Help! What the heck is goin on!!!???
- Thread starter Askaleymanfish
- Start date
I know it might be too late... but here's my 2 cents on what's happening:
Since only your bichirs are affected, and you don't live in Africa, it's unlikely this is a bichir specific parasite. Especially to have gone away and come back like it did.
So what i think it is, is not enough oxygen. Here's why: bichirs live primarily on the bottom. Less oxygen. well water has less dissolved oxygen than tap water (not proven, anecdote i've heard). It's summer, water will be warmer, warmer water holds less dissolved oxygen. All mid-top level swimmers are fine. Also, the symptoms match up. Gasping, red gills, odd floating, even the opened mouth and hemorrhaging. You have a lot of big fish which use a lot of oxygen.
I know you said you have an air stone, but how much surface agitation are you getting? If I were you, I'd add more. Maybe even a powerhead pointed directly at the surface.
Since only your bichirs are affected, and you don't live in Africa, it's unlikely this is a bichir specific parasite. Especially to have gone away and come back like it did.
So what i think it is, is not enough oxygen. Here's why: bichirs live primarily on the bottom. Less oxygen. well water has less dissolved oxygen than tap water (not proven, anecdote i've heard). It's summer, water will be warmer, warmer water holds less dissolved oxygen. All mid-top level swimmers are fine. Also, the symptoms match up. Gasping, red gills, odd floating, even the opened mouth and hemorrhaging. You have a lot of big fish which use a lot of oxygen.
I know you said you have an air stone, but how much surface agitation are you getting? If I were you, I'd add more. Maybe even a powerhead pointed directly at the surface.
Can't believe that this hasn't been suggested yet, but i would check out hemorrhagic septicemia. Its a bacterial infection very common in wild caught polypterus. It is generally associated with an external parasite called macrogyrodactylus worms. I had bout of this about a year ago and it was NASTY. If you do infact have these worms, they can lay dormant for months before spreading, but when they do, they can kill in days. If you do have these worms, treat with praziquantel.
Even if you don't have these external parasites, hemorrhagic septicemia is still a big possibility from what you've described. Unlike the worms, it can manifest in only a few hours. It is usually seen in polypterus as a secondary infection, usually due to some larger issue (water quality, parasites, injury, etc.). Possibly from the poor quality of your well water? In my experience this disease can be easy to treat if caught quickly, but the longer that its left alone, the more aggressive it can become. I have had success with sulfathiazole and have heard of other reports of success in polypterus by treating with tetracycline.
I would say it up. There are quite a few threads about both macrogyrodactylus and hemorrhagic septicemia on the polypterus section of this forum. Before moving forward with any treatments, i would compare your current symptoms to these two diseases.
Even if you don't have these external parasites, hemorrhagic septicemia is still a big possibility from what you've described. Unlike the worms, it can manifest in only a few hours. It is usually seen in polypterus as a secondary infection, usually due to some larger issue (water quality, parasites, injury, etc.). Possibly from the poor quality of your well water? In my experience this disease can be easy to treat if caught quickly, but the longer that its left alone, the more aggressive it can become. I have had success with sulfathiazole and have heard of other reports of success in polypterus by treating with tetracycline.
I would say it up. There are quite a few threads about both macrogyrodactylus and hemorrhagic septicemia on the polypterus section of this forum. Before moving forward with any treatments, i would compare your current symptoms to these two diseases.
IMHO you need to do a large water change, then dose the tank with meds. septocimia a bacterial infection that has gotten into the fish and is present in the tank. I would dose with sulfaplex. or any fish meds with sulfathiazole will do.
Again if my fish and tank, I would start with a large water change, 90% or fin level then dose the tank.
Again if my fish and tank, I would start with a large water change, 90% or fin level then dose the tank.
Most of the bacterial infections our fish succumb to are do to water quality. Given pristine water conditions and low stress our fish are plenty able to fight these off as they are in the wild until they grow old and infirm. It is all about the water, master that and you master your tank, fish take care of themselves.
Just a quick thought (just kinda throwing things out there) did this by chance start around or a little after you put new sand in the tank? And do you have any back ground info on the sand? Like what's it's supposed to be used for? Usually when you find garnet sands online they aren't designed for aquarium use and some have things in them that aren't fish safe.
