Columnaris Infections

[Oddball]

I had 2 people ask me about treating columnaris infections this week. So, I thought I'd post the treatment that has worked for me through several bouts of this disease. I hope it works for anyone in need of help for this tough fast-killing disease.

Columnaris Treatment

Copper sulfate has always been the common treatment. But, copper can be just as damaging to fish as the disease. I've found Terramycin and Trypaflavin can do an effective job on columnaris.

1. Pull carbon.
2. Gravel wash and water change to reduce pathogen population.
3. Terramycin bath.
4. Add salt to the water to aid gill functions.
5. Treat food with Terramycin to fight internal infection.
6. Treat tank with chloramphenicol + acriflavin (trypaflavin) per dosage on container.
7. Gravel washes/water changes every other day. Replace salt and meds.
8. Treat for an additional 10 days after symptoms are no longer present.

This has worked for me on fresh and brackish fish. I haven't had the opportunity to try it on marine species (knock on wood). But, I've read of others using this treatment on tangs.

[fishyz]

What do columnaris infections look like so I can know if my fish ever get it.

[Oddball]

When fish are infected with this pathogen, the following signs can be anticipated:

Skin
There will be necrotic lesions on the skin, which often are white/gray coloured with an edging of red. These will quickly in one to two days, transform into ulcers with have an orange/yellow colour, caused by the bacteria decaying the underlying tissue.

Gills
Similar effects very typically occur on the gills, but may for the average hobbyist be somewhat harder to observe at least in the early stages. The progression of these ulcers, causes the fish to have great trouble with its respiration, and thus can quickly lead to fatalities. If the gills are examined, excessive amounts of mucous, are to be expected.

Behaviour
The fish will become very listless and lethargic, often will hang at the surface, trying to breath there, although on occasion, the fish will rest on the bottom of the tank. Reluctance to feed is very typical and the fish will become anorexic. Respiration is often rapid, as the fish fights to overcome the damage done by the infection to its gills.

Body
In some cases, the lips of the fish, will become swollen and macerated, and a milky slime like film can be observed with the naked eye on parts of the body.

Fins
Large milky patches can be seen quite easily on the fins of the fish, and this is usually an indication that the disease has progressed to a degree that cure will become much more difficult. One typical sign is the appearance of a ?saddle? shaped lesion usually around the area of the dorsal fin, and this occurs so often, that the name ?saddle back disease? is often used in aquaculture to describe this infection.

[K C]

One typical sign is the appearance of a ?saddle? shaped lesion usually around the area of the dorsal fin, and this occurs so often, that the name ?saddle back disease? is often used in aquaculture to describe this infection.

Very good info :thumbsup:

[freeskierrocket]

Thank you for the info:D

[fishyz]

Once I got a female swordtail that had showed signs of that affter she wa introduced into the tank. I didn't know what it was until now.

[deangelo]

what do you mean when you say terramycin bath and treating the food with terramycin? ont that kill the fish when he eats it? sorry for the questions its just that this is useful info thats why i got to know...

[Oddball]

A "bath" is an immersion treatment with concentrated medications. Usually a small vessel (like a bucket) is filled with tank/fresh water and dosed with medication (following bottle instructions). Once the meds are diluted evenly within the bucket, the affected fish are netted out and placed in the bath for several minutes (again...according to the med instructions).

Foods (dry/frozen/fresh) can be treated with medications to target internal infections in a fish. The meds (usually liquid but, can be powder) are added to regular foods (per med instructions). For a disease, such as columnaris, internal medication is important since the disease can cause gill damage/necrosis.

[IceH2O]

I've never seen tetramycin at the LFS.

Is there a name I should be looking for? ie: Quick Cure, Marcyn,etc..

Is it the same as tetracycline?

[Oddball]

Slightly different then standard tetracycline. I get Tetramycin (oxytetracycline) from a feed & grain store in the ranch meds aisle. Before I found the capsules, I used the ophthalmic ointment, which is more readily available, and wiped it onto the affected areas of the fish (instead of dipping the fish in a bath).

[alycat]

I am currently treating our store tanks with oxolinic acid. It works like a charm.:thumbsup:

I also like neomycin sulfate.

aly

[redtailfool]

Great info Phil. I prefer using antibiotics rather than copper - based meds as i also believe that copper is debilitating to the fish.. sometimes more so than the actuall illness. i also use topical ointment on the fish if the ulcer or wound is big enough.

[Oddball]

See, you guys already know this stuff. I don't know why I post these things anymore.

