The Puffer Forum

+1. The other thread I linked you to may have been the exact same thing, and was cured with basically just water changes and melafix/pimafix.

Alright, I will start with the Pima/Melafix then. Those are biofilter safe, correct?

I work in the supplement industry, I am always down for natural remedies first. Tea tree and Bay Leaf are pretty damn effective.

I did a 75% water change. Fed Pazuzu some blood worms. Pimafix and Melafix have been added. I added an extra filter for increased water circulation/aeration. Carbon has been removed from filters.

And now... I wait. Sigh.

How long should I wait before I switch to the Maracyn if he doesn't show signs of improvement or if he regresses?

Maracyn is also biofilter safe, it's actually what I used to get rid of cyanobacteria once per RTR's suggestion. Considering the severity, based on that photo, I'd personally add the maracyn now along with the others. I'd be afraid to wait. That's just what I would do. If the lips were just a little fuzzy or irritated, I'd just go with the natural cure, but a flappy mouth like that, I wouldn't take a chance. That's your call though for sure.

Please keep us updated on his progress.

Sevenyearnight, I am one step ahead of you . As much as I like natural vs "pharmaceutical" approach, with the infection as advanced as it is I would hate to let it regress any more before moving forward. I added the Maracyn too. I would hate to have him die, and wonder if I could have saved him with the Maracyn I had sitting on the shelf by the tank.I don't know what the life span of these small puffers is, but Pazuzu is at least 5 years old. Illness strikes quickly in the elderly, a day could mean the difference between life and death

I am glad that this is happening on my 2 days off instead of the work week, because I can focus my attention to the tank. But now I need to leave it alone before I nurse him to death. I don't do well with idle hands, time to put together some of the crap, err, cool furniture my girlfriend bought at Ikea and leave the poor fish alone.

I will keep you all updated.

Yes, please let us know Rob.
lol, I think Ikea has pretty sleek stuff, very minimal and modern, I like simple. Gaudy furniture stresses me out. My husband seems to like the gaudy stuff. It doesn't make for an easy compromise. You should see our hideous coffee table. It's like a flattened wooden pirate treasure chest on curvy cast iron legs. Sigh. He LOVES it.

No progress today. I am going to do my water change, and retreat the tank.

The infected area of his mouth hasn't spread aggressively... I may be imagining it, but it looks like the area around the infection is lightening up a little bit though.

Hopefully that's the case. Large water changes should help in conjunction with the melafix and pimafix. Looking forward to hearing good news!

Hope he heals up quickly!!! Manson's mouth healed quickly but I believe we are dealing with something different here. I still believe that crap wood I put in his tank led to his illness.

Update:
Today was day 4 of the Maracyn/Pimafix/Melafix treatment with daily ~40% water changes.

His mouth still pretty ragged, but it looks like it is healing. It is definitely not visibly regressing, but the edges of the sore are still white and a little rough. Tomorrow is the last dose of Maracyn, and I will continue the Mela/Pimafix through Monday.

He is still eating, but it looks like it agitates the sore when he has to use his mouth. He is also still very active. His behavior has not changed.

Any advice for if it still looks like it is infected after I run the first course of meds?

Thanks again for the well wishes and advice.

I guess I would continue the meds if he is showing improvement. Do a large water change, and continue until it is better. If he were not showing improvement, I'd change from the maracyn to something else. Since maracyn is aimed at gram-positive bacterial infections, I'd try something aimed at gram-negative. But if you feel as though it's getting better, just continue.
This is just what I would do.

White tissue is much better than red.

It isn't red, maybe it is healing, but the edges of the wound are definitely not as "clean" as they were before. Now it is just white and fleshy. Could that be scar tissue or something building up?

He also appears to have a little white patch developing on the top of his body. I tried to get a good picture, but I couldn't get one that showed the detail I am seeing with my eyes.

Here is a picture I took on the 14th.




Here is a picture I got tonight on the 16th.





with this angle you can still see the white patch developing on the top of his body


It looks worse to me... Although it is hard to tell because the picture isn't the same angle or lighting, Pazuzu wasn't co-operating and there wasn't as much natural light in the room. However you can clearly see there is more white tissue building up.

I plan to do a second round of Maracyn, and I am considering adding a second anti-biotic aimed at gram-negative... All I can find for gram negative is an API product called Furan-2. I would have to have that rushed from Amazon, it isn't carried locally. Does anybody have any experience with Furan-2?

I think it looks worse too, I don't have experience with furan 2, but I do have maracyn 2, and it's for gram-negative, I got it at petsmart I think.
This type of medication will normally impact your biological filtration, so keep an eye on the parameters and have some Prime on hand.
I don't know about dosing both maracyn and maracyn 2 together, but you could call the company and find out.