# Something Killing off my fish...



## Oz_planter (14 Oct 2008)

Hi all,

This is my first request for help, but i really hope you can advise me.

I have a Jewel Rio 180 planted tank and everything was going smoothly until I purchased 4 female golden honey gouramis from Osterly Maidenhead Aquatics...

My current stocking levels (prior to the deaths) are 8 golden honey gouramis, 6 threadfin rainbows, 13 Harlequin Rasbora's, 3 ottocinclus and 3 amano shrimp.

The tank has been set up for well over four months and it was fully fishless cycled prior to adding fish and I added bactinettes with the inital 13 rasbora's.  Ammonia and nitrite have never been a problem.

The problems only started within the last week, one of the gourami's were quite thin...  Now mine were thin when I only had 4 of them, as they would very rarely come out to eat, it was due to what I think of them being timid and also the fact that the rasbora's ate everything as soon as it hit the water.  But I purchased 4 more (all female to stop harrassment of the other two females) from Osterly and I think that they have brought a disease into the tank.

The thin gourami got thinner, to the point where I could see his heart just behind his eye and he just sat on the bottom of the tank, in the mean time I lost one rainbow.  There were no physical signs of disease.  I looked at all the fish closely and another one had fungus.

I went to Osterly and they advised that it sounds like worms, with the fungus being a secondary infection, but the only medication they had was not suitable for my shrimp...  I purchased some pimafix to treat the fungus and have been doing so for 4 days.  During this time the sick gourami has died, the rainbow with the fungus has died, another two died and now tonight, I find another rainbow dead.  

Once again, I have been looking at them nightly for about an hour straight and I cannot find any physical syptoms of what is causing the problem.  

I perform 1/3 water changes weekly, I have dropped this from 1/2 water changes (I am a heretic that doesn't do EI he he he ) But I don''t think this has caused the problem.  After the first death, I thought that it may be due to CO2 poisoning as I had bumped my CO2 up to 3bps and started dosing easy carbo as I found some algae forming, but I have stopped the easy carbo, dropped my CO2 back to 2bps (drop checker is light green as opposed to yellow) and they are still dropping off like flies.

Can anyone pls suggest a remedy?  I am worried i'm going to loose all but my rasbora's.

Thanks in advance.

Justin.


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## Egmel (15 Oct 2008)

Hi Justin, I'd agree with the shop that it does sound like worms, there's a discus wormer which used to be safe with shrimp but not snails, it's based on flubenzadol I think, it can be used in conjunction with most other medications too. (Though I've just done a search for it - 'Discus Wormer Plus' and their site says it's not shrimp safe however these guys think it might be ok)

The other thing to note is that medications often affect either the oxygen in the tank or the fish's ability to absorb it (I'm not sure which) so many suggest running an airstone when dosing medication.

Hope this helps and you don't lose too many more fish.


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## mick b (15 Oct 2008)

Hi ,

I have wormed my Discus (on more than one occasion  ) with Panacur (Puppy dog strength wormer, 1 gram crushed and mixed with 100 grams of meat-mix food).
Served morning & night Day 1 and Day 5 (excess removed after 10 mins)

Never been a problem with snails or shrimps, BUT it is dosed via the food, NOT in water column.

HTH,  Cheers,  Mick B


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## Oz_planter (15 Oct 2008)

Hi All,

Thanks for your responses!  I think i'll give the discus wormer plus a go...  If it kills my multitude of snails as well, then bonus!  

Justin


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## Ed Seeley (15 Oct 2008)

Gouramis are often seen imported recently with a bacterial wasting disease that may or may not be tuberculosis based/related so you may not have worms at all.


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## Egmel (16 Oct 2008)

Ed Seeley said:
			
		

> Gouramis are often seen imported recently with a bacterial wasting disease that may or may not be tuberculosis based/related so you may not have worms at all.


That's scary, have importers not started stricter quarantine procedures?  Do we know if it's contagious to other fish?


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## Ed Seeley (16 Oct 2008)

Egmel said:
			
		

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Why would they?  If they quarantine them they might die before they can sell them!  I've never heard of it spreading but there's always a first time.


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## Ivan (17 Oct 2008)

Hi, if it was worms, the fish would become thin, but the stomach/gut area would slightly swell. I'd be inclined to go with a bacterial problem. I'd treat the rest of the fish with a broad antibiotic.


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## Egmel (17 Oct 2008)

Ed Seeley said:
			
		

> Egmel said:
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 I forget that very few businesses run on the principle of do it right the first time.


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## Oz_planter (21 Oct 2008)

Hi all,

Thanks again for your responses.

Just an update for you...  The Gouramis are looking better and they are actually eating now, whereas before they would rarely eat and I thought that this was because they were shy...  Unfortunately, I still have my snails...  There was a mass exit of snails from the gravel, so I got as many as I could, but there are still some in there...  I did my usual water change day after i put the medication in, so I will treat again this sunday after the water change, not just for snails, but also because I think one gourami may still be infected...  Her faeces are still white and stringy, so I think she may still have some...

Now it is time to re-stock my tank... 

You don't think that there would be any chance of getting some form of compensation from Maidenhead Aquatics Osterly for this debarkle?


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