Sick Discus

[DarrenJThomas]

I purchased 4 juvenile discus about 6 weeks ago and all was going well. 2 days ago i noticed that one of my juvenile discus was dark in colour and decided to monitor the fish. Yesterday i noticed that the fish is still dark and hides in a log. The fish is not eating but comes out when the other fish are feeding. The discus seems to be a little off balance. Other than that all fins and skin appear fine. All other discus and fish are fine.

The LFS recommended a treatment for fluke and tapeworm so i purchased some tablets to treat both.

I thought i would get in early and ask if anyone else has had this experience.

[marg]

Darren I'm no expert, but here's what I would do:

have you got a hospital tank? If you have, siphon water from the tank he is currently in and add about 25% fresh aged water and put him in it, set temp at about 30 degrees and add about 2 tablespoons of rock salt (not ordinary table salt) to 10 gallons of water and monitor him for a day or two before you do anything.

Don't just start medicating him with anything until you speak to someone from this Forum like Ladyred ( she is usually on line off and on through the day and night). Once you describe his symptoms to her she will probably be able to advise you.

I wouldn't use any medications until I spoke to her if I was you.

[Merrilyn]

Hi Darren, the advice from Margot is spot on.

Sometimes fish suffer from a digestive upset, or perhaps the fish is being bullied. Giving them some time in a hospital tank, without competition for food, and a break from bullying can be a big help.

Adding a little salt to the water can help too. Do daily water changes in that tank, and observe the fish. If you notice any change in the droppings of the fish, or any other symptoms, please advise us.

[DarrenJThomas]

Ok

This is what I have observed. Over the weekend I treated the tank with fluke and tape worm tables. My 10yo discus was a little quiet and dark in colour during the process but after the water change he is back to his normal self. The other juvenile discus are happy eating and show no signs of illness.

The sick discus still remains dark in colour and is only very mildly interested in food, if at all. The fish seems to spend most of his time mid way at the back of the tank. The remainder is under a log which the fish defends his space form the other discus.

In appearance his stomach appears to be full of food but i have not seen him eat much. He also appears to keep to the calmer waters as the faster flowing seems to make the fish off balance.

I have done considerable reading and have two theories.

1. That the fish has some sort of infection in the stomach or float bladder and requires an antibiotic
2. At a stretch the fish is suffering from Hexamita and needs to be treated with Metronidazole.

What do you guys think?

[marg]

Put him in a hospital tank for starters where you can watch him and see what he is up to.

Don't start medicating him with anything other than salt until you get an idea of what his problem is.

If it is Hex, you will notice jelly like white poo. If that is the case contact the Forum and someone will be able to assist you further.

[DarrenJThomas]

This is the situation at the moment.

I treated the whole 860 Ltr tank for tape and fluke as the system is new with new fish. Thought this was more a preventative measure.

Then I treated the whole tank with epsoms salt. 2 treatement over 2 days at 1 tsp per 40 ltrs. This would prevent / cure constipation and provide ample nutrient to my amazon plant.

Then I used a bread spectrum antibiotion on the whole tank. Bactonex with an active ingrediant of formal dehyde and malachie green.

As the discus still showed no change i then removed the fish to a hospital tank and treated with Aquari Cycline active ingrediant Tetracycline Hydracloride. I am currently on the 2nd day of a 3 day treatment.

If there is no improvement after that I will use Metronidazole.

Question: Does any one know the dose rates for 200mg of Metronidazole?

[Merrilyn]

Hi Darren, that's a lot of treatments in a very short time.

Tetracycline is a very good antibiotic, but unfortunately due to misuse, it is not very effective in treating fish diseases today.

My suggestion is, to keep that fish isolated in the hospital tank for a few days before trying anything else. Offer him good food and daily water changes, and see if there is any improvement.

If the fish is still dark, and refusing to eat, then treat with Metro at the rate of 250mg per 40 lt tank water, every 12 hours for 5 days. Do a 30% waterchange on the tank before adding each new dose, and keep the lights out during the treatment. Metro has a half-life of 8 hours and is affected by light.

Any chance of a picture of the sick fish. Sometimes a picture can show what a verbal description can not.

[DarrenJThomas]

Update,

After 5 days of treatment with Tetracycline i changed the water and let the fish rest for 2 days. As a result of the infection the fish had lost condition and was still not eating but was active, the bulge in the stomach was still apparent ( I recon it was Hex). I then went to my vet and arranged for the Metro on Sunday Morning. I was about to administer the Metro when i returned but found the fish dead. As I always like to learn and i have a couple of questions for you all.

1. Do you think that the 2 day break and not fully getting rid of the infection made the bacteria more aggressive.
2. I have been advised that you can treat Tetracycline with Metro at the same time. What are your views? If you can is it possible to add Bactonex as well to cover all bases?

Thanks for all you help. Not only has it provided a knowledge base for the future all my other discus are in excellent condition.

[Merrilyn]

Sorry to hear your fish didn't make it Darren. Sometimes, no matter how hard we try, it just doesn't have any effect.

You did everything possible, but we have no way of knowing if our fish have some kind of internal growth which blocks the intestine, and is eventually fatal. The fact that your fish wasn't interested in eating is not a good sign, right from the start. It could have been hex, but the other very obvious sign of hex is white jelly like droppings, even if the fish isn't eating, as it sheds the lining of the gut.

Metro is the drug of choice for most fish infections these days, as so many bacterial infections seem to be resistant to tetracycline now.

In this case, I'm sad to say that I think the outcome would have been the same, no matter what treatment was offered.