Jump to content

Neon Tetra Disease?


rockgurl89

Recommended Posts

I had one tetra about 2 months ago that lost all his red colouring on the back half, got a curvature in his back and I actually ended up putting him out of his misery. Now, I see a couple more are looking like they are losing a bit of red colour in their tails aswell!

Is it sitting dormant in my tank, as I am pretty sure that is is this disease, and what should do I do?

I have 7 neon tetras, 3 black widow tetras, 2 five banded barbs, a golden bristle nose, a brown spotted bristle nose and 4 golden barbs in a 50 litre tank - will any of them be at risk?

Please help me :facepalm: I seem to get everything going well and looking good, then something else rears up and ruins it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Loss of colouring in neons is a sign of stress. Of course it is also one of the more obvious signs of Pleistophora. It is sporozoan and for all intent is incurable. Some importers years ago used to hold it off with formalin until they could get them through quarantine but it is not a cure.

Best to destroy any fish that are affected and keep a watch on the rest. It is more obvious in neons but will infect other fish as well (other than cardinals) and mostly tetras.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The real neon tetra disease is all but gone from the industry, and is unheard of NZ these days. (a very reliable source provided me with this info soon after I started keeping fish)

What you are most likely seeing is false neon tetra disease, which is just as fatal if not caught early enough.

I have successfully treated a group with white spot cure combined with formalin.

If they have the whitish grey necrosis they are probably already past it, but it will prevent infection of the others.

HTH

Owen

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I will keep an eye on the affected ones over the next 24 hours, and if it looks worse i shall remove them.

this is obviously a common problem with neons or tetras in general? In which case are cardinals seem to be pretty similar (as a replacemnet fish) are they as hardy and easy care, as well as not growing into a big fish (don't have much space!)?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In which case are cardinals seem to be pretty similar (as a replacemnet fish) are they as hardy and easy care, as well as not growing into a big fish (don't have much space!)?

Cardinals tend to be hardier and easier to care for and grow a little bit bigger than Neons. Cardinals haven't had all the decades of inbreeding and poor breeding to ruin them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...