Achilles tang- Velvet or something else?

DrZoidburg

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Are you saying copper the Dt now? Reason being if Achilles have it they all will need treatment fast.


Tarnish brown sheen on forehead and back around dorsal observed.

I have dosed the DT in the past with good success. Tastes a bit to reach therapeutic levels and of course I’ve worked hard to get rid of it from my tank so it stinks I may have to do it again.
Cant see what your seeing pictures are not clear enough. Do see discoloration on head, but doesn't look like velvet. One spot looks like it moved on left side. Could be mucus spots, or sand. If fine spots start popping up most definitely copper treatment. Same with growing amount of larger spots. I think time and better pictures could help in diagnosis. Sometimes time is an option.
 

flagg37

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I’m not sure why no one has diagnosed this yet. He’s struggling to breathe; it’s obviously covid. He needs hydroxychloroquine.

(this is a joke)
 

jmichaelh7

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I’m not sure why no one has diagnosed this yet. He’s struggling to breathe; it’s obviously covid. He needs hydroxychloroquine.

(this is a joke)
Trying to make light of things lol …

Hey man hopefully your tang is alive in the morning they are beautiful I want one if my tank was bigger.

Such a PIA during these times
 
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Flame2hawk

Flame2hawk

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I agree with Jay on the issue of velvet not being the culprit. I actually suspect flukes . You can give this guy a freshwater dip (AS LONG IS IT NOT DISTRESSED) as FW dip can stress it more . . . to eliminate the possibility of flukes. Even if not flukes, will give the fish temporary relief from parasite irritation. Agree with Jay also aon addition of pump and airstone. That breathing rate needs to be reduced.

Symptoms of velvet given to you in bits and pieces from others are:

Velvet spots on the fish that are much finer as Jay described than the spots seen in Ich making it harder to catch until in some cases - too late to treat.
Some behaviors associated with a fish with velvet are :
- Scratching body against hard objects
- Fish is lethargic
- Loss of appetite and weight loss
- Rapid, labored breathing
- Fins clamped against the body
- rapid breathing and mucus around the gills

Fish with velvet will typically stay at the surface of the water, or remain in a position where a steady flow of water is present in the aquarium. As the disease progresses outwards from the gills, the cysts then become visible on the fins and body. Although these cysts may appear as tiny white dots the size of a grain of salt, like the first sign of Saltwater Ich or White Spot Disease, what sets Oodinium apart from other types of ich is that at this point the fish have the appearance of being coated with what looks like a whitish or tan to golden colored, velvet-like film, thus the name Velvet Disease.
Remove fish from main tank and give them a FW dip or bath and then place them into a QT with vigorous aeration provided. Treat the fish in the QT with a copper-based medication. Although many over-the-counter remedies contain the general name as ich or ick treatments, carefully read the box to be sure it is specifically designed to target "Oodinium".
But how can it be flukes when they’ve been thru 2 rounds of prazi on 10/5 and 10/14?
 
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A short video might give me more to go on.

The only thing holding me back from saying it is velvet for sure is the other fish not really having symptoms - generally once a fish begins breathing fast due to velvet, most fish will be showing symptoms.
Copper in a treatment tank is the best cure for velvet, but peroxide dips can buy some time.
Jay
Regrets to say but have no idea how to post video’s. I can post photos forever but no video’s. Have tried and failed many times…..
 
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Jay Hemdal

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I went back and re-read this thread - I still don't have a definitive answer.

Just update us when you can.

The thing about videos is that most often, when I view them, I just say "yep - just like in the still photo". However, sometimes, I say, "Oh - Wow, so THAT'S what the problems is!"

Jay
 

vetteguy53081

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But how can it be flukes when they’ve been thru 2 rounds of prazi on 10/5 and 10/14?
Flukes are not true flukes. They are actually parasitic flatworms and flukes are generally clear, so a visual confirmation is nearly impossible. Confirmation of flukes can be obtained by doing a freshwater dip. After a 3-5 minute dip, flukes will become opaque and fall from the fish. Although helpful, it doesnt identify the type to aid in proper treatment. As jay generally recommends, a microscope can confirm what they are. Prazi pro does not kill flukes. It induces uncontrollable spasms and because it is agentle treatment, can be prolonged before the fluke is actually gone. During that time, if eggs are disbursed, the new worms will thrive as the prazi wears between treatments.
Recommended dosage Prazi is dosing 2.5 mg for 5-7 days, then performing a water change and redosing the full amount for another 5-7 days. A third and fourth dose may be needed to actually conquer the problem. This is . . . provided it is flukes.
The symptoms that lead me to suspect flukes are that often the fish can become lethargic, swim near the water surface, develop clamped fins, hide in the corner of the aquarium or behind rocks, lose appetite, shake the head, flash, or scratch. They may exhibit yawning, cloudy eyes and loss of color at the insertion site.
 
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Flame2hawk

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Not ready to declare that Ifish are out of the woods, However after 25% water change in the middle of the night followed by use of poly filter (an awesome product), Achilles and fish look much better, Lights on in another couple of hours and will be able to tell more. It does appear that“prazi water quality syndrome” might have been the culprit. Fingers crossed. Stay tuned. And thank you all!
 
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jdiefenbaugh

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But how can it be flukes when they’ve been thru 2 rounds of prazi on 10/5 and 10/14?

Prazi does not kill flukes, just stuns them and they fall off. If you're not transferring the fish out of the tank after dosing prazi, it will likely just pick them back up. I generally try to dose as a 4 hr bath, then move to a different tank.
 

Jay Hemdal

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Prazi does not kill flukes, just stuns them and they fall off. If you're not transferring the fish out of the tank after dosing prazi, it will likely just pick them back up. I generally try to dose as a 4 hr bath, then move to a different tank.

Actually, adult trematodes are unable to reattach to the host after being dislodged. What DOES happen is that some species are egg layers and praziquantel has no affect on eggs. Then, when eggs left in the tank hatch out, they reinfect the fish.

Jay
 
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Flame2hawk

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Will cautiously declare all is good. Achilles looks fine. Sorry for freakin everyone out. Definitely due to the stress and deteriorating water quality that is created by “prazi poor water quality syndrome”. I only mention this because on the bottle and on many chat sites it states that prazi is “gentle”. As I’ve written before its far from gentle. ANYWAY ALL GOOD!!!
(PS those spots in photos below are actually micro bubbles created by increased aeration)

CBC65397-2736-46DD-BF4E-6D458F8D6DA1.png E7BFCCDC-6349-4A99-B165-87F08A8FF65B.png 7E8FDBB8-4B18-4644-95BC-178BB22673C8.jpeg
 
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