Gill Parasties?

[superswimmer]

I recently purchased a Pearl Scale butterfly, and after I added it to my tank, I noticed it breathing very quickly, at first I thought it was just a response to being stressed during transient and that it would calm down. However, it has been almost a week and it the fish still breathes pretty quickly, and I have also witnessed it scratch itself on the rocks a few times. Also, it twitches a lot and has random paroxisms, jerking every now and then.

Do you think it has flukes? How do you tell? I have attempted a freshwater dip. I poured freshwater into a container at around 78-80 degrees, adjusted the pH with baking soda and popped the fish in. The fish seemed very distressed and quickly laid on it side, and thus the bath was short, only about a minute.

Other than the rapid breathing, the butterfly is eating and behaving close to normal, with no visible signs of external illness.

 

[TerryB]

Gill flukes are possible. Best treatment is a series of 3 formalin dips. Learn how to doit correctly first.

Terry B

 

[fluidimagery]

Also, I believe the fish laying on it's side for a minute is normal... try to push it a little to make him move. If he's still laying on his side for more than a minute it may be over stressing the fish. I have the same exact thing going on in my tank.. the biggest problem is getting the fish out of the tank.