Sick Danio and Platy

[smisen]

Hello,

I'm new to fish keeping, so I'd really appreciate some advice. I have one albino zebra danio who's belly has shrunken and has lost weight. He also has clamped fins and a few small patches of darker discoloration on his body. I also have a platy who has several spots of darker discoloration and a more severe case of clamped fins.

I read that someone successfully mixed 1 part garlic paste with 2 parts flake food to clear up a wasting disease in danios, but I'm not sure if I should try that first or go straight to chemicals.

My tank is 20 gallons, 8 months old with 3 danios, 2 platies and 2 rasboras, which have all been healthy until now. The pH right now is between 7.0-7.2, the Nitrites are at 0 and the temp is 77oF (no test kit for ammonia or nitrates). I run 2 filters on the tank (the first was a pretty weak store bought one and we'd eventually like to have more fish) and do 25% water changes/gravel washes about every 1 1/2 - 2 weeks. They are do for a water change right now - it's been a little over 2 weeks since I've been on vacation this past week.

Thanks much for any help!!

Sarah

 

[vinceschilke]

it could be from a dramatic temperature change. go to a petsmart or petco and get ICK cure, or general cure, im not sure what disease they have, but look at the back of the boxes of the treatment powder and see if it has your sypmtoms. and i wouldnt recomend doing that mixture, ive had a bad experience trying to remove a selfmade tatoo.

 

[vinceschilke]

also when you add new water, make sure u put in 5 drops of declor, or any water conditioner.

 

[Lotus]

Are the dark patches on the fish raised and fuzzy, or more like darkened areas of flesh?

I don't think treating with an ich medication will help, as it clearly isn't ich. It sounds more like either an internal bacterial or internal parasitic problem.

Treating with garlic will do no harm, and may help with this condition.

 

[smisen]

The darkened areas are more discolorations of the flesh than anything raised or fuzzy. The more research I do, the more I'm thinking internal parasites.

Lotus, do you know what the best recipe for adding garlic to flake food is?

Thanks

 

[Lotus]

When I've used garlic, I basically take a clove, smash it with the handle of a knife or something heavy to crush it slightly to free the juices, then put it in a small cup with water and the food and soak. I generally use frozen foods for the garlic treatment, as flake tends to disintegrate, but you can use it. If it's flake food, soak for 5 or 10 mins., if it's frozen food, you can soak it longer. Feed the garlic soaked food daily for about a week.

There are also medicated fish foods available. There's a Jungle product that's available at Petsmart, and some LFS.

 

[MissFishy]

Follow what lotus says, garlic has been said to help before. I'm curious about your "gravel washing"??? You aren't taking out the gravel and actually washing it are you? If so, you are probably killing the beneficial bacteria in the tank and stressing out the fish. Something to consider...

 

[smisen]

Miss Fishy - nope, just using the siphon to sift through the gravel and pull up some of the poop/old food/general gunk during the water change.