# The mysterious "whirling disease"?



## Pandapop

Wherever I look online about this "whirling disease", it leads me to information about the affect on salmon... not tropical aquarium fish. Some places say it can't and won't infect tropical fish. Others claim it happens, but rarely. 

One of my Bolivian Rams has been 'spiraling' all over the tank... occasionally hitting the sides of the glass, running into other fish, nose-diving into the substrate... but this isn't dropsy or swim-bladder disease.

My fish is thin... much thinner than my other ram. This is the second time in the past week and a half that I've seen him 'spiral'. He literally cork-screw swims around the tank, often floating upside down, too. 

From what information I gathered, it sounds just like "whirling disease". A parasite that attacks the cartilage and skeletal structure (spine) of a fry or juvenile fish (more commonly those two, anyway). Some places say it's untreatable and the only thing to do is to euthanize the fish. Other places say doses of Furazolidone may cure it, and should be used on the other tank mates to keep the parasite from spreading.

Does anyone know anything about this? 

My water parameters seem pretty good, pH 7.5-7.6, 76-80F, 0 ammonia and nitrite, etc... 

None of the other fish in the tank have bothered my rams. In fact, I'm pretty sure they see the rams as more of a threat than something to pick on (since the rams are the largest fish I have in the 55g). Even though they're so gentle (well, they bicker when it's feeding time, but no serious aggression). 

Before the rams were moved into the 55g, they were in a 20g High with a Dragon Goby (who is now in a 20g by himself. He's small, and I plan to move him into a larger tank once he gets a little bigger.) and two Kenyi cichlids (about 1/2 inch each). Now before anyone says anything about mixing different types of cichlids, both species I have never bothered each other. Not once. My Kenyi's are wussies, anyway.

I'm seriously hoping that the rest of my fish in the 55g aren't going to be affected by this parasite... if that's what this really is. No one else has been acting ill yet, and I'm praying it'll stay that way.

So any advice? Info?


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## TheOldSalt

Whirling is nasty, nasty stuff. It isn't practically curable. It wipes out everything in a short time, so having only one sick fish probably means you don't have whirling in your tank. It can absolutely affect tropical fish, but it usually wouldn't since tropicals are kept at warmer temperatures.


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## Pandapop

It sounds and looks really terrible. My poor fish is still alive and doing worse... tomorrow I'm going to pick up some clove oil and put him out of his misery. I don't have the heart to flush him, or try any other means of euthanasia for fear it might just hurt him more... ugh he looks so horrible right now. He can barely keep himself upright... 

I took him out of the tank and he's now in a 10g by himself. All of my other fish still seem fine, besides a noticeable ich breakout... but that's being treated with Coppersafe and higher temperature.


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