gill flukes and breathing

[funkyfish]

i have a few discus i got when i first started my discus adventure. they got gill flukes not long after i got them and i treated it. I think my water was the cause i did not know much about discus back then. the thing is that to this day they still breath fast 70 to80 breath's per min. they eat good and are growing good always mets me at the top of the tank at meal time. i have 11 other fish and they are doing great no prob's
do the flukes damage the gill's to the point that they can't recover from it
or what ?
any info would be great
water ph 8.1 20 dgh 16dkh
ammonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates 0
30% daily wc
with aged water

[Ben]

Funkyfish, is your ph really 8.2 ?
thats pretty high?!

I just bouhgt, DISCUS HEALTH by DIETER UNTERGASSER. not a bad book over 400 pages full of this sort of stuff.

ok, this is what the book says:

Damage to the fish arises from the piercing action of the large hooks into the mucous membrane. This can lead to secondary bacterial or fungal infections. but even without a secondary infection, gill trematodes irrate the gill epithelium, which leads to exceisive moucous formation. The gills can then stick together and thus interupt the flow of water. The fish will then die of oxygen deprivation. The terminal stage of this disease can be regonized by the fish hanging and gasping at the water surface.

It reads on that gill flukes are species specific.

I guess what it is saying that your fish are not behaving like this so things should be ok.

This probarly does not help, but it is an interesting read!

cheers,
Ben

[funkyfish]

hey ben
yes my ph is 8.1
dude i live in the city water sucks but the fish don't mind

[Ben]

well i am going to have a huge stab in the dark and say maybe your fish are breathing so heavy is because of the ph?
yep, i might be wrong, so someone please say so, but i might be right!

what would happen if you had marine fish and the PH was 6.1 ?? i am sure they would not like it!

if i were you i would try and lower it, try it naturally say with peat. try not to use the PH DOWN powder, only as a last resort!
give this ago first and get the ph stable then work from there!

cheers,
Ben

[Merrilyn]

Warm water holds less oxygen, so it might pay to put another airstone into the tank.

[DiscusMan]

Mate i think the first reply is the one.

You already said that the other fish are doing fine so its not your water its the fish.

I do think that the gills beign damage is the cause i am unsure if they can repair or is scare tissue forms but either way dont try any funky things with your water. PH of 8.5 is fine it not the value of PH but it amount of PH change you tank goes through that is of concern. PH effects the eggs when breeding as acid water produces softer egg shells from what ive read but many people keep discus at high phs so dont worry just keep it constant.

If your fish are still ravenous eaters then they are truly going fine, and i wouldnt pay to much mind to a couple fo them breathing a bit faster especially seeing they had a gill fluke problem before.

Make sure the havent still go teh fluke by the signs you would know and theat the colour of them is nothing but white.

Enjoy

Wayne

[funkyfish]

i read on a site i found that a 120gram per gal salt bath will kill flukes does anyone know that to be true

[Merrilyn]

I've heard that theory too, but I've never been game to risk my fish to find out if it's true.

Praziquantal is the accepted method of treating gill flukes. But you do need to do a follow up treatment.

[funkyfish]

thanks for the help

[skoom]

I've just realised my fish have all been breathing at around 100 breaths per minute. Too fast?

They are all eating and pooing well....

can they have gill flukes?

will a salt bath help?

treatment with prazi?

[Merrilyn]

Young fish always breathe fast, and around 100 breaths per minute is pretty normal. Fast breathing is not the only symptom of gill flukes, so unless you can see them breathing from one gill only, or flashing (quickly brushing their face against hard surfaces), it could simply be that warm water holds less oxygen, and they are compensating by breathing faster.

[skoom]

i think they have been the healthiest i've been keeping them (touch wood) since i started about 8months ago.

So i guess their hyperventilation is most likely only due to higher temperatures and decreased oxygen concentrations. What can I really do to increase the concentration? I think i have a pretty big pump and using the spray bar also.... are their any long term consequences of them hyperventilation to compensate water hypoxia?

many thanks....

anyhow, I think i'll pop in a dose of Prazi anyway.... routine meds to kill off worms and gill flukes. Agree?

[Merrilyn]

If you're still concerned, a dose of prazi would be a good idea. Maybe drop an airstone into the tank. That usually makes them feel for comfortable.

Nope, no long term consequences that I know of.

[DiscusMad]

i read on a site i found that a 120gram per gal salt bath will kill flukes does anyone know that to be true

i have read this amount is good for a dip and nothing else and dip i mean when they go in and then start comming to the top and then take them out straight away but........................................

i would never try this