Established bicolor angel

[yassin.ghanem]

Hello, I have an established bicolor angel that was eating flakes and frozen foods including angelfish preparations. After treating for flukes with Prazipro, his color came back perfectly and was eating during treatment. I've done two water changes to help remove the meds. He now stopped eating, his respiratory rate is a little higher (maybe?), and he seems to be swimming a little differently then normal. When he goes into a cave his body tilts up more which is new. His eyes also look darker . I did two successful Prazipro treatments the second five days after the first.

Parameters are normal. only other fish is a Christmas wrasse in this tank

Any ideas of what's wrong?

 

[yassin.ghanem]

@Humblefish <- always helpful

 

[melypr1985]

Do you have a picture of him? Are there any other symptoms he is displaying? White spots, a dusty appearance, swimming into the flow of a powerhead?

 

[yassin.ghanem]

No other symptoms. Just noticed Christmas wrasse acting weird. Attacked the glass nonstop, twitched once, and his stomach looks distended. The little specs are air bubbles on the wrasse

 

[Humblefish]

Like Meredith, I'm wondering if you have velvet in your tank. Also, there are prazi resistant strains of flukes.

Were any of these fish QT'd? What made you decide to treat with Prazipro? When was the last fish/coral/invert (anything wet) added to your DT?

 

[yassin.ghanem]

Christmas wrasse was QT for Ich with hypo, and after added to DT there was twitching on both fish. Wrasse was the last thing added to the tank. No specs of anything on either fish. It's confusing because the Angels color improved significantly and the twitching stopped. (White patchiness improved after Prazipro @Humblefish

 

[Humblefish]

Can you FW dip to check for flukes? Eliminating that as a lingering possibility would simplify things.

Freshwater Dip: Provides temporary relief for Brooklynella, Flukes & "Black Ich", Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium); possibly even Ich & Uronema marinum (both unproven). Can be used to confirm the presence of Flukes.

How To Treat - Fill a bucket with RODI water, and use a heater to match the temperature to the water the fish is coming from. Aerate the water heavily for at least 30 minutes prior to doing the dip, then discontinue aeration while performing the dip. Fish aren’t overly pH sensitive for short durations like this, but you can squirt a little tank water into the dip just before the fish goes in to help bring it up.

Place the fish in the freshwater (FW) dip and observe closely. It is not unusual for them to freak out a little at first. Also, tangs are notorious for “playing dead” during a FW dip. The important thing is to watch their gills; they should be breathing heavily at all times during the dip. If breathing slows, it’s time to exit the dip. Dip the fish for no longer than 5 minutes. Multiple dips may be done, but it’s important to give your fish a day to recuperate in-between dips.

For flukes, use a dark (preferably black) bucket so you can see if tiny white worms fall out of the fish (especially out of the gills) at around the 3-4 minute mark. The worms will settle to the bottom, so you can use a flashlight to look for them there as well.

Pros - Provides temporary relief for a wide range of diseases in a chemical free environment. Can “buy you more time” until a proper treatment can be done.

Cons/Side Effects - Not a permanent “fix” for any disease, as FW dips are not potent enough to eradicate all of the parasites/worms afflicting the fish. Some fish can have an adverse reaction to a FW dip by appearing unable to maintain their equilibrium once returned to the aquarium. If this happens, hold the fish upright (using latex, nitrile or rubber gloves), and gently glide him through the water (to get saltwater flowing through the gills again). It is also a good idea to place the fish in an acclimation box until he appears “normal”.

 

[yassin.ghanem]

Will do when I get home thanks so much. Any idea if a distended belly is anything on the wrasse?

The wrasse is eating.

 

[Humblefish]

Will do when I get home thanks so much. Any idea if a distended belly is anything on the wrasse?

The wrasse is eating.

Could be a gas bubble, but it doesn't look that bad to me from the photo. How long have you had him?

 

[yassin.ghanem]

Could be a gas bubble, but it doesn't look that bad to me from the photo. How long have you had him?

3 weeks.

Today angel looked interested in food but did not eat :/. Will have time to do water dip tonight.

I want to mention the angel and wrasse were both twitching and after Prazipro they both stopped. Wrasse seems fine, Angel doesnt and seems to be swimming a little different and his colors are brighter then ever(sign the flukes improved as it was patchy white before).

Offered frozen and flake mixed with garlic and nori on a rock.

 

[Humblefish]

@yassin.ghanem Would keep an eye on the wrasse in case it develops into this: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/venting-a-swim-bladder-black-cap-basslet.219954/

 

[yassin.ghanem]

@yassin.ghanem Would keep an eye on the wrasse in case it develops into this: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/venting-a-swim-bladder-black-cap-basslet.219954/

Very interesting. Hopefully not though. Doesn't seem to swimming any different

 

[yassin.ghanem]

@Humblefish i did the freshwater dip and saw nothing come off. I didn't have a black bucket tho. I noticed under his eyes they are black looks like dark circles under eyes on humans or makeup. Is this normal?

 

[Humblefish]

I noticed under his eyes they are black looks like dark circles under eyes on humans or makeup. Is this normal?

That's not unusual for a Bicolor Angel. See pic below.

 

[yassin.ghanem]

That's not unusual for a Bicolor Angel. See pic below.

Today before I left for work the bicolor was breathing very heavily and I didn't have a chance to act before work. Do you think another freshwater dip with a third dose of prazipro will do the trick? Do you think it's too late if he was in that much respiratory distress? Thanks

 

[yassin.ghanem]

@Humblefish upon arriving home the bicolor was dead. White dead-skin looking stuff came out during fresh water dip (didn't seem to look like worms. ) I used 3 treatments of Prazipro. What should I do with the wrasse and eel in the tank as I'm sure they are at least carriers of whatever this is and I planned on adding sensitive fish in the future. :/

 

[Humblefish]

Between being in hypo & treating with Prazi, I do not believe this is flukes. More likely parasites in the gills is what's causing the wrasse to twitch his head. I would raise the SG and treat with copper for ich/velvet. Is the eel still in QT with the wrasse?

 

[yassin.ghanem]

Between being in hypo & treating with Prazi, I do not believe this is flukes. More likely parasites in the gills is what's causing the wrasse to twitch his head. I would raise the SG and treat with copper for ich/velvet. Is the eel still in QT with the wrasse?

The eel is in the DT with the wrasse. (Under hypo and prazi)

I'm assuming the eel can't tolerate cupramine?

 

[Humblefish]

The eel is in the DT with the wrasse. (Under hypo and prazi)

I'm assuming the eel can't tolerate cupramine?

This is sort of a gray area. While using chelated copper has always been a big no-no with eels, there have been some success stories using Cupramine (ionic copper). Chloroquine phosphate is ideal to use on eels, but that would need to be done in a QT. Actually, even Cupramine should only be used in a QT.