Hey guys I have a geophagus Daemon about 3" long and it developed HITH about a month ago. For some reason it does not eat like the red heads I have him with. I have tried feeding NLS pellets, Hikari, tilaipa, bloodworms, and it just doesn't seem to want to eat. It will take in a pellet or two during feeding but the pellet will come right out of it's gills. I have tried feeding flakes and it just shows no interest. It is just getting skinnier day by day. I just tested my water and it is at 0,0,25. I have no idea what else to do for the fish
Geophagus Daemon with HITH
- Thread starter shua71
- Start date
The fish are actually called Satanoperca daemon, just FYI. They are very sensitive to poor water quality and don't seem to appreciate hard water with a high pH. What are your pH and hardness?
I'm assuming your nitrates are 25ppm? If so, that's a bit on the high side for long-term Satanoperca care. I wouldn't want them over 20, but they should really be 10 or below. These fish like very clean water, so frequent water changes are a must.
If it were me, I'd treat the fish with metronidazole in a quarantine tank for seven days. Metro is used to treat Hexamita, which is an intestinal flagellate that will overtake a stressed fish and cause it to stop eating. It's usually accompanied by long, stringy white feces. It's also been linked to HITH and some people claim a hexamita treatment is necessary to help fish with HITH. That's where I would start.
I use pure metro powder from Jehmco.com, 1/4 teaspoon per 10 gallons once a day for 7 days, doing a 50% water change each day before the new dose. Keep the temp in the mid to high 80s (84 - 88) during this treatment and increase aeration because warmer water holds less dissolved oxygen. Usually around day 5 or 6 the fish will start eating again, but I always follow through the full treatment.
You can extend the treatment if it appears to be working but the fish is not 100% back in terms of appetite. To entice it to eat, use something hard to resist like frozen bloodworms.
I'm assuming your nitrates are 25ppm? If so, that's a bit on the high side for long-term Satanoperca care. I wouldn't want them over 20, but they should really be 10 or below. These fish like very clean water, so frequent water changes are a must.
If it were me, I'd treat the fish with metronidazole in a quarantine tank for seven days. Metro is used to treat Hexamita, which is an intestinal flagellate that will overtake a stressed fish and cause it to stop eating. It's usually accompanied by long, stringy white feces. It's also been linked to HITH and some people claim a hexamita treatment is necessary to help fish with HITH. That's where I would start.
I use pure metro powder from Jehmco.com, 1/4 teaspoon per 10 gallons once a day for 7 days, doing a 50% water change each day before the new dose. Keep the temp in the mid to high 80s (84 - 88) during this treatment and increase aeration because warmer water holds less dissolved oxygen. Usually around day 5 or 6 the fish will start eating again, but I always follow through the full treatment.
You can extend the treatment if it appears to be working but the fish is not 100% back in terms of appetite. To entice it to eat, use something hard to resist like frozen bloodworms.
+1 on the above. After treatment I would really up the amount of water you are changing, and/or lighten the bioload. Even if you are getting good readings the water can always be better. One of my altifrons started getting hith and with more water changes it starting healing. Goodluck
Just lost it actually... Now I know these fishes are extremely sensitive. Didn't think much before purchasing it. Just thought it was the same as the redheads and altifrons which I currently have. Thanks for the help guys
One of the reasons I love my smartphone. I can do enough research at the store if something peeks my interest that I know if it will be a good fit for me or not.
Sent from my iPad using MonsterAquariaNetwork app