# normal or sick?



## Fishy mama (Apr 7, 2011)

It all started when I brought home plants and a couple new fish from a LFS. I had taken my quarantine tank down (grrrr!), so I just added everything to my 56 gallon. About a week later some of the fish developed what I thought was ich. I was surprised that little salt looking spots typical of ich started first on the tail and fins rather than on the body and when I first noticed them the spots were more plentiful right from the start than other ich outbreaks I've encountered. I pay a lot of attention to my aquarium, so it didn't go undetected more than overnight. I slowly raised the temp and added salt. I got to a concentration of 2 T. per gallon and the temp to 88 degrees. The fish tolerated that really well (I only lost two pitbull plecos). Over a period of several days, possibly a week, the spots went away on all but two emerald rainbow fish. The spots grew and looked like little smooth white balls on those fish, but didn't drop off. I moved those two fish to a quarantine. They easily had 50+ white balls on them before I netted them and mysteriously none immediately after. I treated them in quarantine with Nox-Ich (5% sodium chloride, 5% malachite green), and I kept the tank temp up and salt up for several more days on the 56 gallon. I returned them to the regular aquarium about a week after the treatment ended and after I had done several water changes.

Now,_ all _the rainbow fish and cherry barbs look their normal mirror shiny selves. All the fish are their normal active selves and are eating. Behaviorally I see nothing to indicate illness. Physically 6 fish look different: two blood parrots, two purple spot gudgeons and two firecracker cichilds. This is going to be hard to describe; I tried taking a photo, but never got a clear shot. The fish scales look slightly (very slightly) raised/individually defined. That might be how they looked before and if this were all I was seeing I might not have noticed this. The exterior of those fish appears slightly cloudy. Their normal vibrant colors are subdued as if behind a _slightly_ translucent film. The shape of their bodies looks normal, no bulging bellies, popping eyes, no torn fins, no excess slime coat dripping off. I took the purple spot gudgeon out and treated them with Nox-Ich in case it was velvet. I don't notice a difference in their appearance. Does this sound like a sickness or an after effect of ich, high salt, and raised water temps? I've searched common (and some not common) freshwater aquarium fish diseases, fungi, parasites, but nothing resembles what I'm seeing. 

Are the fish out of the proverbial woods, or do I need to further treat them, and if so, what would I treat them for/with?

56 gallon
2 Bosemani Rainbows
1 Scarlet Rainbow
2 Emerald Rainbow
2 Blood parrots
2 Purple Spot Gudeons
2 Firecracker Cichlids
4 Cherry Barbs
1 bristlenose pleco


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## BV77 (Jan 22, 2005)

http://www.fishdoc.co.uk/
http://www.nationalfishpharm.com/diseases.html
http://www.fishjunkies.com/Diseases/dropsy.php
Here's a couple fish health sites....you might pay particular attention to the third one about dropsy.


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## Fishy mama (Apr 7, 2011)

I had considered dropsy. The scales are defined but not pinecone like, and the fish don't look to be in distress. It does seem like something is going on, though. I started treating with Maracyn-2, so I'll see if that changes the appearance any.


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