Dangerdoll
Global Moderator
I'm not sure pool dip strips are going to have the numbers you need. It might have the pH levels but not the ammonia level...
Fish TB?
- Thread starter mandimoron
- Start date
Yeah, I'd just need the pH. 
I've tested for ammonia/nitrite already, they both come in at 0.
ETA: pH appears to be 7.2.
I've tested for ammonia/nitrite already, they both come in at 0.ETA: pH appears to be 7.2.
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Okay, here's my 2 cents. I don't think it's tb. IME emaciated fish change shape, not just in their belly areas but in their spines, too. Now, why is your fish emaciated, why did she get sick. I don't know. If you are caring for the tank properly, water quality is good, no new additions... Anyhow, it's your call whether you want to try to treat THAT FISH ONLY for bacterial or parasitic infections. I would not treat the entire tank unless you know what the disease is, and we're only guessing at this point. Honestly, I think I would try treating for parasites. I don't know why... But it's your call on that one.
Good luck,
Mary.
Good luck,
Mary.
Is it possible to get parasites even though no new animals have been added to the tank?
Oh! What about plants? Can they be carried in on plants? Sometime in early August/late July I replanted the tank with some java ferns, and also some cardamine lyrata, which was promptly devoured for some reason.
Oh! What about plants? Can they be carried in on plants? Sometime in early August/late July I replanted the tank with some java ferns, and also some cardamine lyrata, which was promptly devoured for some reason.
Your platy looks a lot like my molly that died recently (See http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=82051). She was a new addition, added only 1 week before showing signs, along with 3 other mollies from the same tank at the LFS. A lot of people here said it's tb and after reading about mycobacterium marinum online, it sure sounded like it. 2 others from the same batch died within days of the first one, though the latter 2 didn't show any odd spine curvature or emaciation. The last one from this batch is just now showing signs of distress and I am inclined to believe that it's internal parasites than tb that was/is behind this whole mess.
Why I think it's internal parasites:
I've been doing WC 2-3x a week and my params are good: Amm/Nitrite 0, Nitrate 10, pH 7.8, temp 76-78. I have aquarium salt and carbon media removed for medication.
I am going to LFS now to look for internal parasite meds, possible Jungle Labs Internal Parasite Guard. Pimafix/Melafix combo hasn't done anything for me. Eventhough the other fish are all healthy and frisky, I am worried that one of my platies might have caught it. I'm not sure his poop is all that good looking..
Good luck !
Why I think it's internal parasites:
- long stringy translucent poop
- sporadic clamped fins
- lethargy
- occasional spasms
- occasional spitting out of food
- no emaciation or spine deformity
- no lesions, scale loss/protrusion or color change
I've been doing WC 2-3x a week and my params are good: Amm/Nitrite 0, Nitrate 10, pH 7.8, temp 76-78. I have aquarium salt and carbon media removed for medication.
I am going to LFS now to look for internal parasite meds, possible Jungle Labs Internal Parasite Guard. Pimafix/Melafix combo hasn't done anything for me. Eventhough the other fish are all healthy and frisky, I am worried that one of my platies might have caught it. I'm not sure his poop is all that good looking..
Good luck !
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fish TB is a bacterial infection that literally wastes the fish away until they are thin, amaciated, and have extreme spine curvetures.
if you do find you a fish has TB, you should either
1. treat the whole tank with meads that kill every single kind of bacteria in it (i know, that means the good ones too, but there could be TB colonies living with the good bacteria, so killing all is best. better safe then sorry)
2. tear down the tank and sterilize everything with a strong bleach soulution. like full strength.
fish TB can be transferred to humans, and that would probably be the last thing you would want after you found out your fish had it too. if you did end up getting it, you would need many months of meds.
as for your situation... i think it could just be emaciated, but if it has always been like this it could have been a birth defect.
if you do find you a fish has TB, you should either
1. treat the whole tank with meads that kill every single kind of bacteria in it (i know, that means the good ones too, but there could be TB colonies living with the good bacteria, so killing all is best. better safe then sorry)
2. tear down the tank and sterilize everything with a strong bleach soulution. like full strength.
fish TB can be transferred to humans, and that would probably be the last thing you would want after you found out your fish had it too. if you did end up getting it, you would need many months of meds.
as for your situation... i think it could just be emaciated, but if it has always been like this it could have been a birth defect.
if you only have fish for i.e 5 years and nothing happens, you do not add anything to the tank, and it stays as-is, no it cannot just spontaniously occur.TheZoo said:
if you do add fish though, it can. guppies can carry the disease for months without showing any symptoms. if you feed a fish and its belly is full, and then you come back that afternoon for the second feeding, and its skin and bones and its spine is bent and it is lethargic, there is a chance it could have TB.
