[shaziasadiqah]

Typical bacterial infection in guppies. Highly contagious and is usually introduced into your tank with new guppies from shops.

Salt and a broad spectrum fish medication should treat it if anymore get the disease. Treat the tank now with salt to reduce the chance of it spreading to the others. If it does spread, then use a broad spectrum fish medication.

----------------------
SALT
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt) or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

If you only have livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), goldfish or rainbowfish in the tank you can double that dose rate, so you would add 2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres and if there is no improvement after 48 hours, then increase it so there is a total of 4 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, Bettas & gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.

The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria but the higher dose rate (4 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres) will affect some plants and some snails. The lower dose rate (1-2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres) will not affect fish, plants, shrimp or snails.

After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.

If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.

Thank you very much.

i think it's already spreading because i see one fry having that fuzzy white spot, too and also another female have that too, even though the rest are doing fine and eating fine.

do you mean broad spectrum antibiotic or another meds by broad spectrum fish medication? if you could give some recommendation on brands or type that would help so much.

Thank you very much once again.

 

[shaziasadiqah]

If you suspect tht it's bacterial infection, then it could be due to your water quality problem.
Bacteria thrives in bad water.

How big are your Guppies fry?
50 fry are quite a lot for 25 gallons tank.
Also, did you overfeed them which can make the water condition worse.

I think your 50% weekly water change is not enough.
You may need larger water change and more frequent water change.

Salt can help with mild bacteria infection.
If you want, you can try using salt - 1 table spoon of salt for every 10-20 liters of water if you suspect its a bacteria infection. (25 gallons is about 100 liters)
Treat for at least 1-2 week
But if your bacteria infection is more serious, probably it can't help.

The fry are probably a week old and some of them are 2 weeks old since the older fry are already been moved to their own tanks.

I feed them twice a day and i don't do more food on them just normally like i would feed my other tanks.

Thank you for the advice on making more water change each week, i think i'll do 2 50% water change each week once they are healthy again and done with the meds.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

How big are your Guppies fry?
50 fry are quite a lot for 25 gallons tank.

Not meaning this to be critical at all, just personally think a 25 gallon is plenty of room to grow out 50 guppy fry. I've grown out batches that large in a 12.5 gallon So long as it's a grow out and not going to have 50 adults in there permanently, it's fine

If you suspect tht it's bacterial infection, then it could be due to your water quality problem.

But their water parameters are fine? Doesn't show a water quality problem.

I think your 50% weekly water change is not enough.
You may need larger water change and more frequent water change.

But I agree that upping water changes is a good idea!

@shaziasadiqah , remember that if you're only changing 20% of the water, you're leaving 80% of the nitrates and bad things like bacteria in there. Especially when battling an illness, and when growing out a large amount of fry, larger and more frequent water changes are important. I'd recommend 50-75% water changes, and as the fry go larger especially, do a large water change 2-3 times per week.

I raise large batches of livebearer fry too, and adjust my water change schedule as I go. In my main adult tanks (heavily planted) I do weekly 60-75% water changes, and that's plenty to keep those good. But when growing out fry, I feed little and often, which reduces water quality, so I change twice a week from the beginning, and that goes up to three times a week as they get larger.

Fish fry also release a hormone that stunts the growth of other fry. That helps them compete to be the biggest fry and get the best food. Regular water changes helps dilute that hormone out of the water, so they all grow faster and more evenly.

What antibiotic treatments are available where you live? Which meds are available to people can change depending on that countries laws.

 

[shaziasadiqah]

Not meaning this to be critical at all, just personally think a 25 gallon is plenty of room to grow out 50 guppy fry. I've grown out batches that large in a 12.5 gallon So long as it's a grow out and not going to have 50 adults in there permanently, it's fine


But their water parameters are fine? Doesn't show a water quality problem.

But I agree that upping water changes is a good idea!

@shaziasadiqah , remember that if you're only changing 20% of the water, you're leaving 80% of the nitrates and bad things like bacteria in there. Especially when battling an illness, and when growing out a large amount of fry, larger and more frequent water changes are important. I'd recommend 50-75% water changes, and as the fry go larger especially, do a large water change 2-3 times per week.

I raise large batches of livebearer fry too, and adjust my water change schedule as I go. In my main adult tanks (heavily planted) I do weekly 60-75% water changes, and that's plenty to keep those good. But when growing out fry, I feed little and often, which reduces water quality, so I change twice a week from the beginning, and that goes up to three times a week as they get larger.

Fish fry also release a hormone that stunts the growth of other fry. That helps them compete to be the biggest fry and get the best food. Regular water changes helps dilute that hormone out of the water, so they all grow faster and more evenly.

What antibiotic treatments are available where you live? Which meds are available to people can change depending on that countries laws.

i do the 20% water change daily only after i put on the treatment (Melafix) before that i do the 50% water change weekly and test the water every two days because i do sometimes worry that having 50 fry in a 25 gal will foul the water.

Eiho Kana Plus (Kanamycin Sulfate)
Magna Metro (Metronidazole)

Those are the antibiotics that are available in my country.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

i do the 20% water change daily only after i put on the treatment (Melafix) before that i do the 50% water change weekly and test the water every two days because i do sometimes worry that having 50 fry in a 25 gal will foul the water.

Eiho Kana Plus (Kanamycin Sulfate)
Magna Metro (Metronidazole)

Those are the antibiotics that are available in my country.

Brilliant, sounds like you're on top of the water quality

I have no idea about which antibiotics to use I'm sorry, but @Colin_T will know which one would be best

 

[Colin_T]

do you mean broad spectrum antibiotic or another meds by broad spectrum fish medication? if you could give some recommendation on brands or type that would help so much.

Normally a liquid broad spectrum fish medication that treats protozoan, fungus and bacterial infections. However, if it's spreading then you will probably need anti-biotics. Metronidazole won't do anything but Kanamycin might.

Anti-biotics work best in bare tanks with no substrate, ornaments or filter. Just have a heater and airstone and a few plastic plants to help the fish feel secure.

When using anti-biotics, you should wipe the inside of the tank down each day and do a 100% water change before re-treating them.

--------------------
Before you treat the tank, do the following things.
To work out the volume of water in the tank:
measure length x width x height in cm.
divide by 1000.
= volume in litres.

If you have big rocks or driftwood in the tank, remove these so you get a more accurate water volume.

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

You can use a permanent marker to draw a line on the tank at the water level and put down how many litres are in the tank at that level.

There is a calculator/ converter in the "FishForum.net Calculator" under "Useful Links" at the bottom of this page that will let you convert litres to gallons if you need it.

------
If you are treating the tank with filter and gravel, do the following.

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

Wipe the inside of the glass down with a clean fish sponge each day before re-treating.

Do a 75-90% water change and gravel clean the substrate each day before re-treating. The water change and gravel cleaning will reduce the number of disease organisms in the water and provide a cleaner environment for the fish to recover in.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it is added to the tank.

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. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use them. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens.
The filter should be cleaned each day before- re-treating.

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