Unknown Neurological Wrasse Disease (UNWD)

[felda001]

How did this start for it and how long did you have your pintail for? Its strange that this is the first time I have seen it happen to a pintail.

Had him about 2.5 weeks after observing him for about 2 weeks at the lfs. Suddenly started swimming tail down but even the day he died he was trying to eat.

One odd thing I saw was about 1-2 days before he died he was swimming around the tank in the middle of the night like a zombie. He wasn't reacting to any of the other things in or out of the tank. I leave for work between 230-330 am and he was normally sleeping in a cave.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Interesting, because I know you mentioned that this had happened back in 2008. I know Polo Reef has alot of type of fish. I wonder if he collects wrasse and has experienced this before. It seems like just a small amount of stress can bring that symptom up for these wrasses.

Also is there a difference in having the spinal injury compare to UNWD? Can the wrasse recover from Spinal Injury?

Spinal injury as a cause for this, or similar issues just doesn't seem to pan out. If a fish smacks into something, the effects would be immediate, there should be visible damage to the face, and the fish won't try to eat. With UNWD, the onset is a bit more gradual, there is no facial damage and the fish still try to feed.

 

[sc50964]

Spinal injury as a cause for this, or similar issues just doesn't seem to pan out. If a fish smacks into something, the effects would be immediate, there should be visible damage to the face, and the fish won't try to eat. With UNWD, the onset is a bit more gradual, there is no facial damage and the fish still try to feed.

How about the powerful flow pushed out by power heads? Can that the the source of spinal injury? I don’t ever recall seeing fairy wrasses exhibiting UNWD symptoms in LFS that just keep them in tanks that have gentle flow.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

How about the powerful flow pushed out by power heads? Can that the the source of spinal injury? I don’t ever recall seeing fairy wrasses exhibiting UNWD symptoms in LFS that just keep them in tanks that have gentle flow.

IDK - the very first case I came across with with a fairy wrasse in a 100 gallon quarantine tank with just an air stone and slow flow.

Here is a story: many years ago, I worked in the wholesale pet trade. One of the importers had a "great idea" - they added clear, 3" wide plex strips vertically along the sides of their 8 foot long tanks. The idea was, instead of chasing the fish with a net for the full 8 foot length, the fish could be trapped against the plex strips. The reality was horrible - the fish would run into the clear plex piece and mash their faces in, rendering them unsaleable. That wholesaler had to go through and pull the plex back out of all of the tanks.....but, again, there was clear signs of mechanical damage on the fish, and it wasn't just wrasses that were affected.

 

[Liquidsnakes]

Spinal injury as a cause for this, or similar issues just doesn't seem to pan out. If a fish smacks into something, the effects would be immediate, there should be visible damage to the face, and the fish won't try to eat. With UNWD, the onset is a bit more gradual, there is no facial damage and the fish still try to feed.

So if a rhomboid wrasse is in a tank that was healthy and eating. Then all of a sudden he gets harassed with small nipped tail fins, he starts to get a bent body and the tail faces downwards. No bumps on head. Also over time it stops eating. Would that be a case of UNWD or spinal injury? Because the last 4 I had one of them had that problem.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

So if a rhomboid wrasse is in a tank that was healthy and eating. Then all of a sudden he gets harassed with small nipped tail fins, he starts to get a bent body and the tail faces downwards. No bumps on head. Also over time it stops eating. Would that be a case of UNWD or spinal injury? Because the last 4 I had one of them had that problem.

I can't tell you, I've never had a case like that. The nipped fins and harassment is not part of the group of symptoms for this. Certainly, if you start to see that issue, you need to locate the culprit and isolate them, like with a tank divider.

 

[felda001]

@Jay Hemdal I know it might be tough to respond because most people don't keep midnight hours but have you seen fish with this disease swim around the tank at night almost like they were sleepwalking? My pintail was doing that the night before he started showing the drooping tail and a couple nights before he died.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

@Jay Hemdal I know it might be tough to respond because most people don't keep midnight hours but have you seen fish with this disease swim around the tank at night almost like they were sleepwalking? My pintail was doing that the night before he started showing the drooping tail and a couple nights before he died.

Do you mean a fish that swims around and bumps into things? That can have two causes - blindness, or the fish is "moribund", actively dying. With UNWD, the fish swims more in a spiral pattern, and they seem to know that they aren't swimming right, and they still try to feed, but they just can't get where they want to go. There may be some minor bumping into things, and the tail down posture is common, but it looks different than a fish that is blind, or one that is about to die.

 

[felda001]

Do you mean a fish that swims around and bumps into things? That can have two causes - blindness, or the fish is "moribund", actively dying. With UNWD, the fish swims more in a spiral pattern, and they seem to know that they aren't swimming right, and they still try to feed, but they just can't get where they want to go. There may be some minor bumping into things, and the tail down posture is common, but it looks different than a fish that is blind, or one that is about to die.

No he was swimming around in the middle of the night but not reacting to anything not running into things just not reacting. It was almost like a human sleepwalking. It was around 2 am (I was leaving for work). When I got home he was actively responding to food, people and other tank occupants. It was at the end of the day that he started with the tail down swimming and spirals

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

No he was swimming around in the middle of the night but not reacting to anything not running into things just not reacting. It was almost like a human sleepwalking. It was around 2 am (I was leaving for work). When I got home he was actively responding to food, people and other tank occupants. It was at the end of the day that he started with the tail down swimming and spirals

Sorry, I can’t tell you if it is UNWD or not. Video of it trying to eat might help with a diagnosis.