[lifeispeachyatt]

b

[boofish2]

I am currently treating our store tanks with oxolinic acid. It works like a charm.:thumbsup:

I also like neomycin sulfate.

aly

Where do I find these medications?
I feel like I'm constantly battling this in my tank. My angels never seem to be affected but my corys are always contracting this and dying. I do use coppersafe to treat them and it works sometimes but I feel like it's always lurking in my tank. Could I be reinfecting my tank with the gravel vac or buckets? Why don't the angels ever get it? Are cories more suseptable to this affliction?
This is my typical course of treatment - Coppersafe, 50% Daily WC and gravel vac , raise temp to about 88 F (don't know if this helps), and replace the copper with each wc.
I recently had this prob and 3 out of 4 cories died. One survived and was doing ok, 1 week later he's got it again and is looking like a goner.

[Lupin]

I'll add my own treatment which managed to eliminate the columnaris affecting my tetras.:)

What you need:
1. Quarantine tank
2. Sera Baktopur
3. Sera Baktopur Direct

Process:
1. Add 22 drops/1 ml per 5 gallons of Sera Baktopur in your tank.
2. Add a tablet of Sera Baktopur Direct. One tablet per 20 gallons is the dosage.
Note that #1 and #2 should be done on the odd number of days. First day, third day, fifth day and so on.
3. Do a 10% water change on the second day.
4. Repeat #1 and #2 on third day. Note that the dosage has to be done according to how many gallons of water you replaced.
Water changes should be done on even number of days.

Added information:
Columnaris tends to progress better when the temperature is high. I have observed that the columnaris apparently failed to progress further when I decided to lower the temp from 30 degrees Celsius to 26 degrees Celsius.

Note/Warning:
The combination of Sera Baktopur and Sera Baktopur Direct will harm your biological filtration which is why doing the treatment in a spare tank is strongly recommended.

[Lupin]

Must realize this has been a long time ago but if it helps others, then fine with me.:D
Could I be reinfecting my tank with the gravel vac or buckets?
That can be possible although I've never notice that happening in my experience.

Cannibalism of infected carcass of fish will always encourage progress of columnaris transmission to other fish. It is advisable to remove the dead infected fish immediately.
Why don't the angels ever get it? Are cories more suseptable to this affliction?
Immune system and water quality play a very important role against the possibility of diseases appearing in your tank. Angelfish often have very strong immunity against various diseases. I rarely see my angelfish to be sick and unfortunately, the tetras were the ones victimized by columnaris outbreak which I had eradicated(treatment in previous post). Most cories are not hardy and are likely to become infected. Maintaining good water conditions together with nutritious foods will help them fight against diseases thus lowering the chances of them getting infected.:) However, this will not mean the diseases will not infect them but the nutrients they receive will certainly increase their immune system thus illnesses will be prevented.

Always remember that 'prevention is better than cure'.;)

[guppy]

BigAl'sOnline carries a lot of meds.

[wataugachicken]

i have had one experience with columnaris. It seemed the fish had a secondary fungal infection on dead/dying outer tissues in addition to the columnaris patches. Should a fungicide product like pimafix or jungle fungus tablets be added to the tank along with the columnaris treatment, or will the fungal infection subside just with the c. treatment?

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Salt can be particularly stressful for some types of fish (like many types of catfish, loaches, barbs and tetras), in these cases it is better to use a strong anti bacterial and fungal med to treat the disease instead of salt.


Columnaris is commonly brought about by stressful conditions in the tank like the tank being under-cleaned, over-stocked/crowded etc; when columnaris appears the first thing you should do is test your tank for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates and ph. In a healthy tank, ammonia and nitrites should always be 0, and nitrates preferably kept between 1 and 40 but no more.
Make sure you are not over-feeding your fish or under-cleaning the substrate in the tank in particular as this sort of leftover waste makes ideal breeding ground for habouring columnaris bacteria etc.

[It's Me]

If you loose all your fish to this but have a planted tank with shrimp what would be the recommended treatment? Will these parasites die if there is no host after a certain time or do you have to treat for it. Are these meds safe for plants?

[bauer]

What is the dosage used for oxytetraciclyn? I´m using a bird med that combines oxytretraciclyn and sulfonamide. It´s very useful because it´s a liquid apresentation so easier to dose.

[deepblue101]

lfs LOCAL FISH SUPPLY STORE? EH?:)

[deepblue101]

uhg nasty

[deepblue101]

Slightly different then standard tetracycline. I get Tetramycin (oxytetracycline) from a feed & grain store in the ranch meds aisle. Before I found the capsules, I used the ophthalmic ointment, which is more readily available, and wiped it onto the affected areas of the fish (instead of dipping the fish in a bath).


lol oddball uses horse med,s to treat his fish!:ROFL: