Need Help :(

[Crossfire]

One of my Sparkling Gouramis has black patches on its tail fin i thought to be ammonia burns from the store. However, while the patch itself isn't growing, the tail is shrinking. I think it has fin rot, and I need to act fast.
I need an antibiotic which is

• Relativley filter safe
• Plant safe
• Scaleless fish (loach) safe
• Invertebrate safe (they can be moved temporarily if needs be)

It also needs to contain Acriflavine and Malachite Green. I live in the US, and the only two meds that come close are Seachem ParaGuard, Kordon Malachite Green. and Ruby Reef Rally. If you can, recommend a combination of medicines that address my requirments but cure the fin rot.
I desperatley need help, and I would appreciate it.

I know I should QT the gourami, but I don't want to stress it and fin rot is contageous and I want to make sure no other fish has it. It could also help improve the health of Lumpy the Loach who is ill of suspected internal parasites, but I will address that later.

Please help

I couldn't get a good picture, but here are some. You can see the black patches on its tail.

 

[Chad]

Sorry to hear about the problem!
Does the tail have any lumps or marks or is it just the fin wasting away?

 

[Crossfire]

Well, they kinda look like black scabs, which is why I thought it was just ammonia burns. But it's been over 2 weeks, and they haven't gotten smaller or gone away. and the tail is receding and is getting a shredded appearance.

As you can see in the third picture

 

[Chad]

So this is a fish you just got from the LFS?
There is fin rot, which is from a bacteria, then there is ragged and split fins which is from ammonia. If it's the bacteria it needs something like tetracycline. If it's from ammonia and it was the LFS tank that caused it then just keeping your tank clean and keeping the oxygen level very high (lots of surface agitation) should help.

It's also possible, just looking at the fit, that he's been in a fight and lost. Any sign of fin nipping?

Sorry for so many questions but it's the only way I can familiarize myself with the problem since I'm not there staring intently at your fish.

 

[Crossfire]

Since he's a gourami, he and the others will nip and chase. While sometimes h
The missing chunks are big, they never become infected and quickly heal. I've had him for +2 weeks so unless the ammonia damage was sever and takes months to heal, i don't know what it is. He is acting perfectly healthy and no signs of distress. His fin isn't fluffy white or streaked with blood.

 

[Chad]

It can take longer than two weeks for it to heal. What your really looking for at 2 weeks out is has it stopped getting worse? If it is fighting then it may continue to get injured before it heals which can lead to infection as well. Looking at the picture the damage doesn't look too severe to me. That could just be the photo but it doesn't look like massive damage or disease.

My opinion on cause is tank mates picking on the new guy. If that is the case the cure is a mix of time and changing up the tank to create new territory which throws the other fish off and allows the new guy to find a place of his own in the tank.

 

[greenmumma141]

I dealt with fin rot quite a bit this past year, and my fish never had any blackness on any of their fins, tails, etc. That doesnt necessarily mean that this isn't fin rot, but IME, i never saw any black. If it's not getting drastically worse on a daily level, then i would assume that it's not fin rot. I would go to bed and wake up and a fish that was perfectly fine the night before would have barely any fin left, that's how fast fin rot progresses. And if your gourami has been showing these signs for some time now and no other fish is, then I would say that's another sign that it's not fin rot, b.c in my tank, it was highly contagious. If it were me personally, I would hold off on the heavy meds, especially when we're not exactly sure that it's fin rot. I know it's frustrating and you want to solve the problem, but until you know what the problem is for sure, heavy meds might do more damage then help. I would take out the invertebrates and add some salt (maybe 1/2 dose bc of the loaches) and make sure you have plenty of surface agitation, like tcamos said, and maybe start with something more on the line of melafix tomorrow. GL!!!!!!!

 

[Crossfire]

Ok, we'll after closely examining the gourami, I don't think it's fin rot. It does appear if some nippin' has been going on, but that isn't uncommon with my gouramis. My clean water and StressCoat+ prevents any infection. Before all this, I was going to add Rotala Indica, Brazillian Pennywort, and either Vesuvius Sword or Dwarf Sag to provide more shelter and territories for the gouramis.

I think it's best if we stuck to internal parasites.

I've rounded up all the Amano Shrimp, they're happily residing in the 5g Chi Shrimp Tank. It's a little crowded, but it shouldn't take long.
Just need to get that darn assassin snail, and I will immediatley start dosing with Metronidazole and Praziquantel (API General Cure)
I was also informed by Tolak to add one teaspoon for every 10 gallons some Epsom Salt, so I will start that as well.

 

[Chad]

Very good. For me nipping is preferable to rot any day!