Help with flowerhorn

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tysonb292

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 21, 2014
59
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0
Vermont
Hello everyone. ..my flowerhorn Reimahg is in dire need of help...a week ago today I woke to him floating upside down...I feel terrible for my friend...here is a video from a week ago

http://youtu.be/o5fce5MDPZ0

I am doing 50 percent water changes daily...I am adding 40 to 50 grams of metro+ and 8 teaspoons of epsom salt

My water has no ammonia, no nitrates, no nitrite, no chlorine, a ph of 6.8 a temp of 83.6, and a kh value of 5...good water quality

I have added a tank divider placed so that Reimahg can stay upright...can be seen here

http://youtu.be/RvDxkNxT3ro

I am desperately trying to feed him peas...but he won't eat anything. ..

I want to do a more concentrated epsom salt bath in a 20 gallon but I can't find the help...any advice as always is much appreciated
 
No nitrates you say? Is the tank cycled? You should be reading at least a little nitrates... as far as the fish goes not sure what's wrong with him never had that happen to me maybe others will chime in with better advice

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Tank and filter are a year old...nitrates are very minimal. ..closer to zero than some...fish isn't eating...Therefore not pooping...is why no nitrates
 
Im not fish doctor, but I'd go get tetras' Parasite guard for your fish. It's worked on all parsite problems for me
 
The main active ingredient in Parasite Guard is Metronidazole, which the OP is already using. The rest of the active ingredients in Tetra PG aren't going to do sweet tweet for this fish.

Tyson, considering this fish has not responded to the epsom salt, or the metro, I would suggest now approaching this as a bacterial infection, and medicating with same. I would use something that treats for both gram positive, as well as gram negative bacteria. Something along the lines of Mardel Maracyn One & Two.


http://reviews.petsmart.com/4830/2753391/mardel-mardel-maracyn-two-reviews/reviews.htm

I have also used this product in combination with the original Maracyn on another betta that I had purchased; who had a really bad internal bacterial infection. He wouldn't eat, and his swim bladder was impaired so that he couldn't control his buoyancy, and kept floating up on his side. I really thought that he wouldn't make it, but I treated him anyway. Within a day he'd regained control over his buoyancy, and two days after that he was eating again. Once treatment was over he was better than when I purchased him.


Just remember what the vet stated in my previous posts, if there is organ damage it may not be something that you can resolve or fix. Hope for the best, but plan for the worst. Good luck.
 
Maracyn is a trade name for Erythromycin. Look for API Erythromycin, same thing.
 
What Tom said.

Maracyn is just a brand name of erythromycin, which treats gram positive bacteria. Maracyn 2 is minocyclin, a tetracycline antibiotic that is used to treat gram negative bacteria. Microbelift may or may not work as well, don't know.
 
ok...so im going to the store and getting erythromycin (for gram possitive) and im going to get tetracycline (for gram negetive) ...i cant possibly use both these products at the same time can I?
 
I would not recomend using them together. A great combination is Kanamycin and furan-2. Kanamycin may also be combined with tetracyclene. It has a broader spectrum of coverage and is absorbed better than maracyn-2. However it is diffacult to find and might have to be ordered. Remember this meds should be administered in a hospital tank as they will distroy your BB.
 
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