Potters with distended belly

[Huff747]

I got this Potters Angel in on 1/18. It's in a 10 gallon QT with a small Melanarus Wrasse that came in on the same order. They've been through 2 rounds of Prazi and then I've just been observing them. He's always eaten (he likes PE Calanus), and is still eating but his belly is really big and on one side a white spot almost like a pimple looking spot has shown up.

Any thoughts? You can kind of see the spot on pictures 2 and 3. Pictures were taking during feeding time so there is food in the water. He doesn't slow down much so pictures aren't the best.

Based on some searching here, I did dose this mornings food with Metro + Focus in case it's a internal parasite and I have seen him poop, no white stringy poop although I will admit I haven't seen him go in the last couple days. But I have been siphoning poop out of the tank at the end of the day everyday. he also doesn't seem to have any issues swimming.

 

[Big G]

Does it look like a small cauliflower like growth? Sometimes less than ideal water conditions, like a qt, can create the perfect environment for Lympho to show up on your fish. Take a look at this link. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/lymphocystis.257461/#post-3043397

Beautiful fish

 

[Humblefish]

^^ Agree with possible Lympho diagnosis

With regards to the distended belly, try feeding peeled boiled green peas for a few days. Hopefully he is just constipated and needs a little fiber to help push things out.

The alternative is not pretty: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/venting-a-swim-bladder-black-cap-basslet.219954/

 

[Huff747]

No, it wouldn't call this spot raised so maybe the pimple analogy wasn't the best one. it's almost like the scales around it are stretched so far apart that you see white skin between them maybe is a better way?

I don't think it's Lympho on the potters. I do think a yellow tang in another QT tank has Lympho on it's side and on it's bottom fin and under it's chin if you want to take a peak at that. The tang came in with another shipment on 2/1 and had these 2 spots right out of the bag. It's been through 2 doses of prazi now and I soak everybody's food in selcon and offer it Nori also but so far no real change. The spot on the bottom fin may have grown a tad but the spot on the side and chin I would say has remained the same. This fish also came in super skinny (picture 2 was from the day after it arrived). It was honestly the first time (I haven't been at this long) that I was bummed out when I unpacked a fish with how it looked. I can't tell if I'm getting much weight on him yet but he has made it almost 2 weeks and I see him eating but still looks skinny to me.

 

[Big G]

Can you get some black worms or white worms for the Tang? Lots of protein and healthy fats.

 

[Huff747]

With regards to the distended belly, try feeding peeled boiled green peas for a few days. Hopefully he is just constipated and needs a little fiber to help push things out.

The alternative is not pretty: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/venting-a-swim-bladder-black-cap-basslet.219954/

Thanks. I Will give that a shot. I think I have peas on hand, do frozen ones work? The question will be will he eat peas. He tends to prefer the Calanus and often seems to spit out other things I try.

 

[Big G]

Here's a good explanation of the green pea feeding: http://www.aquahobby.com/articles/e_constipated_fish.php

 

[sstanley223]

I had good results treating a coral beauty with kanaplex then metroplex. Not the same symptoms but some sort of internal parasite or infection

 

[lagatbezan]

Oh man, that poor yellow tang looks skinny with a pinched stomach it might have some internal parasite which might be best treated with metro mixed into his food using focus for 10 days.
provide seaweed on a daily basis for him as well as adding selcon to its food.
It also looks like its developed HLLE which should hopefully heal with a good diet supplemented with vitamins and pristine water conditions.

 

[Huff747]

Oh man, that poor yellow tang looks skinny with a pinched stomach it might have some internal parasite which might be best treated with metro mixed into his food using focus for 10 days.
provide seaweed on a daily basis for him as well as adding selcon to its food.
It also looks like its developed HLLE which should hopefully heal with a good diet supplemented with vitamins and pristine water conditions.

Yeah, he definitely arrived looking pretty rough. I actually thought he was so skinny that I wasn't sure if he'd make it, the picture doesn't even do justice to just how concave his stomach area was. Since I mixed some Metro and Focus for the potter today the Tang also got food from that mix so I'll probably keep them on it for the next 10 days and try the peas for the potter.

Thanks everybody for the assistance.

 

[Huff747]

Potters wasn't cooperating with pictures today but his belly does look much, much less distended but the spot on his side appears to be a wound? Not sure if it came from the huge belly, or if it caused the belly to swell. I don't see aggression in the QT (him and a wrasse) so not sure what the best plan of action is now. He still seems active, maybe a bit reclusive but he's always liked the back corner of the QT anyway and still hangs out there a lot.

