more discus problems

[jazmynne]

Hello,

Haven't been on here in a while...last time, my discus were suffering from discus plague...amazingly we got them thru that, and they were ok for a while. Now the biggest one has been passing clearish, slimy poop, and all 3 of them have very washed out color. Tank water has been good, so it wasn't that. We looked up the symptom and it said, hexamita...no pitting on the heads tho...the biggest one has always refused any food other than live blackworms. The other 2 would occasionally eat flake. We got some medicated fish food with metronidazole in it, but they wouldn't eat it, not even mixed with worms. Then we moved them to a hospital tank and are medicating the water with metronidazole. They seem very unhappy, huddled at the bottom, pale, heads down. Even the angels, who we moved in there with them to treat as well, seem very unhappy. Not sure if it's cuz they don't feel good, or becuz they're not in their normal environment. We've had them almost a year and up until a few days ago, they would always get very excited when they saw us enter the room. Anyone have any thoughts or prior experience with something like this? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[Ghost_knife]

massive water change, get them to eat a pea or so...see if that help

[kjf91004]

If they are not eating, raise the temp of the water a degree of two to boost their metabolism. They should start eating then.

The problem with discus seems to be that diseases are hard to diagnose, and it seems that when you do finally get to the right answer, they are too far gone to really help.

Off colored poo can be a symptom of multiple diseases. It could also be internal parasites. I highly recommend talking with a discus breeder to help get to the bottom of this before it gets worse. Maybe where you got them from could help you, or try one of the discus sites... www.discusasahobby.com or www.simplydiscus.com. (I think the second site might still be down due to hackers)

[Star_Rider]

could be bacterial in which case raising the temp may not be the best choice.

classic signs of parasite (dark, hidng/huddling, white/clear slimey poo)

in general metro isn't the best choice unless the fish are eating..yuou could treat the food with metro(blackworms) and see if that helps.

other things to try, jungle parasite clear (metro and prazi) jungle anti parasite food(in the us has metro, prazi and levamisole hcl) panacure can be used also.
levamisole is effective on camillanus(red thread like can be seen protrubing out the anus) and capillaria(seen with microscope)


I personally treat all my new fish with anti parasite meds/food and Usually a anti biotic .

[VTwinFanatic]

I've always been told my numerous Discus keepers, prior to me keeping them, that blackworms were an absolute NO NO, bc the water that they are found tend to carry large numbers of parasites. Keep with the large water changes75+% daily, and try intergrating garlic into their regular diet to help cut down in the parasites (jack watley's recipe in TFH). I doubt that the diease is bacterial, probably more so parasitic from the blackworms. Prazipro is a MUST IMO for discus keepers....great med for many internal parasites and can be absorbed through the skin. Maybe this will help

[Dkarc]

Sounds like an internal parasite like nematodes/roundworms...maybe tapeworms. When the discus lose their color, ontop of having the white poop and not eating, it is most of the time nematodes/roundworms. Since they arent eating, I suggest a bath treatment of Flubendazole. Becareful though since it will trash your bio filter. So setup a hospital tank to fix this and do massive water changes (50%+) as often as possible (can never do too many water changes). I dont have/know dosing instructions off hand, so do some research of it online and good luck. In the mean time, increase your water changes and do as many as possible and as large as possible. The more the better. Water quality is key to healthy discus.

The problem with live foods is not that they come in contaminated, its that once they are in your hands, nothing/very little is done to maintain the culture. With blackworms, you need to change their water everyday (twice a day is even better). 100% each time. Bacteria is the biggest problem with live worms, but since they lost their color and have signs of Hex, then it is most likely parasitic, and not bacterial (though bacterial can look just like parasitic in some cases). Add in salt too...4-5 tablespoons per 10 gallons and replace what is lost during water changes at a prorated amount.

-Ryan
Orlando Discus

[Star_Rider]

fenbenzadole aka panacur FDA approved med for various worms in dogs. if you have problems finding it..check with your local veterinarian. can also be used in parasite treatment.

I believe that many of these work best when consumed..but please do the research.

[Caspar]

I have read that Angels can also be a problem due to the internal parasite problem. Whereas they are okay with them the Discus are not.

[Star_Rider]

more recently angels have been prone to capillaria worms..can't be seen with the eye but need a microscope. these are tansferable and seen in cichlids.
they can be treeated effectively with Levamisole HCL, I also understand flubenzadole and fenbenzadole are effective..it seems these nasty lil buggers are not affected by std treatments with metro, prazi and the likes.