Wayne

I understand your frustration Kim. BUT, speak to any fish vet overseas( these guys specialise in fish medicine and do nothing else but fish medicine and surgery), and they'll turn their noses up to ' cure-all' meds from e.g aquarium pharmaceuticals. Why? they simply don't work. Melafix however is an exception, excellent stuff for tx superficial wounds, but any combo med that kills fungus + internal and external bacterial infections?? too good to b true if u ask me. take EM tablets--erythromicin for eg. it is a macrolide antibiotic( only kills bacteria, and mainly your gram positives). Very useful in salmonids for a specific kidney infection that they get, but use in ornamental fish medicine-- virtually none. I think what most of us should b doing is focusing on the basics- stuff like isolation/quarantine of new stock, maintaining good water quality, using salt in fresh water tanks. 99% of disease outbreaks can b traced to a failure in one of these management issues..

I'm not a farmer but as far as i know, levamisole drenches are insoluble in water. But using an anthlemintic/dewormer is definitely the way to go, and levamisole is definitely a safer n effective drench for fish, as opposed to the avermectins or benzimidazoles. U should b able to find a bird wormer product from most petshops in NZ-- think it's called Avi something. a blue solution. active ingredient Tetramisole. This one's definitely soluble in water. U don't have to tx the entire tank. just immerse the fish in a seperate solution( using levamisole dose rates, supplement O2 and leave for 8hrs or so. Repeat the immersion at mthly intervals for say 3-4 tx total. that shou;d rid camallanus and even capillarial worms.

Hi Bilbo if it's HITH disease( that is IF it is..), the routine treatment is metronidazole( an antibiotic that kills protozoa too) nothing else over the counter is gonna zap this bug, even formalin etc Think water quality too... i usually advice checking all parameters, and performing good heafty water changes.....checking filtration etc,. can get quite intensive. Some experts put the condition down solely to poor environmental factors/nutrition. The first step for now is isolate. little tip. don't confuse normal pit( head canals--part of the lateral line system in fish) for HITHD. check for symmetry. if it's on both sides, could b a perfectly normal thing. since the fish is a cichlid, HITHD is high on the list of possibilites. best if u can scrape the skin n chk for other more common parasites first.

Hey dude. If it was puffing with it's gill covers prior to death, then most certainly died of respiratory problems. u've basically got the problem localised to the gills( possible but less likely to b blood or heart problems) if u then rule out water quality problems( don't forget temperature, toxins/posions--fly sprays, medications, sturring up the gravel can release toxic H2S n methane, CHLORINE/CHLORAMINES), then think infectious diseases.....gill flukes, large list of protozoal oragnisms....bacterial..fungal. etc but even with infectious bugs, usually need something in the enviro to predispose n precipitate disease. also, the fact that the other fish r all sweet does go against a water quality. what to do from here? watch the others closely. water changes, u can't go wrong. it'll improve any potential water quality prob, dilute any bugs shed from the dead fish etc etc add some salt ( 1 tabletspoon per 10L) this is a small dose safe for most freshwater spp hope this helps

Hi Breakaway, neon tetra disease isn't as common as TB in NZ. i've had a few batches of neons with similar appearing lesions as yours. It's always around the caudal peuncular region. Fish TB can give skin lesions in fish, usually appearing as chronic nonhealing ulcers that do not respond to most topical/systemic meds. In neon tetras, they get cloudy WHITE ELEVATED/RAISED lesions around the tail base region, the surrounding red skin often gets depigmented too( turns white). Think fish TB. think isolation as the others have suggested. look out for other signs of TB in the tank--losses every now n then, occasional thin, crook looking ones with scoliosis( kinked spines). occasional dropsy/popeye ones..... TB is easily diagnosed most of the time. need a fresh specimen---do a necropsy/postmortem--u can usually find tiny white nodules in the abdominal organs.confirmation by cytology/special stains. We can also do a muscle biopsy if u want to rule in/out pleostophora( neon tetra disease) but it isn't as common in my experience.

Hi Polgara. definitely get the water tested. the deaths could b totally unrelated to the spray. bubbling at the surface could b from high proteins/faecal organic material. these might have compromised the gf's immune system n led to an infectious disease outbreak?? ensure ammonia, nitrites n nitrates r nil. what clinical signs r they showing? chk every fish closely. with toxicities, what usually happens is high mortalities, close to 100% within a short time span. the fact that a fish is dying every now n then suggests possibly an infectious cause, or a low dose toxin at work. the fact that it's still bubbling = not enough water changes. up it to 50%. Once every 48hrs, ensuring temp is the same n chlorine removed. i would add 2 tablespoon salt per 10L water changed. Also get some activated charcoal...helps to adsorb n bind any toxins.

yeah..that's why we need a diagnostic test for fish....perhaps pricking them n collecting some blood( or snip bit of the gills)--a simple little test kit that aquarists can use at home...then again, not easy to develop...and probably interpret too...diagnosing TB in a herd of deer/cattle can b quite challenging at times using blood tests