 

[felda001]

Sorry, I can’t tell you if it is UNWD or not. Video of it trying to eat might help with a diagnosis.

Thank you. He died a little over a week ago. Just wondered if anyone else had seen their wrasse "sleepwalking" before seeing symptoms. If it was something it might have given some ability to diagnose earlier. Of course without a treatment diagnosis is only for peace of mind

 

[Liquidsnakes]

I can't tell you, I've never had a case like that. The nipped fins and harassment is not part of the group of symptoms for this. Certainly, if you start to see that issue, you need to locate the culprit and isolate them, like with a tank divider.

Yea unfortuantely at the time i trie to isolate him too late and eventually he had a droopy tail. Over time it just got worse and then it looks like UNWD developed for him. Seems like rhomboid can't handle high stress at all.

 

[Lyndi]

Had him about 2.5 weeks after observing him for about 2 weeks at the lfs. Suddenly started swimming tail down but even the day he died he was trying to eat.

One odd thing I saw was about 1-2 days before he died he was swimming around the tank in the middle of the night like a zombie. He wasn't reacting to any of the other things in or out of the tank. I leave for work between 230-330 am and he was normally sleeping in a cave.

I am legit having this go on to a T with one of my Latigo fairy wrasses as I’m reading…. He will be a goner soon.

 

[felda001]

I am legit having this go on to a T with one of my Latigo fairy wrasses as I’m reading…. He will be a goner soon.

Sorry to hear. Hopefully the sleepwalking is unrelated and your Latigo recovers

 

[i cant think]

I am legit having this go on to a T with one of my Latigo fairy wrasses as I’m reading…. He will be a goner soon.

It could also be from aggression between the two - Two males of the same species often fight to the death or until one is badly injured.

 

[astronomer2002]

I thought this was an issue for newly acquired fish, but I have a yellow wrasse that's been in one of my tanks for over a year. It started out being bullied by another fish so I moved it my other tank which had a pyjama wrass in it that I have had for over 12 years (possibly double that). That fish was gradually fading in colour but was still moving well round the tank. The two wrasse completely ignored each other, even at feeding time. The yellow wrasse grew quickly and appeared to be doing well. About 5 months ago I wa alarmed to find the yellow wrasse swimming round the tank in the morning with a bent back. Didn't seem to bother him. About a month later the pyjama wrasse died overnight. No injuries and has been eating well up to 2 days before. Even on his last day he did respond to food but only grabbed a couple of artemia. he seemed lethargic, but still well filled out. He had been slowly growing paler for years so I thought it was a natural death. The yellow wrasse carried on for 4 more months with his bent back, but suddenly started wasting away, despite eating, about a month ago. He is now on deaths door, but still attempting to eat. Other fish in the tank seem to be deliberately avoiding him and swim away when he gets close. He is the only wrasse in the tank. His symptoms match those mentioned in this thread, but I have had him for at least a year before the bent back suddenly occured over one night.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I thought this was an issue for newly acquired fish, but I have a yellow wrasse that's been in one of my tanks for over a year. It started out being bullied by another fish so I moved it my other tank which had a pyjama wrass in it that I have had for over 12 years (possibly double that). That fish was gradually fading in colour but was still moving well round the tank. The two wrasse completely ignored each other, even at feeding time. The yellow wrasse grew quickly and appeared to be doing well. About 5 months ago I wa alarmed to find the yellow wrasse swimming round the tank in the morning with a bent back. Didn't seem to bother him. About a month later the pyjama wrasse died overnight. No injuries and has been eating well up to 2 days before. Even on his last day he did respond to food but only grabbed a couple of artemia. he seemed lethargic, but still well filled out. He had been slowly growing paler for years so I thought it was a natural death. The yellow wrasse carried on for 4 more months with his bent back, but suddenly started wasting away, despite eating, about a month ago. He is now on deaths door, but still attempting to eat. Other fish in the tank seem to be deliberately avoiding him mand swim away when he gets close. He is the only wrasse in the tank. His symptoms match those mentioned in this thread, but I have had him for at least a year before the bent back suddenly occured over one night.

Yellow wrasses have been reported with UNWD, but much less frequently than in flasher or fairy wrasses. Also, I don’t have any cases where a fish has been in a tank for that long and then got it, and also the fish don’t usually last for months after showing symptoms. Mycobacteria can cause bent / crooked backs in longterm captive fish, but that shows up gradually, not overnight. So - I’m not sure what’s happening with your fish. Can you post a video?

 

[Ross]

Would love to get some thoughts on this pink margin fairy wrasse. He came quarantined from a reputable online source. I kept him for a week in observation and he’s been in the display for a week now. Over the last couple days he’s holding himself in a vertical position more and more. Still has a strong feeding response.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Would love to get some thoughts on this pink margin fairy wrasse. He came quarantined from a reputable online source. I kept him for a week in observation and he’s been in the display for a week now. Over the last couple days he’s holding himself in a vertical position more and more. Still has a strong feeding response.

That doesn’t look like “classic” UNWD to me, but there is some variation in symptoms.

One thing though with this fish, it almost seems like it is negatively buoyant, which is a different issue.

 

[Ross]

Interesting I’ve never dealt with swim bladder issues before. Are there any steps I can take to help this guy? From what I’ve read, UNWD and swim bladder issues are usually 100% fatal.