Cloudy Eye

jtshipley · Jun 8, 2020

Alright guys i have a hi hat drum, he was in quarantine for almost 2 weeks, no signs of ich or anything and he is eating well. I moved him to my display a little bit ago and noticed his eyes have a very slight cloud to them. Any ideas of what this can be and will it spread to other fish?

Big G · Jun 8, 2020

Could be flukes or an infection. There are three major types of flukes that we see. One of which goes for the eyes of the fish. Infections of the eyes can be from those flukes, injury, water conditions, etc.
Are they swollen at all or just cloudy?

jtshipley · Jun 8, 2020

Big G said:
Could be flukes or an infection. There are three major types of flukes that we see. One of which goes for the eyes of the fish. Infections of the eyes can be from those flukes, injury, water conditions, etc.
Are they swollen at all or just cloudy?

i dont believe it is an injury or water conditions, not swollen just cloudy

Big G · Jun 8, 2020

jtshipley said:
i dont believe it is an injury or water conditions, not swollen just cloudy

Flukes:

Symptoms - Flukes are parasitic flatworms which harbor mainly inside the gills. Physical evidence of flukes is usually not visible; however at least one genus likes to target the face & eyes, so you may notice visible symptoms in those areas. Behavioral symptoms such as yawning, head twitching, scratching (targeting the gill area) and lethargy are much more common. As the disease progresses, the worms move to the eyes, and this is when you may see visible symptoms (cloudy eyes). However, you can confirm the presence of flukes at any time by performing a freshwater dip. At around the 3-4 minute mark, you will see tiny white worms fall out of a fish (especially out of the gills) if a fish has flukes. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well. A dark/black bucket is preferred for the freshwater dip, as that makes the white flukes easier to see.

Treatment options - Prazipro. Performing a freshwater dip will provide temporary relief, but two rounds of Prazipro (5-7 days apart) is usually required to eradicate flukes. Formalin may be used as an alternative treatment. Hyposalinity – Scientific research also showed hyposalinity at 15 ppt for 2 days eliminated juvenile and adult flukes. When maintained for 5 days, egg hatching was prevented.