Fin rot....

jtruswell

jtruswell

AC Members
Jan 18, 2006
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Okay so the nitrites are under control (don't have a test for nitrates, but with the amount of water changes, I think we're okay in that area.) My poor bala got fin rot and his tail fin is almost complete gone even after five or six days of Melafix and Pimafix.

So, I've read on some posts on the forum that tea tree oil is a good treatment. Here's my question: I have tea tree oil I bought at a pharmacy for me. Can I net him and swab his tail to help it heal? And will this effect my adfs, pleco or tetras?

Sorry to post so much, but I'm just lost in this area.... :huh:

Thanks.

Jade
 
Fin rot is usually a secondary infection caused by bacteria found in all tanks. It usually starts due to a weakened immune system. Usually this happens when some environmental factor comes into play. Since the tank just recently cycled, I assume that the poor water quality from cycling the tank was the reason for this. If this was my fish, I would probably isolate him (I keep a spare 10 gallon lying around for this purpose) and give him a round of Maracyn 2 (full 5 day treatment even if you start seeing improvement sooner). The reason for this is that prolonged exposure to Nitrites will have reduced his blood oxygen carrying capacity for about 3 weeks. This results in a weaker immune system and chances of him getting over it on his own right now are slim as the bacteria have established themselves strongly. The Maracyn 2 won't kill every bacterium on the fish but it will decimate the numbers giving the fish's weakened immune system a shot at the bacteria. After the 5 days of Maracyn 2, you can add him back to the main tank (hopefully there will be perfect water quality) and the fins will grow back over the course of a couple weeks. If your other fish don't show fin rot, don't treat them with antibiotics. I hope this helps.
 
Thanks Ms. Bubbles. Further research a short time ago revealed that to me. I beat my head against a wall for a little while after that. I already had a bottle of pure tea tree oil for my own uses. I can't BELIEVE how much I paid in comparison. Sigh. :D So, I'm now going to just buy tea tree oil. More multi-purpose. lol

Jade
 
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