Help, something went very wrong in Quaranteen

[rishma]

I picked up a pair of Bengaii today at a LFS. I have not bought from a LFS in years....

I have a 10 gal QT set up with biological filter and a heater. The biological filter normally is stored in my DT sump so it is good and manture.

I fill the QT with DT water, acclimated the pair, and put them in. No issues. THey even ate some pellets this afternoon.

About 30 minutes ago, I dosed Cupramine and PraziPro at the recommended doses. When I went to check on them, one was laying on the bottom. The other was hiding. I could not see any labored breathing but they didnt seam right. The one on the bottom almost appeared to be not breathing at all. Bengaii do not normally rest on the bottom IME.

I immediately filled a bucket with DT water, and moved the fish to the bucket. I have them in there with a heater and air pump.

WHat could have gone wrong? The mdeications are new. I did notice the fish seemed to react when I added the PraziPro, but I didnt think anything of it at the time.

YOur help is appreicated.

 

[humaguy]

I would not have dosed both at the same time...that' alot of medication...
Sure you dosed the Cupramine correctly? Calls for the proper dosage to be added over two days...sometimes, depending on the fish, some spread it out over 3 days...

 

[rishma]

I am sure the cupramine was done correctly. 2 drops per gallon (I did 18 drops, 10 gallon tank). You are supposed to repeat the dose after 48 hours.

I agree that I should not have dosed all the meds at once, but the reaction seems pretty severe.

 

[humaguy]

My bottle says 16 drops per 10.5 gallons and repeat in 48 hours...also says not to mix with any other med...strong stuff...seem to recall a threat on mixing these two meds...try searching that...might get some help there..
good luck and hope all will work out..

 

[suta4242]

What do you have for water circulation in the QT?

Personally I only ever add cupramine over a couple of hours for each dose and always keep high flow on while its being mixed. You don't want high concentration of medication in a small area where the fish could be swimming...copper is very rough on the gills.

JMO but even if you added the prazi simultaneously I'm not sure that resulted in what you're seeing.

Good luck and hope it works out for you!

 

[eholceker]

I would have let the fish settle in before adding copper.

 

[tcmfish]

You CAN dose cupramine and prazi together. But some fish react negatively to elavated levels of copper initially. Maybe they were overdosed.

Also they are pretty hard to pair. So maybe she tried to kill the other one. Not uncommon IME.

 

[rishma]

Thanks for input all.

I left the two in a bucket overnight. I changed 100% of the QT water with DT water and put them back in. I am happy to report that they seem to be doing well and both ate well today.

I think I am going to give it 24 hrs, then try the Prazipro by itself for a week.

Is there any guidance on Prazi or should I just follow the directions?

tcmfish- I know they can be tough to pair. I once bought a pair (sold as an established pair) who then beat the crap out of eachother. These two seem very comfortable together for now. No aggression. They are juveniles. A couple months from now when they are established in the tank will be the real test.

 

[humaguy]

Prazi is wonderful if used for what needs to be treated and is not nearly as harsh as cupramine...so glad things are looking well!! excellent news! please keep us updated...
follow the directions on the bottle...

 

[Recty]

Any chance you used a product like Seachem's Prime in the QT before adding the fish just to make sure there was no ammonia? Or in your makeup water?

You shouldnt put any copper product into a tank that has had something like Prime used on it for 48 hours. I'm not sure what is going on chemically but Seachem tech support very firmly told me dont do it, the product will break down bonds in the copper solution and make it 10 times more potent with the easy potential to kill your fish at what you think would be a easily safe dose.

Anyway, if you used Prime or one of those other water conditioning products on your main tank and then moved the filter over or else used it directly on your QT, that could very well be the culprit.

I've used cupramine and prazipro both dosed at the same time many times over the last few years and never had a problem. I typically didnt dose both at once though, I'd do Prazi in the morning and then cupramine at night, and then keep the cupramine topped off to therapeutic levels nightly.

 

[rishma]

I have never heard of prime or used it but thanks for the thought.

I will dose Prazi tomorrow and update this thread.