Hi Kelly, u can't use salt BATHS..they don't work on ick( presuming u've got the right diagnosis) why? because the white spots = adult parasite buried DEEP within the skin. salt's not gonna touch it--at baths of 30-60min duration. however, u have to use a PROLONGED immersion in salt at 0.3%, i.e 2 tablespoons per 10 L. this low dose will kill any emerging larval stages swimming in the water... the fish will have to survive the bit where the adults 'burst' through the skin n gills, this is most damaging n can b fatal.. But as long as u keep up with DAILY water changes, maintain salt at 0.3% for 3-4wks, and raise the temp to 28 - 30 celsius SLOWLY....u'll b sweet. 0.3% salt will help with osmoregulation too, n lots of other skin bugs( in case it's not ich) for severe ich, u can use a combination of formalin/malachite green, but these are potentially toxic and still work in the same way as salt---kill the emerging babies....the fish will still have to ride through the erupting adult stage. Key thing to remember with ich: U cannot treat the fish( unlike most other diseases), rather u have to treat the water. hope this helps. grab some rock/tonic salt quick. 0.3% should b safe for most fish. gradually bring the conc up over 2-3 days.

yeah, once a community is struck with TB...chances r it's gonna b dif to eradicate even if u do a big clean up etc( mainly because we're still unable to detect carriers) TB is one of the reasons why quarantining any new individuals is so important, and at least for 3-4 wks minimum..

TB is common in neons( n other characins??), livebearers( guppies, platies etc in nz n probably worldwide.. apparently anabatids r highly susceptible. any fish can get it though. in neons, they get this specific 'syndrome' where the caudal peduncular region( around tail base) starts to discolour n whiten( might appear raised too)....often confused with neon tetra disease( plistophora) quite often they appear emaciated. once in awhile, u get a few sporadic outbreaks of popeye. I've tried isolation, quarantine, but it's never easy....... perhaps a large tank, and uv filtration might help longterm.

You're definitely right on this one peety. any fish, ANY fish with any spinal deformity = think TB, esp if it's acquired later on in life. it's the no one cause of such lesions in my experience. the other 2 causes---genetics n nutritional( usually Vit C, calcium deficiency relatively rare) r less common. Do take extra precautionary measures Jo. u shouldn't b surprised that the guppy is otherwise healthy...If it was TB, all it means is that she has a tumour like lesion( granuloma) in her backbone. She'll only get really crook under stressful conditions...... Hope u still have her isolated.... any dropsy cases lately?

I'll b surprise if they keel over n die Myst.. u could try increasing aeration too as low O2 levels may result esp if u have a high stocking rate.

that's true in most aquariums..... generally speaking. how r the kuhlis Sue? If they're off colour n off food, and don't respond to increase aeration n water changes, i'll b worried. Gill problems can b fatal( this might just b a behavioural thing??)

Yeah, it was thought that pheromones were the main inhibitory chemicals that stunt fish growth in overcrowded conditions. We now know that it's not as simple as that, that there r numerous other chemicals released in the poo that inhibit growth n r detrimental to the health of fish. various enzymes called faecal proteases are just an example. Recent findings have shown that nitrates can be toxic too( obviously not as bad as ammonia or nitrites). http://www.koivet.com/html/articles/art ... %20Quality For e.g high nitrates is a commonly believed factor, that plays a role in the development of 'floaters' in goldfish. i like to picture keeping aquarium fish to keeping a puppy/dog in a glass enclosure, where it pees, poos, eats, breathes, sleeps, plays, grows FOREVER. Imagine if u were that pup......pretty much the same for our fish. With fish, the water is the medium, and everything 'goes through' it. Another way of viewing an aquarium setup from a water quality point of view: Picture a clear glass tank filled to the top with 'clean' water. picture it!! no fish in the setup. just an empty tank of water. If everyday we added a bit of fish flakes, pellets etc etc, and even with a filtration system in the tank, what's gonna happen to the water?? it's simply gonna go foul. n how to change that? So the main reason for doing water changes is simply to improve water quality--BY DILUTION. There r probably heaps of toxic compounds, some well known n very popular, others still a bit obsure at this stage, that are diluted with water changes. The results?? = healthier n bigger fish. Other reasons i can think of esp in times of illness/disease: diluting pathogenic organisms that are shed in large amounts from sick fish...kinda like filtering the air n replacing it with new one in a surgical theatre/ isolation chamber--SARs..

Hi macka whether triming it off helps is still questionable. it is however widely practiced in Singapore with seemingly satisfactory results?? Clove oil/eugenol is easily availabe from your local pharmacy. just do a google search under 'fish + anesthesia + clove oil' should find a site with dose rates etc. It is extremely safe n effective, as good as tricaine, MS222.......i like to dissolve mine in a bit of acetone, but this isn't necessary. u have to shake the oil in a vial of water till it emulsifises, then add to container with fish in it. make sure your vet is experienced with monitoring fish anesthetic. Don't forget the basics---- aeration, aeration, aeration.... n really, there arn't any 'safe' anesthetic drugs, only 'safe' anesthetists. u can even use baking soda with vinegar although this usually gives a rougher induction phase where the fish struggles a bit more before going narcotic. good luck!