Velvet?

[Mystil]

Hello Guys
I think my Blue rams have something...Certain parts of there bodies are covered in white irredecence blobs, not raised from the skin, just a sheen on just certain parts of their bodies.
Could this be velvet? Could not get a good picture. Can anyone show my what velvet looks like? or could it be something else?
Thanks

 

[WILDER]

Velvet can look like the fish has been covered in talc.
Yellow to rusty golden varnish on a fish.
Anys signs of flicking and rubbing, or laboured breathing.
How big are the blobs
Whitespot will look like spots the size of a grain of salt, but sometimes they can look slightly raised.

How many gallons is the tank.
How many fish and which type.
Water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and ph.

http/www.skepticalaquarist.com/docs/heal...thprotist.shtml

 

[Mystil]

Little blobs about 1cm in diameter, on one of my rams it covers the area at the front of its top fin....when the light catches it it looks quite shiny....white in colour at the moment...like talc but all over the area. No flicking but have clamped tail fins and a spot of bood...like a blood vessel has blown. Gills movement is quite quick as well.

120 litre tank, 4-5 months old.
2 blue Rams
3 Guppies
5 cories
5 neon tetras
endless amounts of shrimp and snails.

I dont want to have to put the 2 rams in my 25 litre quarantine tank as it is too small but i dont want to add the medication for velvet to the whole tank and kill off my shrimp and snails.

Have not got any readings from the water as have been abit lax and havent taken any recently. But have done regular large water changes weekly...

Ph 7.4.

How can I treat it without killing off my shrimp and snails?

 

[WILDER]

I would take a sample of your water to the lfs and tell them to write the readings down for you.
Any excess slime on the fish.
If there no flicking and rubbing I doubt it a parasite.
The blobs does the look fluffy in appearance.

 

[Athena]

...1cm blobs are not tiny - did you mean 1mm? If so, it sounds like whitespot.

GBRs are very prone to whitespot disease. Are they a recent addition to your tank? They are very sensitive to water conditions, I'm afraid, and really do need to have a water change (25% is good) done twice weekly (obviously depending on the size of tank and stock) and a special eye kept on them. They can be fine one minute and then stressed the next at the slightest change of water stats or even if they are not getting the food they like.

First signs of distress are a fading in their colour, they may even go a charcoal blackish shade. Normal colouring returns once they are well and happy.

Are their fins clamped at all? Are they eating?

Athena

sorry, just re-read your last post above and realise that they are clamping fins - ok, so this could be a bacterial problem. When my female GBR had clamped fins and lost her colouring I treated with Myxazin and that sorted the problem out.

 

[Mystil]

Nope not fluffy...just shiny...maybe it excess slime? I know that the Rams havent been getting on very well this might be the cause of the stress, I was going to separate till this problem cropped up...I will get readings later tonight...have my own kits.

I will try to get a picture later.

 

[WILDER]

1cm blobs are not tiny - did you mean 1mm? If so, it sounds like whitespot.

Can you answer the above poster question are the blobs 1cm or 1mm.

 

[WILDER]

Does it look like this.
http/www.fishdeals.com/fish_diseases/ich/ich.gif

 

[Mystil]

Nope not White spot...I know what that looks like and have treatment ready for it....This looks like a patch of 1CM slime that shiny in light.

Have done water check and all paramenters are normal...Completely confused.

I lost one of my rams last night and have quarantined the other with a tiny bit of Mealfix as that was all I had..maybe I should not of but i was scared that I would loose the other ram.

What treatment sho8uld I buy today?

Pictures...look at base of top fin....this is what I am worried about. he does not have his usually luster.

 

[Mystil]

Oh and he is still feeding well...

 

[Mystil]

Anyone have any ideas what it could be from the pictures??

 

[WILDER]

If there no signs of flicking and rubbing I would add some myxazin by waterlife to the tank.

 

[Mystil]

okay i will try to get hold of some...went out and bought anti-slime/velvet treatment and also bacterial treatment as well just in case of any other problems in the future...

 

[WILDER]

Slime build up can be bacterial as well as parasite.
if a parasite was involved I would expect to see the fish flicking and rubbing.
Good luck.

 

[Mystil]

Thanks Wilder!
GBR is still doing okay. Just going to wait to see if he improves.