Silver Aro Gill Curl Video

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M

mikeo

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 27, 2009
13
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Boston
I noticed my Aro "Prince" breathing very heavy, opening and closing his mouth and the soft part of his gill (membrane) was flaring, also the hard part of his gills was opening very wide too. I could see his insides clearly So I did a 50% water change as soon as I saw it and added De-chlorinator. 3 days later I did a 20% water change. I cleaned the gravel both times. Today I added an air stone. Now he's not breathing nearly as heavy, but the soft/membrane part of his gills is stuck out like dumbo. I'd rather give him away than have to cut his gills and I don't want to press on his soft/membrane to flatten them out either. Is Prince going to be okay? I can post more videos. Any help is appreciated.

Size: 7"
Water temp: 84 degrees
Tank Size: 70Gal (I'm upgrading to a 250 in 2 months)
Filter: Pengiun 330 (I'm missing the bio wheels)
Ammonia: 0.25
Nitrite: 0.25
Nitrates: 40ppm? It could be 160ppm. The reds on the test kit all look the same to me.

Video 1: (front view)
http://www.vimeo.com/6632110

Video 2: (side view)
http://www.vimeo.com/6632547
 
Yeah, I don't want to press on his gills or cut them. I'd rather give him back to the store than do that. But I'd really prefer to keep him and cure him. So much for a pretty "hardy" fish.
 
My RTG has the same problem, i've no idea what caused it. I think it might have been a WC with cooler water because it happened in a day and it was just after a water change which was done in the morning and not the afternoon when the aged water will have warmed up.
I've already got a lot of air in the tank and I added a power head. I started changing water more frequently (50% per week instead of biweekly.) so water has always been clean. I added salt as well.
It never got any worse but it never got any better either. On water changes i've sort of tried the method in the link but watching my RTG smash into the glass with increasing force while chasing it has always stopped me.
I now have no option but to cut. I've come to the conclusion, if it needs to be done it needs to be done.
I went to a dealer of Asians here to talk about the process and he had a SR with gill curl, so i felt a bit better about the cause because if an experienced keeper of Asians fishes can be affected then it's pretty easy for it to happen to all Asians including my RTG.
The biggest fear i have of it is bagging the fish so i can put it to sleep, I'm worried it will go crazy as soon as it swims in the bag, (the bag will be kept in the water with the top out so i can put it to sleep in the bag but still in it's tank.) I don't want it to snap it's tail.
If i were you i wouldn't worry to much about doing it and don't beat yourself up about your fish getting it because to me it seems really easy for them to get.
If you don't fancy doing the cutting ask your LFS owner how much they will charge you to do it, it only takes a minute.
I'm going to ask how much before i don it myself.
 
I'd also like to add, IMO it's worth trying a power head and lots of water changes before you look into cutting. Another poster's silver was a lot worse than yours and the problem cleared up. Silvers seem to have bigger soft membrane than Asians so it might clear up easier.
Also your ammonia should be 0
 
I trimmed the gill curl off my green arowana when it was about 8'' long.Quite easy to do.Have a wet towel ready and laying on the ground to rest the aro on while cutting.Get a pair of curved nail clippers and sterilize them,also have some antiseptic ointment ready.Remove the aro,lay him on the wet towel,Cover is face with another damp cloth to keep him calm,carefully trim the curled part of the gill(flimsy part of gill not the hard part),then apply antiseptic to the gill and re-enter back into tank with the lights off.It shouldnt take longer than a minute or two.It will grow back perfect in a few weeks.
 
I think it happened after a water change with mine too. I also noticed his not swimming on the surface anymore, only when I turn the light off and switch a desk lamp on for his light. Can he live a normal life with curled membrane? The hard part of his gills haven't curled at all, its just the soft part appears stuck out now.
 
Try a power head, and do water changes regularly. They can live with gill curl but it'll get worse and worse. Have a look in the stickies.
 
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