New seahorse convulsions & outflow problems

[billygalaxy]

We just bought home our pair of captive bred kuda ponies who have been at the LFS since about February. Last night after they were acclimated to our 30 gallon tank and fed, the female swam up to the outflow and her head got briefly stuck from the suction. We freed her gently, she swam to the back, hitched to a rock on the bottom, and stayed there fairly motionless for most of the night. This morning, she seemed a little subdued but had moved. Later in morning, we saw her convulsing twice for about 30 seconds each time. A couple hours later, we have not noticed additional spasms and she's actively hunting as well as eating.

1) Does anyone have any suggestions for protecting the ponies from the outflow? It's an Innovative Marine Nuvo 30 gallon with 317 gph currently being run through.

2) Any thoughts about the convulsions? A quick internet search suggested maybe it was external parasites but we are nervous about stressing her out with a fresh water dip after her traumatic event. And also thought it would be best to check with folks more experienced than us before jumping to any conclusions.

Thanks for your thoughts & advice!

 

[flsvedlund]

I had a few issues with one of my seahorses getting stuck to the overflow in my tank at first. It wasn't strong enough to harm her, but I didn't want her to get stuck when I wasn't around to free her. Once they get settled into your tank and learn the ropes, they will learn to avoid getting too close to the overflow. In the meantime though, you can do what I did and build an eggcrate cage around the overflow to keep the seahorses away from it. Here are some photos of the eggcrate cage that I temporarily had blocking the overflow.

As for the convulsions, I am not positive what could be causing them. I think they could be a sign of stress from being moved to the new tank. I'd give her another day or two to get settled in and see if she stops doing it. If she's actively eating and hunting, I wouldn't stress too much just yet.

 

[billygalaxy]

I think we figured out the outflow problem with a solution similar to what you suggest. We cut filter sponges into strips and tucked them into the either side of the overflow vents. That seems to provide a seahorse-safe bumper but not impede water flow.

As for the convulsing seahorse, we haven't witnessed anymore fits. Hopefully it was just stress from the move as you suggest. It's hard not to watch them so I'm sure we'll be keeping a close eye on her.

Thanks so much for your feedback and advice about our little mare.

 

[flsvedlund]

You're welcome! Sounds like you have it sorted out. I'm glad she seems to be doing better. Hopefully it was just stress and she'll be fine once she settles in. I received a new seahorse in the mail earlier this week and they must have dropped or shook the box around a lot because the seahorse was very stressed. She was thrashing around a bit for the first couple hours after she was added to the tank. I don't know if that is the same as the convulsions you are talking about, but it sounds similar. She was just fine after a couple hours and is doing well now.

 

[billygalaxy]

Still convulsing every once in a while and her breathing seems a bit rapid. Would a freshwater dip be recommended?
Pretty worried about her...

 

[rayjay]

What exactly occurs that you refer to as convulsions?

 

[billygalaxy]

Definitely not a dance type thing. Looks uncomfortable and uncontrolable. Lasts about 1-2 minutes each time it happens. Other than slightly elevated breathing and the spasms, she seems fine, hunting very actively and eating well.

 

[tjdouglas]

My guess would be that convulsions and rapid breathing are signs of some kind of parasite/gill fluke. I have seen this happen in my tank on occasion with new seahorses. When this happens I place the afflicted seahorse in a separate bucket for a 45 minute Formalin bath using heavy aeration. (Use two teaspoons of Formalin or Ich-X in a gallon of the tank water for about 45 minutes with heavy aeration...take her out of the treatment bucket sooner if she shows signs of distress). You might also try adding garlic to her frozen mysis since this is supposed to help with parasites. Gill flukes can be tough to get rid of. After 48 hours you might need to do a second treatment.

Are you keeping the temp at 74F or below? This can also make a big difference.

 

[rayjay]

Actually, the temperature of 74° down to 68° doesn't do anything for the parasites, but it sometimes helps if there is a secondary infection as the bacteria can't multiply as fast so the infection doesn't spread as much, giving time for antibacterial treatment.
I keep all my seahorse tanks at the lower end of the range at all times.
We can't get Formalin here in Canada so for me, that option is not available to use.
If you want to do a fresh water dip, use water MATCHED for pH and temperature, and place the seahorse in the container for 12 minutes, removing it early ONLY if it becomes unresponsive, remaining unresponsive when you touch it.
Watch for thrashing around when first placed in the water as parasite die off usually will cause this, and, you should then see small particulate matter in the container which will usually be dead/dying parasites.

 

[billygalaxy]

thank you so much for your advice up to this point. the little girl pony is still struggling. we want so much to help her and do the right thing..

we gave her an ick-x bath as tjdouglas suggested (45 minutes, heavy aeration, suggested dose, etc). she seemed a little better and we didn't notice additional convulsions until the next day but they seemed to occur less frequently. because of the continued convulsions, we planned to do another ick-x bath after 48 hours.

last night when we got home, we noticed that she was sitting on the substrate in the corner of the tank, staring at the bottom. she did not feed (but had eaten at all previous feedings since we got them). we decided to repeat the ick-x bath with the same parameters. afterwards, she seemed better -- more energetic, swimming around the tank, and actively eating/hunting.

this morning, both the female and male ate well. However, we are concerned about what to do next if anything. Any advice?

 

[billygalaxy]

She continues to sit on the substrate in the corner and stare at the ground but is eating/hunting and intermittently swimming around. The spot is on the other side of the tank from where she and the male have been hitching previously. Any thoughts on why she might be exhibiting this behavior?

 

[rayjay]

If what you are doing is working, why change the method?

 

[billygalaxy]

Just worried that we're missing something b/c her behavior seem off. But not sure since they are new.

 

[rayjay]

Seahorses can have a wide variety of reactions to being newly placed in a system so it's not always easy to tell if they have a problem or just getting acclimated to the new surroundings.
I keep a hospital tank handy, with meds like Diamox (prescription) and Furan II handy in case needed.
You need to keep a close eye on them as the bath treatment appears to have helped, indicating an uncontrolled parasite present, but sometimes secondary bacteria problems develop and you need to dose Furan II in a 10g hospital tank.
The Diamox is for emphysema if needed.

 

[tjdouglas]

If she is feeling better after the Ich-X baths, then it really does sound like gill parasites to me. If she does not seem to totally clear up soon, then you might need to teat her with metronidazole and praziquantel. These drugs can sometimes be help very helpful with these kind of parasite issues. Sometimes the local fish stores sell theses drugs in a combination packet known as "General Cure" so you do not necessarily have to but the drugs separately. It is highly recommended that these drugs be used in a separate hospital tank with good aeration.

 

[billygalaxy]

The sick girl continues to eat and hunt but seems listless much of the time, sitting and staring at the substrate. Like Rayjay said, she may still be adjusting but her make counterpart is acting quite different (hitching, swimming around between meals, more actively curious). We have not noticed any additional convulsions. Is it possible that the listlessness may be caused by continuing infection with gill parasites? We have not yet done a fresh water dip (just the ick-x). Is that recommended before metroidazole and/or praziquantel treatment?