The Puffer Forum

Sorry to start another thread but I'm afraid if I put this in my other thread it might be missed. I think it's possible that I diagnosed my SAPS wrong. What looked like ich to start with is changing. It no longer looks like they are sprinkled with salt. Looks likes it might be velvet. I read that velvet starts off looking like ich, but changes in appearance. I also read that it basically presents with all the same symptoms. Both have clamped fins now with swollen/red gills. Neither are eating now . Patron lays on the bottom all day and Tito hangs out right under where the water comes out of the HOB. Could anyone post a good pic of a fish with velvet. When the bleeding hearts died their fins looked very ragged. Things are only getting worse!!! I've treated ich before with heat and salt with great success. They are just getting worse by the minute. I have a feeling when I wake up tomorrow they will be gone . I just really think this has got to be something besides ich. I started treating right when I saw it. I read on other sites that velvet is treated with copper based meds which I know are bad. At this point however I think this might be my only option to possibly save them. I have two mystery snails with them so I assume if I use copper it will kill them...or can I keep them in a separate container for now??? If the fish have it it's on the snails, right? I'm desperate and heart broken at this point and feel helpless. The temp is currently at 87 degrees. What is a good med to use if I need to go that route?

Parameters are
Ammonia-0
Nitrite-0
Nitrate-<20
30 gallon two sap's
4 ghost shrimp
2-mystery snails

Please help!

Should I try a saltwater dip maybe? I read about it in another thread. Could someone give me directions on how to do this?

Velvet & ich are 2 very common diseases SAPs come upon when newly purchased. Both are treated the same way. If at this point you haven't seen results & they are getting so bad they might die, then it is time to medicate as they might die anyway. Be sure to use something safe for scaleless fish. I'm not familiar with these meds, so I'm sorry I can't tell you what to use.

I woke up this morning and found Tito dead at the bottom of the tank. Patron is still swimming around but looks horrible

I'm sorry this is a tough one to beat. Did you get any meds?

No, I was gonna get some when I got off work but my husband couldn't find him. On my way home right now...I'm sure I'll find him

Could be Columnaris . They look similar but Columnaris kills very quicklly...Under 12 hours.

I want to say that for Columnaris you drop temp under 76 and add salt.

Here's a thread I had for it.

http://www.fishlore.com/fishforum/fresh ... -what.html


Goood luck.

Anytime I've seen columnaris, it looked nothing like velvet.

Well he's not dead!!!! I found him under the top frame of the aquarium swimming. I upped the heat a bit and added some more salt. If he survives until tomorrow morning I'm gonna look for ich attack. It's herbal and suppose to be safe for scaleless fish. Wish me luck. I wish I had Bern able to make it to petsmart before work today but life hot in the way and I just couldn't

Thanks JRC3,but that's not it. Not splotchy or as fuzzy looking.

Hi there,

Please, take this with a grain of salt. I recently thought my new (to me) puff was a goner. It was a problem I had experienced in the past, and only appeared characteristically columnaris-ey on a Cochu Tetra. On my SAPs, it was laboured breathing and loss of appetite, usually several hours after a water change (of all things). My A. modestus also exhibited panting at the top during these episodes, all vertical-zepplin-at-the-surface. The puffs had none of the tell-tale cottony growths on lips, or saddle-back. It takes a while to grow (and recognize) those white puffs or delineated markings. Sometimes you don't have that kind of time before it's dire.

Most recently, it was my new T. fluvatilis that was blackened and clamped and heaving heavily at the bottom. For maybe two days previous, he did have detectable white traces on the edge of his dorsal fin and one of his laterals but nothing like the devastating behavioural changes like heaving on the bottom with clamped fins, and being pushed around by the current. I thought he was totally toast.

But I did a peroxide dip.

About 55 ppm for 30 mins. (35 ml @ 3% per 20 gal) And today, Mr. fluvatilis is looking 75 percent better, with exceptionally diminished visible fin infection, and a white belly and an appetite! In addition to the dip, I dosed 250 mg/40g of Vitamin C the next morning (which I plan to continue), but it was really the peroxide that got him through the night. And no visible signs of distress during the dip. (Caused by the peroxide of course. He did dart across the rubbermaid container when I startled the little guy, but that's business as usual.)

Search around for info on peroxide doses. There's a lot of sources that talk about 10 ml per 10 gal for freshwater tanks and algae control. I was in a panic, so I tried what I could, but it I credit the H2O2 for saving my Ceylon.

They best med for scaleless fishes and weak ones to treat ick is Jungle Labs ICK GUARD 2, not regular ICK GUARD. I have used it on my plecos and catfishes with awesome results.

I found Patron stuck to the filter but he is still alive. I done a large water change and added Ich Attack, pimafix and melafix to the water. Heat is at 87. Hopefully when I get home tonight he will still be alive.

Don't forget, extra oxygen when treatin with those meds.

Unfortunately Patron did not make it . His fins were actually unclamped and moving before I went to work. My husband found him dead a few hours later...the damn snails were eating him