Please help

[Eshe]

I had a male guppy get dropsy and before I really noticed it he had been in there for a week. I removed him and he passed away. Then about two days later one of my female guppies back fin was as clamped as it could be so I removed her. When I took a closer look it looked like the skin on her tail was peeling off and there were some dark spots. She is dead now. These were both fish I have had for about a month. I have another female guppy know that has a body fungus, I think. She has little bits of white filmmy stuff on her on side. Today she looks worse so I am going to remove her from my tank and try to save her. I don't think any of my other fish are sick but is there something I can do to make sure I get ride of any little bit of the diseases in my tank? I really don't want to lose anymore fish. Also could you tell me something I can do for the last female I told you about?
Everything is all right, the temp is about 75 degrees F, and are water is kind of hard.
It is an 11 gallon, I have nine other guppies in there, I also have a filter, and a heater.
I have just been salting my tank trying to get ride of any other diseases and have been salting the sick fish hopeing it would help them.

 

[Angel Lady]

what do you mean by little bits is it like spots that look like salt it sounds to me like one of them has tail rot what are your water readings like ammonia and nitrite how much salt are you putting in there with them? could it be that you are using to much you need to put some maracyn in with the one that has tail rot. Salt is good for most livebearers just make sure that you dont use to much.

 

[lordmoose]

Hmm...the spots could suggest any number of things. Have you noticed any other symptoms such as colours fading beneath the skin, yellowish tiny spots, possibly moving? (I ask this because clamped fins are often a sign of velvet....
You said you are salting the tank? What sort of salt are you putting in? I really advice you not do this especially if you are using table salt, it's more likely to do more harm than good. For now all I can suggest is using a good all purpose fungacide such a myxazin, but any more detail in symptoms would help.
Sorry to hear about your losses

 

[Eshe]

The last female I ask about has white filmmy stuff on her, like a fugus. My other two fish are aleady dead I was just wondering if there is something I can do to get any of the disease out of my tank, so my other fish don't get it. The fish got sick before I started to put salt in. So in other words I started puting salt in to see if it would help them so the salt wasn't what caused it. My ammonia readings and nitrate ect readings are all fine.
No I am not useing table salt, that would be dumb, I'm not a newbie at haveing fish. I am useing a salt that a pet store told me to use, because it shouls help cure and destroy most diseases.
Right now my one female has no other symptoms, she seemed to not want to swim around this morning, but now she is swimming around fine, she still has the white stuff on her on side.
Oh yeah and the white stuff is on her skin, not on her fins.

 

[lordmoose]

First of all nobody's calling you a newbie, and I didn't suggest that salting the tank caused the problems, rather that it's unlikely to help. I'm simply trying to get as much information so I can try and help.

It certainly sounds like some kind of fungus, not sure what but I suggest treating the tank a good quality general purpose fungacide/bacercide such as Myxazin.

 

[loachylover]

I lost my 3 spot gourami the same way, it started out as a bulge on his side,his colours were faded, then the bulge went a brownish colour, then the skin where the bulgewas became "white filmmy stuff", i teated the tank with Myxazin, although i lost him(to far gone by the time i realised what was wrong) none of my other fish have contracted the disease and this happened over a month ago. So to cut a long story short i would defintetly treat you tank with Myxazin sooner rather than later

 

[lordmoose]

Bingo! I seriously think it's Columnaris (unless the film is more on the head and fins in which case it's more likely to be Chilodonella)

I say Columnaris or "cotton wool disease" because livebearers are more prone to it than other species.

I may be wrong on this one but at any rate you need to treat the tank ASAP with a fungacide such as Myxazin.

 

[Eshe]

Yes, I have treated my tank with Myxazin. I lost the female, when I looked at her (after she had died) where the fugus was it had turned a yellowish brown color, it almost looked like it was eating through her skin. I just hope my other fish don't get sick.

 

[Eshe]

I just lost another female to the same type of thing and I have one more that has the fungus on her. None of the medications are helping.

 

[semper fi]

fish are much like people. they carry pathogens that can cause disease with them. these pathogens are kept at bay by their immune system which the gill play a part in. when a fish's immune system is decreased the pathogens take over and disease results. one of the main causes of a reduction of the immune system is stress. stress is divided into three main classes - environmental, transportation and temperature. environmental stress is an increase of water parameters, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates or changing their decor. transportation stress is caused from moving the fish, buying them and bringing them home or moving them to a new tank. temperature stress is caused by fluctuations of water temp. water should be raised and lowered slowly to not cause stress.

once the fish's immune system is decreased, pathogens can attack the body. pathogens are divided into two classes, gram negative and gram positive. gram negative is external pathogens. you will notice changes in the look of the fish. ich is an external or gram negative pathogen. gram positive is internal pathogens. these usually are the type of pathogens that the fish carries with them that are kept dormant by the immune system. gram positive pathogens are usually detected by clamped fins, bloating, listlessness and lack of appetite.

gill function plays an important part in helping the fish to rid itself of excess pathogens. if gill function is handicapped the fish can become diseased. aquarium salt helps to promote proper gill function. salt also helps to rid the aquarium of certain parasites. salt cannot be used in tanks with scaleless fish though. it will burn the fish. scaleless fish are usually immune to ich as the parasite does not have the capability of burrowing through the tougher skin to enter the host fish.

i would treat your tank with maracyn II. it sounds like you have a gram negative pathogen attacking your fish. also salt the tank which you have done. one rounded tablespoon per every ten gallons of water. do water changes of about 10% every day replacing the recommended salt dosage to the amount of replacement water. salt is too heavy to be dissipated with water so will remain in the tank. before adding any scaleless fish into the tank ensure that all of the salt is removed. maracyn products also will not affect the nitrobacter or nitrosomonas which are the beneficial bacteria that exists in the gravel bed.

semper fi

 

[Eshe]

Thank you for you help,
What ever my poor fish have is eating right through them. It starts out looking like itch/ick or a fungus then the back fin almost seems to start unraveling, then it litterly starts to eat through the fish. I just noticed how bad it was on my fav. female, none of the other fish survived this long (she is a fighter). Now what ever it is eating through her fins and her skin. The disease has dissolved one of my other males front fin and is attacking his body and back fin now, same with one other female. I still have 4 others left and they look alright, I removed them I fast as I could from the tank.

 

[semper fi]

does it look like blisters on the scales of the fish that open up to sores. kinda red and inflamed looking? just to be on the safe side, do not handle any of the fish barehanded. use some rubber gloves and wrap any corpses in tinfoil and throw them out in the garbage. sorry to sound so cruel. also do not use any of the nets with any of your other tanks.

semper fi

 

[Eshe]

Yes, that is what it ends up turning into. Do you know what it might be? I am already bleaching my net.

 

[Mollie*fish*lover]

Um for the female that died i really dont think its eny thing you guys said it was! i think it is ICK and ICK will kill your fish! you need to go to a pet store and get a cure!

 

[Eshe]

I already have a cure for ick and used it and it didn't do anything. I am wondering what type of disease whould eat right through a fish.