Help needed! Fluke outbreak in display tank!

[Newsmyrna80]

I think putting him in a separate QT is a good idea. Make sure all parameters match and I would aerate the water a lot. I'm wondering if the meds are too much for him.
I've had QTs in my dining room, living room and in my fish room at one point. Was not conducive for a happy household

 

[VJV]

I must say that my wife is amazing. She does not like it but as long as I am happy she is happy!... To a point. And when you add to the tanks having a 100litre container in the middle of the kitchen constantly being filled with RO, plus all the buckets and siphoning that goes with the water changes... Even I feel uncomfortable with the mess!

Moved him to a new 50L tank with an air stone inside. Used water from the other QT and added Seachem Stability bacteria. I have used it in other tanks in the past and managed to have zero ammonia during cycling. I do have some filter floss in the main tank that I could potentially use but 1) I have washed them two days ago with tap water so not sure they have any bacteria and 2) am afraid to re introduce flukes given that this water has already been treated.

Anyway, after spending the whole day yesterday laying on the floor barely breeding he is now moving around a lot and trying to get straight but still can not make it. But is moving a lot more so I hope this is a good sign.

He was definitely affected by the med, because after medicating the tank he immediately went belly up and I thought I had lost him. After adding an air stone he eventually managed to get back to a straight piston, but seemed like he had broken the spine or something as he would only swim in circles and the torso was twisted. After that with the relentless attacks from the Kole tang the next morning he was just lying on the bottom barely breeding. So I guess it can be one, or a combination of the following factors:

- sensitiveness to Praziquantel: I read that angels are sensitive to coper based medicine but never read , anything about Prazi. Still, this could explain the reaction to the medicine, or
- he was badly Attacked by the flukes and when all of them released he almost bled to death...??? Did not see any snowflakes in the water though...
- a combination of one of the above with a fatal attack from the Kole tail spike. I saw the tang repeatedly rubbing his tail against poor angel, and perhaps it managed to sting it? Not sure how toxic would that be though...

Anyway, hope tomorrow I wake up to a healthy angel

 

[Newsmyrna80]

Good move not using the filter floss from the main. How's the angel doing today?

 

[VJV]

He seems to continue to try to straighten up but is not able to do it, and just turns on itself lying on the floor...

Yesterday he was getting more lethargic and I decided to add Seachem Paraguard to the tank. Probably already a bit late but given that I suspected that the cause was the reaction to the other med I was hopping he would be stronger before medicating again. Anyway, I added the Paraguard and aft a couple of hours he has started to try to move again. Not sure if out of relief or actually out of stress from the meds...

Anyway, I guess I am fighting a loosing battle here. He has not eaten for 4 days and I do not know how to feed a fish that is lying on its side on the bottom and cannot move...

As for the rest, at least I would like to be sure of heat exactly do they have. Given that no fish (even the dead ones) ever displayed white spots, just discolored skin and fin erosion, as well as scraping and becoming reclusive a couple of days ahead of dying. I wonder if is is in fact Marine Velvet. My other fish all seem ok, except for the tang but he was particularly stressed we the move to the QT, not to mention the 80% water change soon after.

 

[Newsmyrna80]

Given the time length I don't think it's velvet. As far as the angel I would think that if it was disease related he would be gone by now. The tang may have injured him like you said. Have you tried to target feed the angel? Does he seem interested in food at all?

 

[VJV]

Help needed! Fluke outbreak in display tank!

How do I target feed? Also, if it is not ich and it is not velvet, and I do not see the snowflakes, what can it be? I read here that gill flukes would not be visible even after being dislodged...??? The reason I ask is because I am not sure if I should go through with the second dose of Tremazol or not (for the other fish), and whether I should than treat them with cupramine or rather go for Paraguard, which is a wider spectrum med and seachem claims it would also eradicate ich...

 

[Newsmyrna80]

You may not necessarily see flukes given they can be so small they can only be identified via a microscope. If there are no spots, heavy breathing and they are eating ok I would skip the copper. I've not used Paraguard so I have no personal experience with it. I will say that Paraguard, like any other "cure all" will not cure ich. The only proven treatments are laid out in Steve's stickies on fish parasites.
I target feed with a turkey baster.

 

[VJV]

My rationale for going with copper was in order to make sure that I am not putting back in the main tank marine ich or Velvet. From what I have read even if these fish are not displaying symptoms it does not mean that they not carry the parasite, and in a moment of stress when the immune system is down I could have an outbreak.

Given that I have the fish in the QT and they went through the stress of being caught and moved there, I figured that I might as well treat them (even if prophylactically) before putting them back in the main display.

According to what I have read cupramine is much softer on the fish than the other copper based medicines out there.