Sick Guppy

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fishyfish22

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One of my guppies looks very sick, her spine is bent and she looks thin and she has some kind of stringy material coming out of her (worms?)
All of my other fish seem completely healthy lively and normal.
I only noticed it yesterday so I did a 50% water change and tested the water (everything is good) and it seems to have gotten worse today.

Does anyone have any idea what this could be?

I know I should quarantine her but my spare heater broke so I can’t put her in my quarantine tank without a heater..

Tank is 15-20 gallons and I do water changes around twice a month 30-40%.
 

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Yes, those are worms. No point in quarantining anyhow, since if one fish has worms, you need to treat the whole tank I'm afraid. It's very common for livebearers to come from the fish farm and the store carrying a heavy worm burden.

In your case, while those look like roundworms I think, I would treat for both roundworms and flatworms.

Don't buy a generic cheap wormer, you need specific products that have specific ingredients to truly wipe them out. Many generic worming products aren't very effective and don't have the right ingredient.

This thread will tell you exactly how to treat them. Worms will eventually kill the fish by taking all their nutrition and damaging the intestines, so it's important to treat right away, and to quarantine new stock (and I'd worm any new livebearers while in quarantine whether they show signs or not, since they can carry worms without showing symptoms for months) in the future once you've treated your main tank.

 
Once such a specimen starts to bend, the spine won't straighten anymore. But like AdoraBelle Dearheart has already stated, a worm treatment is in need.
 
Yes, those are worms. No point in quarantining anyhow, since if one fish has worms, you need to treat the whole tank I'm afraid. It's very common for livebearers to come from the fish farm and the store carrying a heavy worm burden.

In your case, while those look like roundworms I think, I would treat for both roundworms and flatworms.

Don't buy a generic cheap wormer, you need specific products that have specific ingredients to truly wipe them out. Many generic worming products aren't very effective and don't have the right ingredient.

This thread will tell you exactly how to treat them. Worms will eventually kill the fish by taking all their nutrition and damaging the intestines, so it's important to treat right away, and to quarantine new stock (and I'd worm any new livebearers while in quarantine whether they show signs or not, since they can carry worms without showing symptoms for months) in the future once you've treated your main tank.

Thank you lots for your reply,
I'm starting treatment today in the main tank and put the sick guppy in a smaller quarantine tank just to keep an eye on her progress and also so if she passes I can find her easily. One of my platies is sadly seeming a little less energetic than usual so I'm hoping I can quickly get it under control.
 
Do you treat the whole tank for worms because one fish has them?
Yes, because if one has them, they all have them. Worms are super contagious, the fish likely came from the same source anyway, but even if not, the worms pass eggs that the other fish then eat, giving them their own worm burdens. If you see one fish with worms, you treat the whole tank.

@fishyfish22 Are you medicating both the main tank, and the tank you've put the single guppy in at the same time?
 
Yes, because if one has them, they all have them. Worms are super contagious, the fish likely came from the same source anyway, but even if not, the worms pass eggs that the other fish then eat, giving them their own worm burdens. If you see one fish with worms, you treat the whole tank.

@fishyfish22 Are you medicating both the main tank, and the tank you've put the single guppy in at the same time?
Yes I was treating both the main tank and the smaller tank I put the sick guppy in, sadly she passed away yesterday though.
 
How old is this fish?
I wouldn’t know. I got her maybe 3-4 months ago as an adult. I also have another guppy I bought with her that likely came from the same spawn as they were identical. All of my other guppies are home bred and around 5-6 months old.
 
Yes I was treating both the main tank and the smaller tank I put the sick guppy in, sadly she passed away yesterday though.

sorry for the loss, she really didn't look good though, so I'm not surprised. How are the other fish doing now with the treatment?
Make sure you still complete the full medication treatment for the other fish, even if they appear to be fine. The thing with worms is that young, healthy fish can carry a worm burden for a surprisingly long time, without appearing to be suffering too much, until it just overwhelms them and they go downhill fast. Feeding little but often can help them get enough nutrition in the meantime, until all of the worms and any eggs that have hatched between treatment rounds have been killed off.
 

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