Treatment resistant fin rot in guppies. Potential med?

[TwoTankAmin]

Sorry late to the thread. A few quick observations:

Phenoxyethanol is a colorless liquid with a pleasant odor. It is a glycol ether used as a perfume fixative, insect repellent, antiseptic, solvent, preservative, and also as an anesthetic in fish aquaculture.

from https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2-Phenoxyethanol

I cannot help much re meds since I would suggest things you cannot get if an antibiotic is needed.

Firstly, I have never kept gups. So I am not real familiar with their body profile. However, what I noticed from looking at your pics was come of the fish appeared bloated in the belly, others appeared to be very thin and a few looked to have bent spines. Can you confirm any of this or let me know it is more if a camera angle thing.

If you are indeed fighting a bacterial issue, then the antibiotics you cannot get are what you need.

If there is an internal issue because some fish are are actually too thin and others bloated, then there may be some things to try. But again, I am unfamilair with the UK fish med availability list. I keep Metronidazole, Levamisole HCL, Flubendazole and Praziquantel (PraziPro) in my med kit for internal parasites/worms.

 

[Colin_T]

I keep Metronidazole, Levamisole HCL, Flubendazole and Praziquantel (PraziPro) in my med kit for internal parasites/worms.

Flubendazole does the same thing as Praziquantel and Levamisole combined. You could drop the Praziquantel and Levamisole and just use the Flubendazole.

 

[itiwhetu]

So have these fish got fin rot or are we just treating them for the fun of it?

 

[coriesinhawaii]

I'm not familiar with phenoxyethanol but I wouldn't think it would be a good idea to put any type of alcohol into an aquarium

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

So have these fish got fin rot or are we just treating them for the fun of it?

Sure, I've medicated them for the fun of it. What fun it is too! What a ridiculous statement.

 

[itiwhetu]

Sure, I've medicated them for the fun of it. What fun it is too! What a ridiculous statement.

What are you now doing with these fish are you treating them or not?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

What are you now doing with these fish are you treating them or not?

I've explained earlier in the thread what I'm doing with them.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

What are you now doing with these fish are you treating them or not?

If you care to read the thread, you can see what I've tried, and you're free to make any suggestions of course.

 

[Lajos_Detari]

Just a quick one to help you summarize all.

I think first determine the severity of the infections.

For severe cases, all those Melafix, Pimafix, tea tree oil won't be able to help as they are only antiseptic for mild cases of bacteria infection.
TwoTank Admin was referring to King British Fin Rot when he mentioned 2-Phenoxyethanol. So, probably you can rule out this also.

For severe case, you have to use antibiotic.

From this website, https://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/AquariumMedication2.html , it seems that the first one on the list is Sulfaplex by Seachem.

Seachem - SulfaPlex

www.seachem.com

This is gentle and I hope it's strong enough to kill the bacteria that cause the fins rot.

Sulfas are considered all anti-bacterials (antimicrobials).
These drugs are bacteriostatic, meaning they inhibit the growth of the bacteria but do not kill them.
Sulfas are generally most effective against aerobic gram-negative organisms, and occasionally effective against anaerobic gram negative bacteria, but are not reliable against aerobic gram-positive bacterium such as Streptococcus

But if you feel that the above is not strong enough, then you can consider others from the website above.

Someone recommended Seachem Paraguard which is a general purpose medication for external parasites, fungal and bacteria.
Seachem doesn't mention what ingredient they used to treat the bacteria and we won't know how effective is the Paraguard.
Seachem only mentioned Malachite Green which is used to treat external parasites like ich and flukes.

Take note that all these antibiotics may affect your filter/beneficial bacteria.

Lastly, if you are still unsure, probably you can wait and observe first.

 

[coriesinhawaii]

Just a quick one to help you summarize all.

I think first determine the severity of the infections.

For severe cases, all those Melafix, Pimafix, tea tree oil won't be able to help as they are only antiseptic for mild cases of bacteria infection.
TwoTank Admin was referring to King British Fin Rot when he mentioned 2-Phenoxyethanol. So, probably you can rule out this also.

For severe case, you have to use antibiotic.

From this website, https://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/AquariumMedication2.html , it seems that the first one on the list is Sulfaplex by Seachem.

Seachem - SulfaPlex

www.seachem.com

This is gentle and I hope it's strong enough to kill the bacteria that cause the fins rot.

Sulfas are considered all anti-bacterials (antimicrobials).
These drugs are bacteriostatic, meaning they inhibit the growth of the bacteria but do not kill them.
Sulfas are generally most effective against aerobic gram-negative organisms, and occasionally effective against anaerobic gram negative bacteria, but are not reliable against aerobic gram-positive bacterium such as Streptococcus

But if you feel that the above is not strong enough, then you can consider others from the website above.

Someone recommended Seachem Paraguard which is a general purpose medication for external parasites, fungal and bacteria.
Seachem doesn't mention what ingredient they used to treat the bacteria and we won't know how effective is the Paraguard.
Seachem only mentioned Malachite Green which is used to treat external parasites like ich and flukes.

Take note that all these antibiotics may affect your filter/beneficial bacteria.

Lastly, if you are still unsure, probably you can wait and observe first.

From Seachem’s website:

“ParaGuard™ is the only fish and filter safe aldehyde based (10% by weight) parasite control product available (for parasites on fish). Unlike highly toxic and difficult to use formalin based medications, ParaGuard™ contains no formaldehyde or methanol and will not alter pH. ParaGuard™ employs a proprietary, synergistic blend of aldehydes, malachite green, and fish protective polymers that effectively and efficiently eradicates many ectoparasites (e.g. ich, etc.) and external fungal/bacterial/viral lesions (e.g., fin rot). It is particularly useful in hospital and receiving tanks for new fish and whenever new fish are introduced to a community tank.”

I recommended Paraguard because it’s actually available in the UK unlike many antibiotics. It has negligible side effects on fish relative to other treatments and doesn’t harm the biological filter in my experience. It’s labeled for treating fin rot. So I think if you’re not sure whether to treat or not this would be an ideal product to try because the risks would be minimal.