Quarantining Regal & Emperor Angelfish

[jefra]

I just received a regal and emperor angelfish from an online purchase. I placed both in my 20 extra long (36") quarantine that was initially separated with eggcrate but removed when there was no aggression. QT has several large PVC Ts and elbows, hang on back AquaClear 75 with seeded biomedia and sponge, heater, wooden airstone, and ammonia alert.

The regal angel appears especially healthy, ate a slurry of frozen fish eggs, cyclopeeze, mysis, and Hikari mega-marine angel.

I am a bit concerned about white markings on the emperor, shown in the yellow circle. I know juveniles can take on whitish tone when transitioning to adult colors, but this spot seems different.

My current quarantine plan is to get them acclimated and eating for a few days before dosing PraziPro and Furan-2 prophylactically for ten days. I have CopperPower and a Hanna high range colorimeter on hand , but am still on the fence about it. I've never dosed copper and am especially nervous with the sensitivity angels have. I'd appreciate any and all suggestions/feedback. Thanks!

 

[Frtdrmrose7]

Maybe it’s just from the camera but I almost think I see velvet starting (light dusting).
@HotRocks
@4FordFamily @ngoodermuth @Big G

Am I seeing things?

 

[jefra]

Maybe it’s just from the camera but I almost think I see velvet starting (light dusting).
@HotRocks
@4FordFamily @ngoodermuth @Big G

Am I seeing things?

If you're referring to the uniform pale highlighting on the upper dorsal area, that's not the camera. I think that's just standard coloring on juvenile emperors but could be wrong.

 

[ngoodermuth]

I’m not sure the picture is clear enough to see spots... but I do see the white patches. Could be bacterial, hard to say.

Have you done a freshwater dip to check for flukes? Is he scratching on the bottom or just laying there? How’s his breathing?

 

[jefra]

I’m not sure the picture is clear enough to see spots... but I do see the white patches. Could be bacterial, hard to say.

Have you done a freshwater dip to check for flukes? Is he scratching on the bottom or just laying there? How’s his breathing?

I haven't done a freshwater dip. They were both in surprisingly small bags so I wanted to get them in the tank as soon as possible to prevent ammonia damage.

He's not scratching or laying. More wiggling and swimming sideways which I've always considered to be normal angelfish behavior.

 

[ngoodermuth]

Do you have any antibiotics on hand? If he was a fish you’ve had for a while, I might say “wait and see” but in my experience bacterial issues in new fish can go downhill rather quickly.

 

[jefra]

I have Furan-2 but wanted to wait a day or two and get them acclimated and fed more before starting it.

 

[lagatbezan]

It could also bee stress marks. Emperors are known for getting them. But personally I treat all new fish with 14 days of metro and hypo to deal with flukes, uronema and infections and then 14 days with copper.

 

[ngoodermuth]

It’s definitely up to you, just keep in mind that antibiotics are very slow-acting in fish. If the marks get bigger or he starts breathing heavily, I’d start right away...

 

[jefra]

The emperor just ate pretty heavily for me which is what I wanted before dosing antibiotics so I started first treatment of Furan-2.

I'll get Metronidazole tomorrow and run that for 14 days also - does 500 mg a day for 20 gallons seem sufficient?

Can these two antibiotics be safely used together with PraziPro?

 

[ngoodermuth]

I'll get Metronidazole tomorrow and run that for 14 days also - does 500 mg a day for 20 gallons seem sufficient?

Can these two antibiotics be safely used together with PraziPro?

I use metroplex, each “measure” is 125mg at 70% purity... with directions to dose 1-2 measures per 10 gallons. So 500mg per 20 gallons would be the higher range of that dosage.

It’s ok to use the furan-2 + metroplex together. The prazipro is also ok... with caution. You need to have “overkill” 02 exchange... prazi depletes oxygen on its own so mixing it can cause issues if the tank is not very well-aerated.

Also, keep an eye out for cloudy water (bacterial bloom) it’s common side-effect when mixing meds, can also cause issues with O2. If water gets cloudy- do a water change and make sure to dose the new water according to it’s volume.

 

[jefra]

Today is day 5 of General Cure (which I elected for in lieu of metronidazole and prazipro separately) and Furan-2.

I noticed the Emperor Angel is defecating what looks whole, undigested mysis shrimp. Should I be concerned by this? What could the cause be? He's otherwise otherwise active and appears to be in good condition.

 

[mcpeachy]

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