saddleback Butterfly itching

[Spookyclemente]

Hello! I have just gotten a new saddleback butterfly. It is doing great and is in a 125
My levels are
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Ph 8.2

I have noticed it has been itching on the rocks but still eats allgie. I have prazi pro and was wondering if I should treat for flukes through the whole tank or is this normal?

 

[Eric Cohen]

A fish that itches could have flukes or parasites......you should be treating for both in a quarantine tank or if that's too late, and the fish is already in your display that you can either catch the fish and add it to qt, or treat the entire tank.....taking into consideration of course what's in your display tank already....ie corals or other inverts that can't tolerate copper or other harsher treatments. ....Butterflies like this are more prone to ich parasites, but it could be flukes.....both slowed down by freshwater dips.....

 

[Spookyclemente]

I have damsels and eel and shark hermet crabs and butterflies. I just don’t wanna shut my protein skimmer cause it could make the water crappy or should I be fine?
If anything I’ll treat the tank in case of ick

 

[Eric Cohen]

I have damsels and eel and shark hermet crabs and butterflies. I just don’t wanna shut my protein skimmer cause it could make the water crappy or should I be fine?
If anything I’ll treat the tank in case of ick

The crabs won't make it, but maybe you can set up a small tank with a heater and airstone for the inverts......toss a piece of cured live rock in there with them.

 

[Spookyclemente]

The crabs won't make it, but maybe you can set up a small tank with a heater and airstone for the inverts......toss a piece of cured live rock in there with them.

Alright I’ll have to do that. Now will it mess with my shark at all?

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hello! I have just gotten a new saddleback butterfly. It is doing great and is in a 125
My levels are
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Ph 8.2

I have noticed it has been itching on the rocks but still eats allgie. I have prazi pro and was wondering if I should treat for flukes through the whole tank or is this normal?

This fish shows scars from flashing/scratching and while expresses flukes, when pic expanded appears to be velvet. With velvet, spots on the fish are much finer than the spots seen in Ich making it harder to catch until in cases too late to treat.
Some behaviors associated with a fish with velvet are :
- Scratching body against hard objects
- Fish is lethargic
- Loss of appetite and weight loss
- Rapid, labored breathing
- Fins clamped against the body
- rapid breathing and mucus around the gills

Fish with velvet will typically stay at the surface of the water, or remain in a position where a steady flow of water is present in the aquarium. As the disease progresses outwards from the gills, the cysts then become visible on the fins and body. Although these cysts may appear as tiny white dots the size of a grain of salt, like the first sign of Saltwater Ich or White Spot Disease, what sets Oodinium apart from other types of ich is that at this point the fish have the appearance of being coated with what looks like a whitish or tan to golden colored, velvet-like film, thus the name Velvet Disease.

 

[Spookyclemente]

This fish shows scars from flashing/scratching and while expresses flukes, when pic expanded appears to be velvet. With velvet, spots on the fish are much finer than the spots seen in Ich making it harder to catch until in cases too late to treat.
Some behaviors associated with a fish with velvet are :
- Scratching body against hard objects
- Fish is lethargic
- Loss of appetite and weight loss
- Rapid, labored breathing
- Fins clamped against the body
- rapid breathing and mucus around the gills

Fish with velvet will typically stay at the surface of the water, or remain in a position where a steady flow of water is present in the aquarium. As the disease progresses outwards from the gills, the cysts then become visible on the fins and body. Although these cysts may appear as tiny white dots the size of a grain of salt, like the first sign of Saltwater Ich or White Spot Disease, what sets Oodinium apart from other types of ich is that at this point the fish have the appearance of being coated with what looks like a whitish or tan to golden colored, velvet-like film, thus the name Velvet Disease.

Gotcha! I did a freshwater dip and just put prazi in the water. The fish still eats and likes to swim around the tank and as a little buddy it roams around with.
is my approach to this gonna be affective and will me removing my carbon and turning off my skimmer gonna mess with my shark? I’m blasting the tank with bubbles to make sure there is plenty of O2

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Hello! I have just gotten a new saddleback butterfly. It is doing great and is in a 125
My levels are
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Ph 8.2

I have noticed it has been itching on the rocks but still eats allgie. I have prazi pro and was wondering if I should treat for flukes through the whole tank or is this normal?

A scratching fish isn’t normal. This butterfly is a bit thin and it may have flukes.
What other food is it eating?
You can dose your main tank with prazipro - just increase the aeration, and run your skimmer, but without collecting any skimmate during the treatment.
You would need to redose 8 days later in case the flukes are an egg laying species (prazi doesn’t kill fluke eggs).

 

[Spookyclemente]

A scratching fish isn’t normal. This butterfly is a bit thin and it may have flukes.
What other food is it eating?
You can dose your main tank with prazipro - just increase the aeration, and run your skimmer, but without collecting any skimmate during the treatment.
You would need to redose 8 days later in case the flukes are an egg laying species (prazi doesn’t kill fluke eggs).

I see it eating the allgie and I drop in myitis shrimp as well. I just did the prazi and and fresh water dip. He didn’t seem to mind it and is back swimming throughout the tank. What do yku recommend for the food?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I see it eating the allgie and I drop in myitis shrimp as well. I just did the prazi and and fresh water dip. He didn’t seem to mind it and is back swimming throughout the tank. What do yku recommend for the food?

Chopped up mysids are good. It may eat clams on the half shell. Avoid brine shrimp, that isn’t very nutritious. It might not eat them, but small pellet food like New Life Spectrum are nutritious.
Don’t rely on it getting enough food by just picking at algae.
Jay