Red Wagtail Fish Bloated Belly (Possibly Dropsy?). Any Advice Appreciated.

Hi!,

This is only my second post but judging from the title is pretty similar to my first.

I have got another fish seemingly with a health issue and so am posting here to ask for advice (as I did previously).

Unfortunately on the previous occasion my poorly fish turned out to have a tumour which couldn't be treated, however this time the problem would appear to be not the same and I suspect is dropsy which I understand can be treated and cured potentially (so I am more hopeful).

I recently added a few new fish to my fairly small 70 litre tropical tank which were extra Red Wagtail's, Neon Tetra's and some new additions which were Blue Tuxedo Guppies (which I have owned in the past). I have also given the tank itself a bit of a revamp by adding in some new ornaments and natural underwater plants. Additionally I have changed a larger quantity of water than usual since the water quality wasn't as clear as I wanted it to be and begun adding in the natural water treatment chemicals I have got more frequently since I have finally decided to be more assertive in my cleaning routine (not that I feel I had ever let the tank become dirty as such!). I have just upgraded my old fish cleaning gear, buying some new more effective/efficient devices and 'knick knacks' in order to help me stay on top of doing the cleaning!.

Can anyone confirm to me whether the condition my fish has got is Dropsy or whether it is possibly a different health condition and what action I should be taking? (I have included some pictures). I am of the current understanding that if my fish has got dropsy then it should be separated from the other fish and provided with healthy nutrient rich food in order to best treat the condition (is this correct?).

I shall be very grateful for any advice anyone can offer me. Alex.

Is it showing any signs of dropsy? Pine cone like scales, bulging eyes, pale gills, etc. ?

I feel that the gills are looking a little pale and have got some dark patches.

The fish seems to have been in this state easily for a month, so im fairly certain that it isn't pregnant (which was what I had originally thought).

I think it's dropsy. It doesn't seem to have a dark gravid spot, and its belly is just HUGE!

Do fish with dropsy need separating?. I mean is there a possibility of it spreading to other fish?.

Well, I've had dropsy on one of my guppies (it seems to be really common with guppies), and I just put it in a 2 litre container free of any harmful chemicals. She was dead the next morning But really, there is no cure for dropsy, and unless you know for sure it is dropsy, take her out of her misery (killing her) because she will die in the end anyway. It's very rare for a fish to survive dropsy, and I mean 1 in a million chance. I know killing her is not a very pleasant and nice thing to do, but it's best for her. Let me know if she has pineconing!

This looks like a male fish. Probably dropsy

BIG_AL said:

… Additionally I have changed a larger quantity of water than usual since the water quality wasn't as clear as I wanted it to be and begun adding in the natural water treatment chemicals I have got more frequently since I have finally decided to be more assertive in my cleaning routine (not that I feel I had ever let the tank become dirty as such!). I have just upgraded my old fish cleaning gear, buying some new more effective/efficient devices and 'knick knacks' in order to help me stay on top of doing the cleaning!.

Click to expand...

What are the natural water treatment chemicals you are using?

The only knick knacks you need for an aquarium is a basic model gravel cleaner and some clean buckets that are used only for the fish.
The following link has a basic model gravel cleaner.

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The fat platy appears to be a male (as stated by JuiceBox) so it is not pregnant.

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If the fish is eating, it is not dropsy. Fish with dropsy stop eating, swell up like a balloon overnight, and usually do a stringy white poop. They normaly die 24-48 hours after showing these symptoms.

If a fish does develop dropsy, it's a good idea to remove the fish asap so the other fish don't pick at it and possibly catch the same infection.

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If the fish has been like this for over a month, it is either intestinal worms or a tumour. There is no treatment for a tumour and you euthanise the fish when it stops feeding or has trouble swimming.

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Intestinal worms can be treated easily. See following directions.

Livebearers like guppies, mollies, swordtails & platies are regularly infected with gill flukes and intestinal worms.

You can use Praziquantel to treat tapeworm and gill flukes. And Levamisole to treat thread/ round worms. If you can't find these medications, look for Flubendazole, which treats both lots of worms.

Remove carbon from filters before treatment and increase aeration/ surface turbulence to maximise oxygen levels in the water.

You treat the fish once a week for 4 weeks. The first treatment will kill any worms in the fish. The second, third and forth treatments kill any baby worms that hatch from eggs inside the fish's digestive tract.

Treat every fish tank in the house at the same time.

You do a 75% water change and complete gravel clean 24-48 hours after treatment. Clean the filter 24 hours after treatment too.

Do not use the 2 medications together. If you want to treat both medications in a short space of time, use Praziquantel on day one. Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate on day 2 & 3. Treat the tank with Levamisole on day 4 and do a 75% water change and gravel clean on day 5, 6 & 7 and then start with Praziquantel again on day 8.

The water changes will remove most of the medication so you don't overdose the fish the next time you treat them. The gravel cleaning will suck out any worms and eggs that have been expelled by the fish. Repeating the treatment for 3-4 doses at weekly intervals will kill any worms that hatch from eggs. At the end of the treatment you will have healthier fish.

I agree with everything stayed above. Although I have had fish with dropsy last over a week before carking it

Thanks for the advice Colin/everyone.

The chemicals which I have got to treat my water are called Tap Water Conditioner (removes chlorine, chloramine and neutralises heavy metals) and Bio-Boost (beneficial bacteria which helps to reduce ammonia and nitrate).

I only meant a couple of glass cleaners and mini fish nets when I said knick knacks although I have now got 2 separate gravel cleaners now (one which plugs into the mains, but can hang onto the outside of the tank when in use).

I will look into purchasing the medications which you recommended to test whether the problem my guppy has got is worms and to try and treat it if so.

If it is worms then obviously am hoping not to pass the problem on to any other fish in my tank, but it will obviously require resolving as an overall problem.

If one fish has worms, they all have worms. Treat all tanks for worms at the same time to prevent cross contamination.

You should also treat all new fish for intestinal worms while they are in quarantine and before they get added to the main display tank/s.

I notice that you are located in Australia.

I will have to check whether Praziquantel, Levamisole and Flubendazole are stocked in one of my local tropical fish/aquarium product dealer/store's here in the UK and if not guess I will want to buy one of our own UK equivalent brands.

I think Essjay recommends esha something for intestinal worm medications in the UK. They contain Praziquantel and Levamisole.

Maybe start a new thread asking what medications contain Praziquantel and Levamisole in the UK.

eSHa gdex for flatworms (contains praziquantel)
eSHa-ndx for round worms (contains levamisole)

Other products include
nt labs anti fluke and wormer (contains flubendazole)
Kusuri wormer plus (contains flubendazole) - sold mainly for discus, comes as a powder which is quite hard to dose in smaller tanks
Sera nematol (contains emamectin)

I'll leave it to Colin to tell you which of these products would be the best one(s) to use going by the ingredients.

Use the esha products and treat for thread/ round worms first.
esha ndx would be the first one to try.

If the fish has round/ thread worms, it will expel the worms and lose weight within a few hours of being treated. If it hasn't lost any weight after 24 hours, do a huge water change and gravel clean the substrate, then use the esha gdex product for tapeworm.

If there's no weight loss after both of those deworming medications, the fish probably has an internal growth/ tumour and there is nothing you can do for it.