Had to put down my tetra today due to mouth rot.

gmiller1122

gmiller1122

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Jul 6, 2005
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Hey, all. I had mentioned in a previous thread that I had some black algae. I think I've rid the tank of that.

At the same time, a few of my fish had contracted what seems to be some sort of mouth rot.

Well, I just euthanized my black skirt tetra. Over the last few days, it had gotten much, much worse, to the point where his face had disintegrated back to his eyes! I have some Melafix on order, but could not bear to see him suffer anymore. :sad:

My two zebra danios also have mouth problems. Theirs is a small white protrusion from their mouths.

I just wanted to share -- thought someone else could learn from my procrastination.

I will post an update as to how the Melafix is working. Thanks for reading.
 
From my experience Melafix does not work too well on mouth rot..My fishes had mouth rot before, and I used Maracyn, an antiboitic and it cured it many times before..
 
So sorry to hear about your loss. Each little critter in our tanks has a special place in our hearts. Good luck with the others. . .~r
 
Just an update:

I've been using Melafix for 6 days now and I think it's working. My zebras don't stay still for very long (!) but it seems the white stuff on their mouths is decreasing. :clap:
 
i've had mouth fungus, too, simultaneously with black hair algae. they are both caused by the same thing: dirty water. the solution for both is more water changes. mouth fungus is often Columnaris, which is actually a bacteria. maracyn will work, but i just prefer to keep the water clean and let the fish clear up on their own. which they will after 2-3 weeks.
 
plah831 said:
i've had mouth fungus, too, simultaneously with black hair algae. they are both caused by the same thing: dirty water. the solution for both is more water changes. mouth fungus is often Columnaris, which is actually a bacteria. maracyn will work, but i just prefer to keep the water clean and let the fish clear up on their own. which they will after 2-3 weeks.
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I bought a two-pack from big al's, which included pimafix along with the melafix. Will this work on the bacteria, then?
 
pimafix and melafix are often used simultaneously, they are supposed to work well off of each other. But, as Plah stated above, frequent water changes are often just as good. Whats your wc routine like?
 
yeah. pimafix and melafix are preferable, to me, than straight-up antibiotics because they're more natural. however, in my experience, they still compromise water quality. they tend to make stuff smell like herbs, make the water slimy, and reduce the amount of dissolved oxygen in the tank. all of which, i'm sure, just stress your fish out (although LESS than harsh chemicals).

TheZoo and i are both advocating more water changes. that way, your fishes' natural immune defenses have more of a chance of fighting the infection on their own.
 
I am just giving you my opnion since someone cut me down for using an antiboitic for mouth rot..I belive that just water changes does not do anything for mouth rot..I have been keeping fishes for ten years and I know what works or not..Mouth rot will spread in your tank and it is highly contagious, that is why your other fishes are getting it..If it is that bad, where one of your fishes died of mouth rot, it is something serious and simple water changes will not help and something like Melafix would not work..If you run a search on Melafix in the internet, there are a lot of poor reviews on it not working..I am not the only one telling you this..And yes, it might work for you but based on the reviews and my experience with Melafix, I would not use it..

Here is an excerpt from a koi vet, Dr. Johnson, who is well known in the internet..He tested Melafix on things and it does not work as an antibacterial..Mouth rot is an bacterial disease..Dr Johnson states:

"Melafix is promoted to have antibacterial properties but our research has shown this is not the case. We treated an inhabited system for five consecutive days and then ran CFU (colony forming unit) tests on the water and found a typical population of Aeromonas hydrophila/caviae, and Citrobacter freundii, as well as Serratia spp."

"MelaFix is NOT bactericidal as claimed."
 
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