Is this Brook?

[kelp47]

Hi. I have two black/white ocellaris in QT. I purchased them from my LFS on 2/24, and they came from ORA. I did a preventative treatment of Paraguard in the tank, and continued to dose daily for four days because I noticed a few small, but not worrisome white spots on the fish, and then cloudy eyes. They began to look better and I noticed that the Paraguard seemed to be stressing them out, so I stopped dosing after that. (I have since read that clowns might be more sensitive to this medication and should be given a smaller dose.)

Now it appears that one of the clowns has Brook. He has loose white stuff on his skin, mainly his face, and cloudy eyes. He occasionally surfaces for air. However, he seems to be eating okay (thought I did notice he spit some out today) and doesn't look terribly distressed. The other clown looks fine, but I know he is at risk.

So, considering that I have previously dosed Paraguard in the aquarium and might have just stopped short of full treatment, and that both fish are at risk, could I just resume dosing the aquarium with Paraguard?

 

[snorvich]

It does look like brook. I cannot intelligently comment on the desirability of using Paraguard for treatment.

 

[kelp47]

Thank you. It helps to at least have someone confirm the diagnosis. I have read your sticky on Brook, and I'm looking into these treatment options as well.

 

[Newsmyrna80]

If you don't have any formalin on hand (recommended treatment) you can give him a FW dip to relieve the symptoms and buy you a little, and I mean a little, time until you can get it.

 

[kelp47]

Well, Paraguard is supposed to include a formalin substitute as I understand it. It also includes Malachite Green. I did dose the tank earlier, but one of the clowns (the one that didn't show any symptoms) seemed to become stressed and really lethargic. After about 30 minutes I changed a very small amount of water (about 4%) and put in a carbon filter. I am about to take the carbon filter out now, and I'll try to dose a lower amount tomorrow. The fish showing symptoms seemed to tolerate the medicine pretty well, and he is still acting fine and eating.

I think the medicine was working when I initially put it in last week, but I stopped too early because I thought the fish were stressed out. So I'm hoping that I can dose a slightly lower amount for a longer period of time.