Ragged Fins?

[Tuffloud1]

I just noticed my PJ Cardinal fins were not looking good. One of his eyes is also "hazy". I've had him for 4 months, no problems until all of the sudden.

No aggression going on in the tank.

What does this look like to you?

Water parameters:

salinity - 1.026
nitrate - 2.5
phosphate - 0 (undetectable)
temp - 78
mag -1440
calcium - 430
alk - 7.28 dKH

 

[Newsmyrna80]

Have you added anything to the tank recently?

 

[Tuffloud1]

Have you added anything to the tank recently?

I added a firefish a few weeks ago.

I don't have a QT but I think I'm going to set one up.

 

[Deinonych]

Could be fin nipping from another fish, or it could be disease. I would keep a close eye on the fish and be prepared to treat if the latter. Keep your water quality high as well. What are the other tank inhabitants?

 

[Newsmyrna80]

It's possible the firefish brought something in. Based on cloudy eyes and torn fins it could be flukes. Read the stickies on fish parasites at the top of the forum. Standard treatment is Prazipro. Depending on the makeup of your tank you could dose the main. I've never done that. I dose in a QT. All fish will need to be treated.

 

[Allmost]

Flukes.

I had to deal with the same Issue on 3 fish just 2 months ago.

they went through 4-6 PP treatments !

Id catch all fish, and put them in QT. do a freshwater dip before placing them in QT. then start PP treatment.

leave main tank empty to get rid of the flukes in there while treating all fish with PP.

it is important to act NOW. it will consume the fin Daily which makes the fish weaker and unable to swim, mine never grew its fins back fully !

 

[GT350pwns]

Don't mean to thread jack, but my hi fin banded goby's fins have been looking similar to this. No clouded eyes or anything. Fins just torn up.

Never noticed anything like this until I added my pom pom and porcelain crabs. I don't think the pom pom is really capable of this. But, would the porcelain (who I haven't seen. But, I have a 36 gal tank. So he is either gone, or just really friggin sneaky) be a possible culprit?

 

[Tuffloud1]

Is there any fish disease/parasite that corals, crabs, shrimps, and/or snails can carry that will not die by leaving tank fish less for 12 weeks? In other words is it okay to leave everything besides fish in the DT to rid the tank of any fish related ailment?

 

[snorvich]

Is there any fish disease/parasite that corals, crabs, shrimps, and/or snails can carry that will not die by leaving tank fish less for 12 weeks? In other words is it okay to leave everything besides fish in the DT to rid the tank of any fish related ailment?

If I recall correctly uronema marinum does not require a fish host.

 

[Deinonych]

If I recall correctly uronema marinum does not require a fish host.

Yes, it's a free-living parasite that does not require a fish host. It primarily feeds on bacteria, but will attack weakened/infected fish opportunistically.

 

[ca1ore]

Could also simply be stress or some kind of bacterial infection. My PJ cardinals are quite large and old (around 10 years old, though not in my care for that long) and they occasionally show up looking a bit ragged with slightly cloudy eyes. I don't do anything in particular, other than continue to feed well and maintain the best water quality I can and they have always recovered. Probably if it got really bad I'd remove them to a HT and treat, but so far hasn't been necessary.

 

[Tuffloud1]

Is uronema marinum a very common thing like ich or velvet?

 

[Newsmyrna80]

Not as common as ich but it has become more prevalent over the last few years. It has been showing up on Chromis quite frequently.

 

[Tuffloud1]

Well here is what is left of my PJ Cardinal (pictured at the top of this thread)

My Pink Spotted Goby grabbed him after he died and pulled him in his pistol shrimp's hole.

A day later, I saw him drag what was left of him back out of the shrimp's hole.

Not sure if it is some kind of parasite, it seemed to be moving. It is attached to where his gill area was.

Anyone know?