Continue Clown Loach Fiasco

Hally

Hally

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Sep 22, 2004
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I have finaly noticed something on my clown loaches ... they have a whitish edge on their tales & two of them are swimming close to the top of my 6x2x2 tank ... I recently booted the temp up to 84f (29C) & added salt ... can anyone please help me out ... I lost a clown last week & I'm freaking ... I don't want my others too die ... most of my fish are off their food ...
 
This may be some sort of fungus/infection, or it could be the "white out" condition that clown loaches exhibit when they are highly stressed.

What are your water parameters? How long has your tank been setup? How long have you had the loaches in the tank? What other livestock do you have? A picture of the loach would also be helpful, if possible.

Mike
 
Something I Noticed

Hi & thanks for your reply, even if just to let me know about loaches.com & I appreciate your in put ... I must say I've noticed a kind of small fungus looking patch on the front of 1 clowns heads... my guess is either "Fungus like you said Mike or maybe "Velvet" (Fungus 70% - 30% Velvet) I'm not sure which one. Clowns are panting & hide, 1 is near top of my tank .... Does anyone know what chemicals to add for treating these diseases ... My water conditions are all good tank setup 15-august-04 & cycled fully, my temp is now 30 with 1kilo (2.2llb) salt added In my 6x2x2 - 5 geophagus surnamensis 2 salmon cats 10 assorted corydoras, a big 13" plecostumus, 5 Clown loaches ... ;) Help appreciated
 
Steve,

First, I'd advise against using salt with Corydoras and Loaches. These are scaleless fish, and salt, even in small concentrations, can adversely affect their health.

Second, lower the temperature in your tank. This is very high for the species of fish you have in the tank and lowering it to the 80-82F will still be sufficient enough to speed growth of the parasite in order to kill it. Also, this will likely help the fish breathe easier.

Third, check http://www.2cah.com/pandora/Disease.html to determine what disease (if any) your fish have. Let us know if your fish's condition resembles any of the photos so we can figure out the best cure.

Fourth, it would be very helpful if you could list your water parameters specifically. This will help us determine if you need to run additional tests based on what you've already done/not done. (I'm specifically looking for, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH.)

Mike
 
if they are going to the top panting for air, i think that means the water isnt being oxyginated enough, maybe you should list what kind of filtration you have too
 
Hey thanks for your mega reply I'm doing a third water change to lower salt like you said pluis temp reset to 82-84 ... I'm using Via Aqua 750 & my Ammonia Nitrite Nitrates are all zero ... pH is 7.4 .... I think from your link its Velvet ... & I just lost a cory & a small clown ..... I am going to get a treatment from LFS but what to get??
 
I'd recommend using CopperSafe for curing Velvet, but only use a half-dose. I've used this safely with my clown loaches to cure ich in the past, and it works very well. Be patient, velvet will take a few days to a week to completely cure, and you may still lose some fish if they are too far along.

Taking into account the size of your tank, you may want to set up a quarrantine tank for your ill fish. This will cut down on the amount of medication required, and will help prevent the further spread of the disease (if the other fish are healthy and aren't symptomatic).

Also, as centralharbor said (and I neglected to list in my previous reply), make sure there is adequate surface agitation in the tank. Although I think the difficulty breathing is likely because the temperature was too high (which results in reduced oxygen in the water), this will help increase the oxygen levels in the tank and make it easier for the fish to breathe.

Keep us posted on your treatment and progress. Good luck!

Mike
 
Clown loaches are very tolerant of salt IME. WAY more tolerant than they are of the other dye type medications. I regularly treat them with a teaspoon per gallon at work, and recommend it to customers and have yet to have anyone lose a fish that way. The same can't be said of the commercial meds.

Daily 30% water changes can cure MANY ills. A well cycled tank on a regular water change regimen will have a low nitrate level, not 0. I'd definitely start on the water changes and see what happens. Many people jump to dump chemicals and crap in their water when all that's really needed is healthy conditions for the fish to get well in.

Barbie
 
Thanks Barbie, I agree 100% about the salt thing, I' ve done it for years with small dose & you're right about water conditions, Ich can be cured without chemicals in 90% of cases ... people are to quick to slam there tank with chemicals :) most of the time its panic thinking LOL combined with inexperience & wrong info
 
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