4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
Forever present and in that very rare case new fish you add will die and with new hosts it could take over the fish with the rare resistance.
Fish dropping dead!
- Thread starter Dylan7huskies
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So once its present in my tank, the ONLY way to rid it is by removing all fish that could POSSIBLY be hosting it?
4FordFamily
Tang, Angel, and Wrasse Nerd!
Essentially, yes. Anything else you try is likely to end worse and have repeated frustration and will yield the same end result of this needing to be done.
Thank you so much. I bit the bullet and bought a small AIO cube last night to setup as my QT. My tangs will be a little unhappy being in the smaller space. But hopefully in the long run everyone will be much happier and of course healthier. Im just disappointed I lost my Black Ice clown before I realized what was going on in my tank. He was my favorite fish, and most expensive now his mate is alone and sick (not sure if fish have emotional effects like other animals, but if they do and she pulls through, shes a trooper)
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Sounds like velvet also. Velvet disease in saltwater fish is caused by the protozoan Amyloodinium ocellatum. This organism has many similarities to ich. The saltwater velvet organism contains chlorophyll and so it is often classified as an algae. The parasite produces some of its nutrients through the chlorophyll. This is why darkening your aquarium during a velvet outbreak is helpful in treating the disease during treatment.
Some of the things you would have noticed was a fine dusting or powdering on the fish. This dusting is actually comprised of many tiny whitish-yellow spots. A fish infected with marine velvet may refuse to eat, hold its fins close to its body, and may scrape itself on rocks in an attempt to dislodge the parasite. The fish may gasp for air and hang out at the tanks surface where the dissolved oxygen content is higher. Usually the gills are affected first and so the first symptom you may notice is increased breathing or laboring for oxygen.
Marine velvet parasite has two life stages. There is a free-swimming form, during which it is able to infect fish. There is also a cyst form in which the parasite undergoes a reproductive phase.
During the free-swimming stage the parasite propels itself through the water until it finds a suitable host, such as a fish. Once it finds a fish it will attach itself to the skin or gills of the fish and feed off of it. Eventually it forms a cyst.
This cyst falls off of the fish and then undergoes reproduction by cell division for about 3 days. At the end of this period the cyst releases many new Amyloodinium ocellatum in free-swimming form. These go in search of a new host (fish). If a host isn't found the parasite dies within 2-3 days. Unfortunately, in your aquarium, new hosts are readily available. When the free-swimming form finds a new host the cycle begins again.
So then on to treatment -
One treatment you can try, especially if only one or two fish are affected, is to give your saltwater fish a freshwater bath. The idea behind this is that the parasites will rapidly absorb lots of water through osmosis. Through the process of osmosis, water moves from areas of higher concentration to areas of lower concentration. Because the marine velvet parasite contains lots of salt, but not much water, this causes the parasite to fill so rapidly with water that it will burst when it is placed in freshwater.
To set up a freshwater bath you add 85% freshwater and 15% water from the aquarium. The temperature and pH must be matched to that in the aquarium. Also remember to use a dechlorinator. It is possible that your fish may go into shock. Don't leave your fish unattended during a freshwater bath and don't leave your fish in the bath for more than 10 minutes. If your fish is in distress you should remove it sooner than 10 minutes. The fish may lay on its side while in the bath, but if it appears to really be in distress get it out immediately and place it back in the aquarium. Most fish don't last the entire 10 minutes and so be prepared for this.
Other option is to treat with use of Copper sulfate which is an effective treatment for marine velvet, however, some fish such as clownfish, bannerfish, and other saltwater fish don't tolerate copper sulfate very well. Symptoms of copper poisoning are popeye, rapid breathing, and balancing problems when swimming. Caution also as copper sulfate will kill off the organisms living on live rock, invertebrates and live coral, and algae in the tank. This is why it is best if you can isolate the affected fish and treat it in its own tank.
If QT is not an option, and you need to treat the entire tank with inverts you can use an ultraviolet sterilization unit (UV). The ultraviolet light will kill some of the free-swimming velvet parasites, while leaving the invertebrates in a safe zone
Some of the things you would have noticed was a fine dusting or powdering on the fish. This dusting is actually comprised of many tiny whitish-yellow spots. A fish infected with marine velvet may refuse to eat, hold its fins close to its body, and may scrape itself on rocks in an attempt to dislodge the parasite. The fish may gasp for air and hang out at the tanks surface where the dissolved oxygen content is higher. Usually the gills are affected first and so the first symptom you may notice is increased breathing or laboring for oxygen.
Marine velvet parasite has two life stages. There is a free-swimming form, during which it is able to infect fish. There is also a cyst form in which the parasite undergoes a reproductive phase.
During the free-swimming stage the parasite propels itself through the water until it finds a suitable host, such as a fish. Once it finds a fish it will attach itself to the skin or gills of the fish and feed off of it. Eventually it forms a cyst.
This cyst falls off of the fish and then undergoes reproduction by cell division for about 3 days. At the end of this period the cyst releases many new Amyloodinium ocellatum in free-swimming form. These go in search of a new host (fish). If a host isn't found the parasite dies within 2-3 days. Unfortunately, in your aquarium, new hosts are readily available. When the free-swimming form finds a new host the cycle begins again.
So then on to treatment -
One treatment you can try, especially if only one or two fish are affected, is to give your saltwater fish a freshwater bath. The idea behind this is that the parasites will rapidly absorb lots of water through osmosis. Through the process of osmosis, water moves from areas of higher concentration to areas of lower concentration. Because the marine velvet parasite contains lots of salt, but not much water, this causes the parasite to fill so rapidly with water that it will burst when it is placed in freshwater.
To set up a freshwater bath you add 85% freshwater and 15% water from the aquarium. The temperature and pH must be matched to that in the aquarium. Also remember to use a dechlorinator. It is possible that your fish may go into shock. Don't leave your fish unattended during a freshwater bath and don't leave your fish in the bath for more than 10 minutes. If your fish is in distress you should remove it sooner than 10 minutes. The fish may lay on its side while in the bath, but if it appears to really be in distress get it out immediately and place it back in the aquarium. Most fish don't last the entire 10 minutes and so be prepared for this.
Other option is to treat with use of Copper sulfate which is an effective treatment for marine velvet, however, some fish such as clownfish, bannerfish, and other saltwater fish don't tolerate copper sulfate very well. Symptoms of copper poisoning are popeye, rapid breathing, and balancing problems when swimming. Caution also as copper sulfate will kill off the organisms living on live rock, invertebrates and live coral, and algae in the tank. This is why it is best if you can isolate the affected fish and treat it in its own tank.
If QT is not an option, and you need to treat the entire tank with inverts you can use an ultraviolet sterilization unit (UV). The ultraviolet light will kill some of the free-swimming velvet parasites, while leaving the invertebrates in a safe zone
