Hoping Someone Can Help

[BettaDame]

Hi, I am hoping someone here might have some idea of what is going on with my tank. I've lost several female bettas in the past few days and the rest are not looking too well.

Tank Stats:

20 gallon filtered/cycled tank with Whisper 10-30 filter, heated and stable at 80 degrees F.
All tank decorations and plants are specifically made for aquariums, no craft store plants or rocks from the back yard, etc. I do have a few sprigs of live cambomba in there, but everything else is artificial.

Inhabitants are formally seven now down to either three or four female bettas, four zebra danios, one b/n pleco and a few ghost shrimp.

Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
PH - 8
GH - 19
KH - 10
CO2 - 3

I've used up my Nitrate test supplies and was not able to test them.

Yesterday evening I came home to find one of my betta females laying at the top of the tank on a leaf dead. Another girl was laying on a leaf near her in very bad condition, a third girl had a strange white place on one side and the other females were pale and very stress striped. This only seems to have affected the female bettas. The zebra danios, pleco and ghost shrimp are not showing any symptoms at this time.

The dead girl showed no signs of any sort of problem. She was still in full color, no swelling, injuries or anything I could see with the naked eye. The girl that was dying passed away shortly after I removed her from the tank. I noticed that she seemed to have some whitish looking bulges around her stomach and gill area, not IN the gills, just around them. The other female that has the white patch is in quarntine now and holding her own, but staying clamped and at the bottom of the tank. This white patch is on her side just behind the gill and is about the size of my little fingernail. In the area of the white patch ONLY, she has pineconed so I assume she is holding fluid there?

I treated with an antibiotic and an antiparasitic to try to cover all bases, but this morning I have another girl laying at the top of the tank and one that I couildn't find at all before I left for work so she may be dead. Again, the zebras, pleco and ghosties are showing no symptoms.

I tested my tap water just to compare readings and the tap water was as follows:

Ammonia - 0
Nitrites - 0
PH - 7.5
GH - 13
KH - 9
CO2 - 9

I found it odd that my tank water was harder than my tap water and have some driftwood ready to go into the tank this evening to try to lower my tank PH a bit, but I don't know if the water hardness could cause something like this or not. Any thoughts or suggestions would be most welcome.

Thank you,
BD

 

[*Fishkies*]

Well the one who has pinconed has dropsy so it sounds. And more then likely the recovery rate for dropsy is usually 0. As for the others it sounds like they may have Body funugs. Does any of the whitespots look like that?

Also is there any way you could get a picture up at all?

 

[BettaDame]

Thanks for your reply, but it isn't dropsy. I guess I wasn't clear on how small the area is that is affected. The area is the size of the nail on my little finger, she's retaining fluid in that particular area which is causing the scales to stick out right there but no where else. It isn't even close to being a fourth of her entire body. I've lost fish to dropsy before and know the look well. This isn't it.

No, there is no fungus on any of the fish. These are areas where the scales and/or skin have turned white and look bulging or lumpy. I've had my share of fungus, too. I've kept bettas since the 1970's and have run into just about everything during that time but this is like nothing I've ever dealt with before. It isn't any of the normal run of the mill fish problems. That's why I posted here. I was hoping with the vast membership here someone else may have run into this at one time or another. I don't have a camera so I can't post a pic. Sorry.

But again, I thank you very much for replying.

 

[BettaDame]

The problem has been diagnosed and treatment has been started. Thank you.

 

[*Fishkies*]

Just curious....what did you find out it was??
If you don't mind sharing. Thanks!

 

[BettaDame]

Internal heximita, a protozoan that bettas seem prone to which often doesn't affect the other fish in the tank for some reason. I believe the external form is commonly known as Hole-in-the-head disease.

They are being treated with aquarium salt, temperature increased to 84 degrees, increased areation, Jungle Labs Parasite Clear which works on both internal and external parasites, and a wide spectrum antibacterial, Maracyn Plus, for good measure. Luckily, I was able to run across someone who had dealt with the exact same problem in the past and my girls are responding well to the treatment this morning.