 |
Fish Disease/ Diagnoses & Proper Treatment
Whether
you are a beginner or a seasoned marine reef hobbyist you will most likely
encounter fish disease in your reef system. The trick is to find the problem as
soon as possible and to know what the disease is and properly treat it with the
right medication. Some times this is a difficult task, most hobbyist see a
problem and treat with the wrong medication, the result is usually fish loss and
well earned money down the drain not to mention the suffering of the fish.
I
would like to focus on the most common causes of fish loss in this
segment which are Parasites and Bacteria usually parasites come first and
bacteria second the reason for this is parasites feed on the fish and end up
leaving Lichens [open wounds] which in time get infected and stress the fish,
This stress causes more Parasites and it becomes a never ending cycle. That is
why it is important to treat the Bacteria infection as well as the Parasites.
You
may ask, why is it when the fish are at the store or in my hospital tank there
are no Parasites but when I introduce them in my system the parasites magically
appear? Well this could be as simple as the stress from transporting the
specimen from the store to your home or from the sick tank to your display tank,
if this is the case it will be easy to treat with a reef safe medication or in
some instances they will cure themselves remember as long as the fish are in
copper Parasites will not be visible and a untrained eye may purchase the
specimen not knowing the problem that may lay ahead. That is why it is very
important before you purchase or treat one of your pre-existing fish to look for
abrasions on the body and also discoloration of the fish or cloudy hazy eyes. If
these signs are present it most likely has or eventually will soon encounter a
Bacteria infection
that
will cause a major outbreak of Ich which will not only jeopardize the fish
infected but all the fish in your show tank.
Remember
Parasite medication will not treat a Bacteria infection nor will Bacteria
medication (Antibiotic) rid your fish of Parasites.
We
at Chem-Marin have been testing Erythromycin in reef systems for the last 4
years all over the U,S with a 99% success rate with out harming the most
delicate species, this includes corals inverts and fish, not to mention your
bacteria bed as long as your system is a year or more old, If your system is new
you can still treat, but Careful Monitoring of Ammonia is critical as your
Bacteria bed is not at a mature state this means your gram negative
your bio load Bacteria even
though it has cycled has quality but does not have quantity quantity is
important as erythromycin also will knock out some of your beneficial bacteria {
Gram negative) which helps to Sustain life to your reef system..
Erythromycin
takes care of Gram Positive and Gram Negative Bacteria safely and effectively.
Below is a method that we found most effective and safe that we would like to
share with you to help you have the success you and your fish deserve
Erythromycin
Revised
treatment 04/30/99
For
every 30 Gallons of water put in 300 mg of Erythromycin
Put in once a day for 4 days in a row and then every other day for a
total of 9 treatments, if symptoms are still visible skip 2 days
And
re administer for 9 more treatments, watch for skimmer overflow at all times of
treatments.
Also
check water perimeters while administering. CAUTION: BE ALERT SKIMMER MAY
OVERFLOW
Erythromycin
Treatment
Al Ciannelli
26
1 & 1/2 Parsonage ST. Pittston PA. 18640
Phone
570-654-0298