Blind Trigger Fish. Treatment's ?

Just joined Pet Mountin, and I get $10 bucks off my first order !
I'll order all three tomorrow.
 
I have a huge bottle of formalin thank goodness!
 
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I have a huge bottle of formalin thank goodness!

A LFS I advise got in 3 purple and 1 hippo tang, and within days all were covered with velvet. He calls it the "West Coast Plague" because he only seems to encounter velvet when ordering from wholesalers based in LA. :p

Anyway, he gave them all a 5 min FW dip, followed up by a 45 min bath using "Quick Cure" (which is formalin & Malachite Green combined). They were then put in a QT dosed with CP. 24 hrs later, he reports all the "velvet dust" is gone and they are eating fine. Still too soon to tell, but I am following the progress.
 
I'm going to stop buying from two LFS, as we've had sick/health issues from them, both fish & corals. Two great stores are 50 miles away, but we've never had any problems with them. Plus, they hold fish for us fow at least, one week. I beleive a lot of LFS buy the lowest priced holesale company's they can find. I'd rather pay a higher price for healthy fish & corals.

Actually, the few corals & fish we've bought from surprisingly, at Petco, with no issues at all ! lol......
And with a sad heart, 3 of the clams we've bought from Dr. Fosters & Smith (Divers Den) have died within 2 weeks, so we won't purchase clams from them again.

Do you believe in giving all new fish a dip ?
 
I believe it's both eyes. I'll see if my wife can look closer and determine if they look like the pic you posted.

If so, how do we treat him and/or the tank ?
Thanks....

Cool - doesn't sound like flukes.

Ok, Just dipped him for 4 min, and we did not see any white worms, all we saw was I think,.......were small round scales ?

Wait?! What happened to confirming??

A friend just wrote me saying,...."The aren't worms, they are round/ oval shaped pests. I bet that's what you saw, not scales!

So, what are these and how do we deal with them ?

Here goes:
  • They are not scales, they are common flatworms.
  • VERY common, especially during times of extra stressful shipping (hot and cold weather) and probably other conditions too.
  • If the fish is reasonably healthy otherwise, these shouldn't be more than a minor irritant - you may stop worrying.
  • If the fish is sickly, flatworms can sap the last of the fish's energy.
  • :):):) A freshwater dip will clear them. :):):)
    • Just use DECHLORINATED, teperature-matched, tap water.
    • Shouldn't take more than 5-15 minutes.
    • Multiple treatments are usually OK, but you have to keep in mind the additional stress of multiple catches and releases. For example, if you have to go a little longer time to get it all done in one dip and the fish isn't freaking out, then you're fine - do it in one dip.
    • Very small fish (juveniles) don't handle longer freshwater dips quite as well, so keep this in mind.
    • Typically fish don't freak out in a freshwater dip. Sometimes they even seem to chill out up against the side of the dipping container and snooze until the dip is done.
    • If they are doing anything reminiscent of freaking out, get them back into saltwater. Make sure you prepared the dip correctly and try again later.
  • Keep an eye on the fish at least daily for more...seems like they get on the fish during sleeping at night though.
  • Watch your other fish as well - if any are stressed and/or malnourished they may also be susceptible due to reduced slime coat.
  • Feed your fish WELL (see @Paul B recent posts and articles) to build up their health in general and slime coat specifically.
 
I did a second dip and it didn't seem,....to work as well as the first, but he's doing great. Eating very well,..... too !
I wonder how long it will take to completely rid him and the tank of the worms,......?
How may dip's ? Hum......
 
It may correlate strongly to how long it takes to locate some high quality food! :)

Anything live if stores around you carry anything. Worms are preferable to a lot of fish, so are a safe bet if you have choices.

Frozen, whole foods would be second best. Scraped clams like I've seen @Paul B mention is one economical option if you can find them. Your LFS may also have some good frozen options, but remember that having whole critters (or whatever kind) in it is the key.

Frozen blends would be third best. Hopefully you don't have to figure out what fourth best is. ;)

Let us know what you end up with!
 
BTW, I just noticed in a prior post you mentioned doing a dip in RO water....definitely use tap water for your fresh water dips. (Sorry for the repeat if you already saw that. ;) )

Get a little dechlorinator if you don't have any - it's good to have on hand for emergencies in case you HAVE to use tap water some time, it lasts forever, and you only need a tiny bottle.
 
BTW, I just noticed in a prior post you mentioned doing a dip in RO water....definitely use tap water for your fresh water dips. (Sorry for the repeat if you already saw that. ;) )

Get a little dechlorinator if you don't have any - it's good to have on hand for emergencies in case you HAVE to use tap water some time, it lasts forever, and you only need a tiny bottle.

I use RODI all the time to do FW dips. :cool:
 
No buffering at all in the water can't be great for a stressed fish - they have to breathe it.

That's my only thought behind saying it, but I guess I don't have any evidence that's true. ;) I've never used anything but dechlorinated, temperature matched tap water, which is buffered and 4:1 cheaper than RODI. B-)
 
No buffering at all in the water can't be great for a stressed fish - they have to breathe it.

That's my only thought behind saying it, but I guess I don't have any evidence that's true. ;) I've never used anything but dechlorinated, temperature matched tap water, which is buffered and 4:1 cheaper than RODI. B-)

It's worth researching - RODI vs. dechlorinated tap (or spring water) for FW dips. I guess the optimal thing to do would be to use water from an established (but clean) FW aquarium, as that water should already be oxygenated & temp matched.
 
It is good to know that RODI can work in case I'm even in a position where that's all I have (it could happen! :)), it just seems like in general that would be "wasting it" since there's no real cause to use RODI.

FWIW, on a quick round of googling, all I could find was an anecdote on a Betta forum stating that someone's Betta lost color over time when it was kept in RODI. That doesn't tell us very much though.
 

IF YOU HAD TO TAKE A REEFING EXAM, WOULD YOU PASS?

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