Flaky Epidermis - what's wrong ?
- Thread starter Bloo
- Start date
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Fish Herder
no, i wouldn't use any salt in the main tank...i would remove her each time to a small (1 gallon or less) container to perform the salt bath and leave the main tank untreated for the time being...the trick with the salt bath is the change in osmotic pressure due to the differences in salinity between the water and the fish's body...you want to be moving her across the largest variation of degrees of salinity (i.e. absolutely in a tank with NO salt to a small container with high concentration of salt and back to a tank with NO salt) to get the best results
As theres no sign of it anywhere else and you have only had her three weeks then its puzzling. You cant salt the main tank with the other fish so it would be best to do it seperate.
I still think its a type of planaria though. Tomorrow get the salt and i will tell you how to add it and i'm sure they will fall off, i hope
The problem is, if you put her back in will she get them again!
And theres nothing on the other fish? sorry, i'm sure youve had a good look.
I still think its a type of planaria though. Tomorrow get the salt and i will tell you how to add it and i'm sure they will fall off, i hope
The problem is, if you put her back in will she get them again!
And theres nothing on the other fish? sorry, i'm sure youve had a good look.
OP
OP
Bloo
~ I learn something new ~ ~~~~ every day ~~~~
OK, here are some piccies of the other 2 females (I had to put the one into a cup as she's always manic - she wasn't impressed being in the glass to have her pic snapped 
).
So I really cannot see any remote trace on them
Mollies and cats are totally impossible to get pics of, but they are certainly clear too.
So compare the above two with the affected one below.
Bizarre......
). So I really cannot see any remote trace on them
Mollies and cats are totally impossible to get pics of, but they are certainly clear too.
So compare the above two with the affected one below.
Bizarre......
It IS bizarre. But after all is said and done and little Ms.Worms is well-you should do something with that photo. It's so ubelievably clear. I'd say we could write up a disease profile but who the heck knows what it is for sure
It is a stunning pic of those worms. The other two look clear, but..... on the orange one theres three strands sticking up blurrily i might add from above her head, right at the top from her gill. Can you see them? Tose could be the same things 
go take a look, again
go take a look, again
Ive been looking around and i now think it could be skin flukes. These are tiny worms and the treatment is with salt baths at .3% for 3 days.
Not the writer of this informaion.
Skin Flukes- Flukes are trematode worms up to 0.8 mm or .03 in in length. They attach themselves to the fish sometimes near the gills, by using a sucker with two clasping hooks and then they proceeded to feed on the fish skin cells. It is possible to see the flukes by using a low-powered microscope. These worms are forever producing. (the adult produces young, and even the young is producing a younger worm within it) Serious infections can result, and minor ones are less likely to be noticed. You should assume that if you are treating for a bacterial infection that you treat for Flukes as well. They are easily seen with a microscope. Most species of fish can become infected with this problem. Symptoms: The fish may rub against hard objects, and the skin may appear opaque or inflamed. Treatment: Easily treatable with Potassium permanganate, or Fluke tabs. Another known remedy is using a 3% salt dip to rid fish of the parasites. The best advice given is to keep your fish in tip-top health. Keep the tank clean, and the water conditions accurate.
Skin Flukes- Flukes are trematode worms up to 0.8 mm or .03 in in length. They attach themselves to the fish sometimes near the gills, by using a sucker with two clasping hooks and then they proceeded to feed on the fish skin cells. It is possible to see the flukes by using a low-powered microscope. These worms are forever producing. (the adult produces young, and even the young is producing a younger worm within it) Serious infections can result, and minor ones are less likely to be noticed. You should assume that if you are treating for a bacterial infection that you treat for Flukes as well. They are easily seen with a microscope. Most species of fish can become infected with this problem. Symptoms: The fish may rub against hard objects, and the skin may appear opaque or inflamed. Treatment: Easily treatable with Potassium permanganate, or Fluke tabs. Another known remedy is using a 3% salt dip to rid fish of the parasites. The best advice given is to keep your fish in tip-top health. Keep the tank clean, and the water conditions accurate.
According to that then you cant see them with the naked eye. 
OP
OP
Bloo
~ I learn something new ~ ~~~~ every day ~~~~
I'm tired of taking pics tonight ! but anyway, here goes (again......)I've take two more pics of the crownie female - as it truely is impossibly to see with the naked eye, and I myself can only see it by taking a picture.
So, after looking very closely (not sure if I'm imagining things now) there might be 1 of these things on the crownie
Oh well that's it for tonight. Will resume this after buying the salt - as it seems that is they way to go for now.
Thanks again to everyone trying to help !
Planaria are flatworms and members of the Platyhelminthes phylum.
The planaria won't hurt the fish, but they are a symptom of too much gravel containing too much uneaten food.
Planaria are omnipresent (they’re everywhere, like the bacteria in your filter) and cannot be elliminated.
To reduce planaria, reduce their food supply.
Is it possilble there is dirty gravel under plants or in caves.
Are your bottom dwellers collecting it somewhere?
FYI: I culture planaria as an added food source for my heartier fry (live bearrers mostly).
The planaria won't hurt the fish, but they are a symptom of too much gravel containing too much uneaten food.
Planaria are omnipresent (they’re everywhere, like the bacteria in your filter) and cannot be elliminated.
To reduce planaria, reduce their food supply.
Is it possilble there is dirty gravel under plants or in caves.
Are your bottom dwellers collecting it somewhere?
FYI: I culture planaria as an added food source for my heartier fry (live bearrers mostly).
OP
OP
Bloo
~ I learn something new ~ ~~~~ every day ~~~~
Thanks Tim.
These fish actually get fed very sparingly and probably on average only 5 times a week. They gobble up the food within minutes and there is never any that goes uneaten. It can't "sink" into the gravel either, as it's a sand substrate and the cats & flounder will hoover up everything that could be sitting on top of the sand. I only have 2 pieces of wood in the tank, so no caves as such. The filter media always gets rinsed in siphoned tank water and the outer body gets washed under a showerhead.
Water stats are always good. Nitrates around 20 and no ammonia and nitrite. PH around 7.4
They only thing I do have sitting on the sand (hence cleaning the tank and doing a 20% water change every 5 days) is fish poo.
These fish actually get fed very sparingly and probably on average only 5 times a week. They gobble up the food within minutes and there is never any that goes uneaten. It can't "sink" into the gravel either, as it's a sand substrate and the cats & flounder will hoover up everything that could be sitting on top of the sand. I only have 2 pieces of wood in the tank, so no caves as such. The filter media always gets rinsed in siphoned tank water and the outer body gets washed under a showerhead.
Water stats are always good. Nitrates around 20 and no ammonia and nitrite. PH around 7.4
They only thing I do have sitting on the sand (hence cleaning the tank and doing a 20% water change every 5 days) is fish poo.
OP
OP
Bloo
~ I learn something new ~ ~~~~ every day ~~~~
Yeah ! Got my salt
So what to do now ?
Tim, definitely absolutely nothing on the glass
so I guess it's still not 100% certain what it is, but probably safe enough to try the salt first and just see how she responds.
So what to do now ?
Tim, definitely absolutely nothing on the glass
so I guess it's still not 100% certain what it is, but probably safe enough to try the salt first and just see how she responds.Similar threads
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