Wrasses Yawning, Scratching, and Lethargic

[nickkohrn]

I have an Exquisite Fairy Wrasse and an Orange-Back Fairy Wrasse that are in quarantine. I recently noticed them scratching their gills on the PVC fittings and yawning. So I did some research and decided to dose PraziPro. I have read that it could be caused by flukes or ich. It makes sense that I may not see ich on the wrasses since they tend to have thicker slime coats than other fish.

My Orange-Back has become lethargic after the initial dose of PraziPro today; it’s stationed on the bottom glass, but it’s breathing and eating normally, and moves between PVC fittings. The Exquisite is swimming around like there have been no changes to its environment. I understand that lethargy can be caused by PraziPro, so I’m keeping a close eye on them.

Is it best to wait until after the second dose of PraziPro to start treating with copper? If so, then should they get a break between the PraziPro and copper treatments?

Thank you!

 

[Ocelaris]

Are they eating well? With wrasses, it's best to get them eating well first as prazi will decrease appetite. If they're already eating, then I would continue the prazi.

 

[HotRocks]

I would not mix copper with praziquantel. Since you already started prazi I would finish it. Run carbon + WC then start copper.

Do you have a powerhead aimed upward? Agitation at the surface of the water? Prazi depletes oxygen and can cause the lethargy in wrasses.

 

[Humblefish]

Because wrasses don't always handle medications well, I would treat separately if possible.

I.E. Don't start copper treatment until after both rounds of Prazipro are done.

 

[nickkohrn]

Are they eating well? With wrasses, it's best to get them eating well first as prazi will decrease appetite. If they're already eating, then I would continue the prazi.

Yes, they are eating well. I have had them for a month now, and I haven’t seen issues with appetite suppression this far. I will continue the PraziPro treatment.

Thank you!

I would not mix copper with praziquantel. Since you already started prazi I would finish it. Run carbon + WC then start copper.

Do you have a powerhead aimed upward? Agitation at the surface of the water? Prazi depletes oxygen and can cause the lethargy in wrasses.

I don’t have a powerhead in the tank, but I have a HOB filter that has a sponge that I have colonized with bacteria. I haven’t had any issues with ammonia thus far. I ran an air stone down into the HOB filter, and that pumps a ton of air into the tank. I did it this way because it has significantly limited salt creep from the bursting of the larger air bubbles when it was directly in the tank.

I’ll keep an eye on the oxygen level and the activity levels of the wrasses.

Thank you!

Because wrasses don't always handle medications well, I would treat separately if possible.

I.E. Don't start copper treatment until after both rounds of Prazipro are done.

I did read that wrasses don’t always handle medications well, so I’ll keep an eye on them and wait until the PraziPro is finished before I start a copper treatment.

Thank you!