obie trice Posted June 19, 2006 Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 hi all, it would be great to hear from anyone who has experienced the above? i have a discus with 4 small holes it its head, i have received pills form the vet and so far it is not doing anything. i have discussed with another guy on these forums who also has had the same prob and his got cured. i also have an angel with a wound (dont know what it is) which wont get better. any ideas? post here or email me: [email protected] cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted June 19, 2006 Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 Sorry I can't help...but others will! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted June 19, 2006 Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 What did the vet give you? Vets usually don't know a lot about fish diseases so I'm surprised to hear that. Hole in the Head (HitH) in discus is usually caused by stress or poor conditions. Check out the following site and read up on the flagellates that cause it and the proper courses of treatment with Metronidazole. Lastly I should mention that discus have many tiny holes over their head which are sensors and nostrils. I did read a previous post where you though your discus had white spot so I assume that the cysts have fallen away leaving holes? This is symptomatic of hexamatia (HitH) and it sounds like you've identified it properly and should be able to treat it accordingly. Aside from one or two breeders that aren't on these forums I'm probably the closest thing to a local discus expert that you can find. Upper Hutt is just a short drive from you, come out and I'll give you some pointers. http://article.dphnet.com/cat-02/spironucleus.shtml Oh, and keeping Angels and discus can be a bad idea. Angels carry worms and parasites that can be harmless to them but harmful to discus. Is the angel in the same tank with the discus? HitH is passed via ingestion of fecal matter so there is a possibility that you angel has contracted HitH as well if your discus are infected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obie trice Posted June 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 i dont think the discus ever had white spot aye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obie trice Posted June 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 thanks for that will have a look at the site Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted June 20, 2006 Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 a good diet is also a great help in curing this, often people who catch it early will clear it up with nice clean water and good food with lots of vitamins but it does need meds sometimes. good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Discusguru Posted June 20, 2006 Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 put the discus in a bare bottom tank and treat with metro for 7-10 days. Do a 50% waterchange and redose everyday. Increase the temp to 33-35 degrees. After the treatment continue to do 50% waterchange daily. The HITH will heal up. Most probably cause by bad water quality. Ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obie trice Posted June 24, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 where do i get "metro"? cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimebag Posted June 24, 2006 Report Share Posted June 24, 2006 u need a prescription, or maybe u could go to the vet and see if u can get some. seems the vets round here are pretty reluctant to give it tho, get to know a doctor or dentist or the like , its much easier, and cheaper! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Discusguru Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 from a vet , they might ask you to bring the fish in so they can charge you a consultation fees :oops: . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 I have some but I had to pay consultation fees and dispensation charges on top of the cost of the pills so they're not cheap by any means. How many do you need? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 i got it off a friend who owns a fish shop and he is friends with the local vet, the vet just gives him whatever he needs without the consultation fees. i paid 2.50 a pill i think and that was 200mg or something (havent looked at them in ages). if you ring around local vets, explain the situation, perhaps gather some info on hex/HITH and some pics of your fish and pics to compare and take it down the vet might be willing to have a flick over it and prescribe you without the fees. good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 For a vet to dispense without a consult risks losing their license so you would really need to have a friend of the family that would risk all that to save you $45. Never hurts to call around, though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 well im not naming the vet or the person then :lol: how do the importers etc get all their meds which most of us cant get our hands on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faran Posted June 25, 2006 Report Share Posted June 25, 2006 Importers pay THOUSANDS of dollars to get those meds licensed in NZ for resale, which is why we have such a sad range compared with the "rest of the world". For instance, I have a small pile of Fluke Tabs over here as I bought out the stock from a LFS when I heard the license wasn't going to be renewed by the importer/wholesaler. True to form I haven't seen it on the shelves since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herefishiefishie Posted June 27, 2006 Report Share Posted June 27, 2006 There are restrictions here to on drugs too. Metro is a restricted drug here too, I am lucky to of found a couple who will give out limited supplies. As in the first time, I took a book in with a picture & descritpion of the disease, I said the fish is to sick to move, took photo of fish with me. {Discus} I made sure I knew what I was talking about, as in named the symptons, what the fish looked like, named the terms.....They never charged me with a consultation fee, as he laughed at the fact I knew more about it than him. He did say he was meant to see the fish, but how will authorities know he didn't? It was all recorded, easy done. The other vet, turns out to be regular of Brads family & mine{dogs, cats....} they are nice people. They believe Brad knows what he is talking about :lol: Will give him very limited doses. So see if you can find a friendly vet, you may be lucky. I was lucky first time around. I was working for a lfs, knew the name of a fish vet guru{now living in Tassy} & my boss at the time knows fish diseases by scientific name{geek lol} Try your luck.... Frenchy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted June 27, 2006 Report Share Posted June 27, 2006 i agree, the person i got my metro off has been in the hobby for yonks and is good friends of the vet. the vet knows if the guy wants it he needs it, its not to hand out willy nilly and its never large amounts, normally only enough for one or two treatments. vets dont often know much about fish and most of the time when we need these hard to get meds its for problems you cant often see in a fresh bag of water. what if the fish isnt doing white poops when your in the vets room? what if the worms (camallanus) have gone back inside the fish (which they do). i know theyre supposed to see the fish, but if you dont know anything about it how are you supposed to be able to diagnose it? i would do as much reading as possible, google heximita (sp) and go through it, print out pages and highlight the symptoms your fish has, take pictures etc and pop down and see if they can do anything. if not at least you tried if you know what your talking about it shows your more legitimate and have done your homework Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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