Would it be wise to treat with Kanaplex if it is a wound of some sort? Can I use that with the wrasse the same QT tank?

The Yellow Tang appears to be doing quite a bit better. He's noticeably fatter now and 3 of the Lympho spots have fallen off/gone away. He's got a couple spots left now but looking much less ugly than when he arrived:

Today was day 10 for Metro + Focus for both QT tanks for what it's worth

Picture doesn't do it justice but I really didn't think he'd make it when he showed up and now he has some thickness to his stomach area.

 

[Big G]

Is the wound open or colored: red, black or white surrounding? Really need a picture to help here.

 

[Huff747]

Thanks. I'll try to get a picture. He tends to park in the back with the affected side against the painted back wall when I'm in front of the tank. I'd call it open with white flesh surrounding black/dark center.

 

[Big G]

Based on your description, suggest two paths. First you could try Nitrofuracine. It's great for open wounds and red sores and has both antibacterial and antiseptic qualities. Or the "trifecta" of Metro+Kanaplex+Furan2 which covers both gram positive and gram negative bacterial infections.

 

[Huff747]

Here's the best I could get. It started as a small white spot in the first pictures from 10 days ago when he belly was huge, now his belly is more normal and the wound has grown. In person it's very white except for a relatively small area in the center

 

[Big G]

I'd treat that ASAP. I'd use the trifecta and if available, a bath in acriflavine/Ruby Reef Rally.
From Humblefish's treatments:

Acriflavine: I have no first-hand experience with this medication, so everything I know about it comes from one LFS (treating Brooklynella), Google Scholar or other literature. It supposedly is effective against protozoans, bacterial infections and external fungal diseases; however Brook & Uronema are the only two I would bank on. It also is supposedly “reef safe”, so long as it is not mixed with any other medication (very important!)

How To Treat - Follow the directions on the label of whatever product you are using. Acriflavine is often mixed with other medications; however Acriflavine-MS is the pure form (and most likely to be “reef safe.”)

Pros - Alternative treatment for Brooklynella & Uronema (useful in locales where formalin is banned); possibly “reef safe.”

Cons/Side Effects - Acriflavine is a “new” medication (to me), so it’s full range of effect is not completely understood. Same goes for possible side effects.



Antibiotics: Treats bacterial infections, which are oftentimes “secondary” to preexisting parasitic infestations.

How To Treat - Follow the directions on the label of whatever product you are using. Always use a broad spectrum antibiotic medication i.e. one that treats both gram-positive and gram-negative bacterial diseases (very important). Examples of this include Furan-2, Kanamycin aka Seachem Kanaplex, Nitrofuracin Green Powder, Triple Sulfa Powder or a combination of using both Erythromycin & Minocycline. The latter can be accomplished (albeit expensively) by using freshwater Maracyn 1 & 2 and then doubling the dosage for saltwater use. When battling a particularly nasty bacterial infection, combining Furan-2, Kanaplex and metronidazole (ex. Seachem MetroPlex) can be very effective (and safe). Props to “hedgedrew” for enlightening me of this.

Normally you have to do 4 doses to complete a full course of treatment. The instructions may say to dose every 24 hours, and perform water changes at certain intervals. In my experience, you often have to do 2 full courses of treatment (or 8 doses total) before a fish will show signs of improvement (antibiotics are notoriously slow acting with fish). If a fish shows no signs of improvement after the second full course, then it’s time to try a completely different medication. Just like with humans, sometimes a certain fish will respond better to a different antibiotic. You can run activated carbon at any time when you wish to end treatment.

Pros - One of the few medications that can safely be mixed with others. You can use antibiotics in conjunction with just about everything.

Cons/Side Effects - Appetite suppression, depletes the water of oxygen (so provide additional gas exchange).

 

[curtisbenm]

Hope he gets better soon. Potter's are one of my favorites, and unfortunately I think I will never have a tank big enough to house one

 

[Huff747]

I do have Ruby Reef Rally on hand so can do a bath.

I have Metro and Kanaplex on hand as well. Don't have Furan 2 currently. Would I use the Metro still considering I've been mixing that in the food for 10 days already?

 

[Big G]

Yes it’s ok to dose the tank with the trifecta and feed the metro + focus+ food.

 

[Huff747]

Thanks. Bringing some water up to temp now for the bath. May have to order Furan, there's probably some LFS that has it but I know the one nearest me doesn't and doesn't look like Petco/Petsmart carry it.