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ID what's wrong with this fish

zebradanio

zebradanio

Member
Joined
18 May 2013
Messages
83
Just bought some lake kubuto rainbow fish from maidenhead aquatics , got them home and noticed some white marks on one of them and a lump near its tail , I can take some more photos if its not clear from the photo.
Apart from the marks and lump the fish appears very healthy.

vSPB7qO.jpg
 
Cheers lads , looks a bit like Costia and a bit like columnaris .
I read lake kubuto fish are prone to Columnaris.
I set up another tank about a week ago using some media from an existing filter so I,ve quarantined it , not ideal but will have to do for now.
 
Columnaris is a possibility, does the marks look a bit thread like? How is the fish's fins?The gills could also be affected. If it is Columnaris, at its early stages anti-bacterial medicines can be used to treat it. Columnaris is usually due to poor water quality but I don't think that may be the case as you said you recently added the fish into the tank which makes me believe it was caused by shock/stress when the fish was added into its new environment.
 
Then it could well be Columnaris. Early treatment will work but don't leave it late as it could proceed to attack the fish's organs then you will need antibiotics. But right now anti-bacterial medicines will work as its early signs.
 
Methylene blue can be used for Costia and possibly columnaris I believe but someone with more experience can correct me if I'm wrong.

note: Do not use it in the aquarium it will kill the bacteria in the filter! And it will stain silicone, plants etc. So its best used in a quarantine tank or a separate container.
 
Columnaris is caused by Flavobacterium columnare, which is a gram negative bacteria. In your filter are hundreds of kinds of bacteria, either gram-negative or gram-positive. If affected the nitrifying bacteria can cause most damage because a nitrite peak may occur. Luckily most nitrifying bacteria are gram-positive. I've no experience treating columnaris but based on these facts I would say: use an antibiotic that affects mainly gram-negative bacteria and the harm to your tank will be limited. Off course, if you are in the possession of a quarantine tank, this is always better!

A wikipedia copy: "As Flavobacterium columnare is Gram-negative, fish can be treated with a combination of the antibiotics furan-2 and kanamycin administered together. A medicated fish bath (using Methylene Blue or Potassium Permanganate and salt),[3] is generally a first step, as well lowering the aquarium temperature to 75F (24C) is a must since Columnaris is much more virulent at higher temperatures, especially 85-90F.[4]
Medicated food containing oxytetracycline is also an effective treatment for internal infections, but resistance is emerging. Potassium permanganate, copper sulfate and hydrogen peroxide can also be applied externally to adult fish and fry, but can be toxic at high concentrations. Vaccines can also be given in the face of an outbreak or to prevent disease occurrence."

Which I think as not a bad advise!!
 
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