WetmanNY's assistance may be needed on this one.

[optix]

I have an oscar who was laying on his side and only using his right gill??:confused: and swimming awkward I put him in quarantine and he was fine??? would this be oxygen problem, also in my other 55 gallon my jack dempsey was rubbing against rocks pretty heavily with her gills. I know thats usually a sign of parasites but what parasites would you suggest. Maybe gill flukes?? both tanks water parameters are amm. 0 n02. 0 N03 5 ppm PH 8.2 (steep but stable)


EDIT: oh yeah and temp on both is 78 F. These tanks are only a week old but I have used filter's and used decorations out of the tank they were all previously in (150 gallon) and I have nitrates so the tank is cycled I made sure before introduction

[wetmanNY]

Cripes, I wish I were better at curing gill flukes. I've just re-dosed a Ram still in quarantine, who looks fine for a couple of weeks, then shows that his gills are being bitten, by flashing against leaves...

With gill flukes, the medication doesn't get the eggs/cysts. So you have to do a water change on Day 2, remedicate on Day 3, do a water change on Day 4, remedicate on Day 5. You're killing off each new generation as it hatches.

I understand that the trematodes are killed in the first eight hours or so. Then you do the water change to reduce the stress of the medication on the fish.

but I'm no vet...

What are you using? I'm using Mardel's Maracide, which is:

1. Tris (hydroxymethyl) aminomethane. That's a widely-used non-toxic pH buffer, also called just "Tris")

2. Dibromohydroxymercurifluorescein. Its disodium salt is Merbromin, which we used to call "Mercurochrome" when I was a kid. Mothers painted skinned knees with it. It's an organo-mercury compound! I get this from George Slusarczuk's post at killietalk digest: http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.9905/msg00008.html

3. Aniline Green. This is nought but a synonym of Malachite Green. http://www.thekrib.com/Chemistry/malachite-green.html

I hate to put anything in the tank without knowing what it is. I sound very smart-- but all I did was run each ingredient through www.google.com and follow a few links.

[optix]

Thanks alot wetman, I haven't begun medication yet but all I have is malachite green. I'll have to look into getting some more med's. So is there any other way to tell if its indeed flukes or is that the definate trigger by her rubbing her gills against rocks. I will begin medication on my jack as well as soon as I view your response.

[optix]

Might I be able to ask what introduces or causes this parasite?? Or is this to hard to determine. Im a bit uneducated on fish disease because I haven't been a frequent victim, rather my fish haven't been. I know symptoms but as far as the cause and med's I know jack

[wetmanNY]

When a fish flashes just once, it may be just a tickle. Like when you add microworms to feed fry and one gets caught for a second on her gill. But continued flashing means gills are inflamed. Bacterial infections and fungal attacks? Usually secondary to some ectoparasite attack. Gill parasites are a) single-celled parasites b) trematodes aka "flukes" --which are microscopic worms.

When a fish uses [i]one[/] gill, or when one or both gills stand ajar, you can bet it's flukes.

Check fluke treatments at your favorite veterinarian site. Or www.google.com "Dactylogyrus gill fluke"

Check this site: http://www.fishdoc.co.uk/disease/flukes.htm

"It's bookmarkworthy!" (Elaine Benis)

[Cloud-9]

It might not be as serious as you think. I've had fish scratching when the only thing wrong with them was a case of Ich.

[optix]

ok would it be ok to just treat the tanks themselves if I remove my biowheels since the only other occupants are pleco's?? since the infestation is in the tank itself.

[JeffP]

You might want to consider praziquantel for treatment of flukes and similar parasites. It was formerly only available through vets under the brand name of Droncit which cost big $$$. It's still a relatively expensive medication but is available to fish keepers and is reported to be highly effective, minimal stress to fish, and minimal stress to the biofilter. Check out this link for more info.

Praziquantel Info (http://www.koivet.com/html/articles/articles_details.php?article_id=198&name=Newest%20Articles)

Good luck:D

[wetmanNY]

Very cool suggestion JeffP. Now I'm wishing I could get Praziquantel for treating less that 5,000 gallons.

[JeffP]

Wetman,

Your wish is my command.:D

Checkout the online store at goldfishconnection.com. Rick just started selling Prazi since it hasn't been available for that long on the "open" market. Prazi does tend to come in large volumes but Rick breaks it down into small (50G) doses for aquariums. Scroll down the store menu and select "PraziPro" under the "Medications" section.

Praziquantel at Goldfishconnection (http://www.goldfishconnection.com/SecureCart.asp?target=Cart/INDEX.ASP)

Good Luck
JeffP

[Cloud-9]

Is this the same praziquantel used for treating tapeworms and internal parasites in dogs? Do the fish have to eat it or is it enough to just simply add the medication to the tank?

[JeffP]

It's the same stuff.

Just add it to the aquarium following directions on the package. It apparently causes the skin of the parasite to break down....they basically "dissolve".

I might suggest that you treat the fish, aquarium, and filter.

Good luck.

[optix]

Originally posted by Cloud-9
It might not be as serious as you think. I've had fish scratching when the only thing wrong with them was a case of Ich.


My oscar does more than just scratch's he has mucus hanging off him so bad it looks like he's shedding one of his gills he isn't even using probably because it hurts him so bad and he lays on the bottom in the corner half the time. That is perfect indication he has flukes, my jack has stopped showing any signs but I think I should still treat her. I've got mardels maracide right now but im ordering some prazi pro if this doesn't do the trick. Thanks alot wetman and jeffp.