Help with Firefish

[Poisns1]

I have a FO DT and I recently lost a Royal Gramma that obviously had some type of parasite affecting him.

My tank is about 11 months old and the Royal Gramma and Firefish were the only 2 fishes in the DT.

Both were eating fine for about 6 weeks then the Royal Gramma started getting picky and one morning I found in the back corner of the tank on the surface and breathing heavily. I don't have a quarantine tank so I scooped him up and took him to the local fish store knowing they run Copper in their tanks and hoping that whatever was ailing him could be treated.

He died about 4 days later, per fish store he never ate.

So the firefish was fine for the next 5 weeks or so and is still eating well but I noticed that his tail has become tattered and frayes at the end. He is the only fish in the tank so no bullying etc. Is this indicative of a parasite or infection of some kind, possibly bacterial? If so how can I treat the tank/fish?

Sorry for bad pics in advance by my I can't get my iPhone XR to take a decent picture without all the blue shades..

 

[Cantusaurus]

Hmm. It could be some sort of bacteria in the tank, and it could be like fin/tail rot. But the gramma could have died from an internal parasite or something.
Hopefully things improve.
I’d use Seachem Metroplex or Kanaplex
Or
You could use Seachem Paraguard, but only if you don’t have inverts in your tank.

But above that I’d just make sure the water is healthy/clean

 

[Poisns1]

My water is crystal clear. Sand and rocks are also clear.

Just did a 32 gal change on 105 gal system. How else can I ensure that the DT is healthy/clean?

 

[KK's Reef]

Hmm. It could be some sort of bacteria in the tank, and it could be like fin/tail rot. But the gramma could have died from an internal parasite or something.
Hopefully things improve.
I’d use Seachem Metroplex or Kanaplex
Or
You could use Seachem Paraguard, but only if you don’t have inverts in your tank.

But above that I’d just make sure the water is healthy/clean

Kanaplex works. I used it on a clown with some type of fungal growth on the lips, and frayed fins. Within two weeks, the fungus was gone and fins recovered nicely. Looked comopletely healthy after a month.

 

[Tchung23]

That happened to my first firefish. I think it was a bacterial infection. It killed off quite a few fish in my tank.

 

[Cantusaurus]

My water is crystal clear. Sand and rocks are also clear.

Just did a 32 gal change on 105 gal system. How else can I ensure that the DT is healthy/clean?

That should be fine. Good water quality will help fish recover, but could result in a fish succumbing to something (not always the case though since it seems like your tank has good water quality).
That large water change should help.

 

[Cantusaurus]

Not sure which Medication would be best, but Kanaplex or some other bacterial type medications should help. You will probably run out quickly due to the large tank size though. Prazipro could definitely help.

 

[Greg P]

My water is crystal clear. Sand and rocks are also clear.

Just did a 32 gal change on 105 gal system. How else can I ensure that the DT is healthy/clean?

Test for NH3, NO2 and NO3
Poor water quality could lead to all you have written

 

[vetteguy53081]

This points to water quality issue. Fi and tail rot normally Gram negative and good treatment would be maracyn 2 or reef safe ruby rally reef.
What test lits are you using and what is your ammonia-ph-salinity-nitrate levels ?

 

[Poisns1]

I had treated the tank with Prazipro when both the firefish and Royal Gramma started flashing and scratching on the sand and rocks. I treated for a bit over 2 weeks at recommended dosage (skimmer cup off to aerate water). The skimmer went absolutely nuts after adding the Prazipro but I thought I read that was expected.

New side effect, my Bubble Magus Curve 5 skimmer has not returned to normal skimming since, which is why I performed a 32g change. The skimmer went crazy and continued far after the treatment finished. I let it go with cup off for almost 2 weeks and it never calmed down. Same condition after the 32g change. I recently ordered a plastic venturi valve off Amazon and have the needly about 60% closed. The skimmer is still spewing microbubbles out the bottom and skimmate is very wet; very pale white or light green in color. So frustrated with this skimmer but maybe what's happening is an indicator of something else?

I'm using a new BRS 7 stage RO/DI; input is 1 TDS, 0 TDS after DI stages.

Recent tests showed no Ammonia, almost no Phosphate or Nitrate. 76 Degree temp, PH = 8.1, Salinity 1.025 (Seachem Vibrant Sea Salt).

So frustrated and there's only 1 fish in the entire tank! Am I missing something obvious?

 

[Greg P]

Keep up with you tests, but looks like you're on top of it and doesn't explain the tattered fins.
@Jay Hemdal

Running GAC (I use Rox 0.8) after a WC helps to remove Prazipro. This will get your skimmer back on track

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I had treated the tank with Prazipro when both the firefish and Royal Gramma started flashing and scratching on the sand and rocks. I treated for a bit over 2 weeks at recommended dosage (skimmer cup off to aerate water). The skimmer went absolutely nuts after adding the Prazipro but I thought I read that was expected.

New side effect, my Bubble Magus Curve 5 skimmer has not returned to normal skimming since, which is why I performed a 32g change. The skimmer went crazy and continued far after the treatment finished. I let it go with cup off for almost 2 weeks and it never calmed down. Same condition after the 32g change. I recently ordered a plastic venturi valve off Amazon and have the needly about 60% closed. The skimmer is still spewing microbubbles out the bottom and skimmate is very wet; very pale white or light green in color. So frustrated with this skimmer but maybe what's happening is an indicator of something else?

I'm using a new BRS 7 stage RO/DI; input is 1 TDS, 0 TDS after DI stages.

Recent tests showed no Ammonia, almost no Phosphate or Nitrate. 76 Degree temp, PH = 8.1, Salinity 1.025 (Seachem Vibrant Sea Salt).

So frustrated and there's only 1 fish in the entire tank! Am I missing something obvious?

I haven't weighed in here because I simply couldn't draw any conclusions from the pictures. Sometimes, a short video taken under white light is easier than still shots. The video has the added benefit of giving my some idea as to the respiration rate.

Jay