Sick new guy??

Oh no! Sick fish?! Come here and see if someone can help!
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Read this before posting!!

Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.

1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.

2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.

3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)

4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.

5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.

We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.

While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.

Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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toronto55
Puffer Fry
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Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2005 1:19 pm

Sick new guy??

Post by toronto55 »

Hey,

I just picked up a fahaka puffer from the LFS on Thursday. He is about 2-3 inches. He was in a tank with about seven others like him. He was the most active and had no marks or scratches or visible diseases on him. I took him home and put it in a tank and I've feed him and he is still very active most of the time. However,I have some concernes. First I have noticed the next hay that he has very very small spots on his fins (I'm almost certain its ich). Second, yesterday I looked in the tank in the morning and there is now a small white mark on his back (looks like a scratch or ich but it grew to quick to be ich (sure it wasn't there when I bought it. Finally, today I looked in the tank in the morning and now most of his back and head seem to be covered in a greyish/transparent film. He's still moving around and eating but Im scared he's in very big trouble here. I just checked him again and now that the light has been on for a while and he ate some food he appears to be almost back to his original colour again and the spot on his back is gone (changed in the last hour or so) :? so confused . (do puffers go greyish and fade colour when they sleep.

for short:
-most common diseases
-colour variation in sleep
- ich remedy
- any other thoughts comments on the conditions that I have sescribed

Thanks
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Pufferpunk
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Post by Pufferpunk »

Please read the 1st sticky in this forum & answer all the questions, so we can help in diagnosis.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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toronto55
Puffer Fry
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Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2005 1:19 pm

Post by toronto55 »

Okay, so I dont have the particulars of the water conditions right now, cause I'm at work so I'll get them up tomorrow afternoon once I'm off. Other than that, I've been doing weekly water changes in the tank 55 gallon he's in for now, at 1/3- to 1/2. Last change was last Sunday (again I'll have to do one in the morning cause new job has me at work at night). I had a rhom (black piranha) in the tank about a week and a half ago and my little bro accidently nocked the temperature up to high and killed him, so I did a 3/4 tank change and added some random assorted community fish (4 painted tetras, 4 bata sharks, and 5 commets). They have all been in the tank for about a week before I added the puffer. (they are all healthy and no diseases that I can see). As, far as cycling I'm not sure but I think the tank is cycled cause of the fish that have been in there for the past two weeks and the piranha before that. (not %100 sure about the cycling process.) Temp is about 76-78 degrees.
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toronto55
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Post by toronto55 »

Forgot, about the colour variation does anyone know the answer (see above).

P.S. every time I try to log on the forum it says my password is invalid and I have to reset it, anyone else getting this problem. Thanks
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Bred
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Post by Bred »

Another torontonian? Welcome!

Puffers do exhibit "sleep colouration" when sleeping, just waking up, or stressed. But this "greyish film" you've described sounds a little alarming. While you're testing those parameters, any chance you can snap a pic?

Please see the thread "Treating Puffers with Ich", it's stickied to the top of this forum.

How long did you have the pirhana?
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toronto55
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Post by toronto55 »

Thanks. Yeah, I'll get some pics of him posted tomorrow. The greyish firm scares me too cause I've seen it once before on a big dwarf tiger pleco I had a few years ago (who had ich and ended up dying within a few days of having the same symptoms; I didn't know what ich was at the time so I didnt treat it) :( Just don't know if it's something I can't see.

I had the piranha for two and a half years, he was about 6 inches when he died (turning dark and had dark cherry red eyes).
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toronto55
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Post by toronto55 »

Okay, new info. The ph is 7.2, the nitrates 10, nitrite 0, amonia 0, temp now 80-82, there is also 1 teaspoon of salt for every 5 gallons gust added, and did a half water change yesterday. Here are the pics of him, its hard to see the very small specs on his fins but one pic shows two distinve white spots, the other two show the grey discolouration accross his back and head (wasn't originall there when bought from store or not that apparent anyway).Image Image Image
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Pufferpunk
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C lorteti
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suvattii
burrfish
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Post by Pufferpunk »

I dunno, he doesn't look nearl as bad as you described. Maybe he's a little thin. His coloration is mottled, due to being in a new environment or sleeping, like you guessed. He's got a few bite marks on him but those heal quickly enough. What are you feeding him?
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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toronto55
Puffer Fry
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Post by toronto55 »

Hey, yeah like I said (may have accidently been in another post) anyways, was saying; the film more or less disappeared the other night and now he more or less is just discoloured. The pics don't show the spots on the fins that I think are the begining of ich.

You said you think those might be bite marks (I wasn't sure) cause they wern't there originally, but they may have shown up do to his new discolouration. I've been feeding him brine shrimp so far.
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Pufferpunk
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Posts: 32979
Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
Gender: Female
My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles
Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
Location: Greenville, SC
Contact:
Contact Pufferpunk

Post by Pufferpunk »

Read the info on GSPs in the Library, for better ideas on food. You might as well be feeding him water, cause brine shrimp is 98% that--not nutricious at all.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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toronto55
Puffer Fry
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Post by toronto55 »

k thanks, thats what the guy at the LFS said to feed them when they are small as their main staple food. Do you think this can be part of the cause for his discolouration/lack of good nutrients?
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Pufferpunk
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Posts: 32979
Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
Gender: Female
My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles
Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
Location: Greenville, SC
Contact:
Contact Pufferpunk

Post by Pufferpunk »

Not really. Many puffers will change coloration/hue at any time. Maybe he doesn't like that bright blue gravel... :lol: Definately needs a much better diet though.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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Post by Rocker »

Give him time to settle in - Fahaka's in particular 'sulk', this can last for days.Try to get him feeding on something more nutriciuos as PP has said.
Those marks do look like bite marks and depending on your lighting v the LFS lighting these can be seen obviously or not at all.Also as you say his colouration will also effect the clarity of them.
Image Some call it a product of a mis-spent youth, I call it Rock n Roll ! Image
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toronto55
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Post by toronto55 »

I have some new developments after taking some of the suggestions on the site. I've had the salt in the tank for three days now and have just done a second water change 1/3 (second in four days). Also, I fed dim some clam last night and some trout today (he eats everything, very happy about that) :lol: Finally I took out some of the decor in the tank, so it's less crowded (almost open for now and I'll try to reintroduce some things once he gets used to his new tank). Here are some pics from this morning. He is swimming around madly and his colours are very much more visible now, now he can start getting nice and fat. :P Image Image Image Image
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Post by Bred »

Yep, he's looking okay, but really skinny. See if you can fatten him up! If he doesn't fatten up in a few weeks or stops eating, you'll want to treat for internal parasites.
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