Parked Shubunkin

[cerceau]

Thank you both for these!

No microscope here — I'm a literature professor... — but I did put it in a separate tank yesterday (after a few days in the common pond, alas). The vendor who sold it (kois-to-the-world) on looking at the picture said with confidence that it's ich and that placing it in a 0.6% salt water for 2-3 days should cure it, but I don't see white dappling on the body, only some flaking. I did raise the salt level to 0.6 % and added some herbal ich treatment (Kordon) and a weak dilution of potassium permanganate. I put a small goldfish with suspiciously similar behaviour to keep the Shubie's company. Don't have enough equipment, time, or stamina to sanitize the entire pond (if has to be sanitized). Kusuri Fluke M on amazon.com throws up only a silly book and multimeters, neither it seems of much curative strength. Where does one get it?

P.S. Found out that the Kusuri Fluke medication is available almost exclusively from the U.K., but one place in the U.S. carries it (Laguna Koi Ponds).

 

[Mmathis]

Keep us posted!

 

[MitchM]

• ...
• Salinity: Having very little pond experience, I just try to follow what I read. Since the pond has a liner, it receives and dissolves no natural salts from the soil, so it is generally considered healthy to add salt to keep it within the 0.13 —0.25% (according to my KoiMedic probe's instructions). Is this not a common view? At a lower level, I understand, the fish absorb water through osmosis and expend energy trying to expel extra fluids (because the fish's body has higher salinity than the water it's in); raising the salinity levels reverses that osmosis — which may lead to dehydration if it's too salty (over 0.5%).

I do not agree with salting a pond "just in case" because sooner or later an organism is going to come along that doesn't care about the salt. Our human doctors said the same thing about antbiotics and we are now having to deal with antibiotic resistant bacteria.

 

[cerceau]

Still alive this morning. The flakes seem to be gone and the eyes cleared, but it sometimes as if it wants to swim on the side — that's when we thought it was about to die. But it would straighten itself and swim, his fins still pressed to the body most of the time. Does this have anything to do with the "gyro" part of the Gyrodactylus infection?

Doesn't take food. I've changed 1/4 of the water in the QT, raising the salt level again to .6%, adding a weak solution of potass. permang. Don't know what else to be done until the Fluke treatment arrives from CA.

General salinity in the pond: I can't have an opinion being completely ignorant. The majority seems to agree that a certain level of salt in a pond is good for the fish (reverse osmosis etc.), not indicating any harm from it except that, if the salinity is kept too high all the time, a "super-virus" may indeed occur that would be resistant to salt treatment. I don't think that anybody takes antibiotics preventively, although they do, regrettably, add it in commercial fish farming.

 

[Mmathis]

I must have missed something....what makes you think it's flukes?

And don't forget to be keeping that water clean & changed as well as adding air.

 

[cerceau]

See above, from Dave 54. The description seemed to fit better than that of ich, as there are no white spots typical of ich.

 

[Dave 54]

You may well be a professor of Literature which we have every respect for, however weve worked with fish for 28 year, so please believe me if your vendor knew what they were talking about they would have recomended that as soon as you got this fish to QT ing this fish for up to four weeks prior to it going into your pond [not simply float the fish for a half hour or so] .
That is asking for problems which sadly to yuor cost you are finding you have .
Next point, a good vendor would also volunteer to do a scrape to ascertain just what it is they are looking at....Why?...simple really, its because they would like to keep a good name and it be one thats passed around to other prospective customers by happy consumers namely you yes?.
We can only work froom photo's [we sometimes wish I lived next door so we could come over to do a scrape] sadly we cannot but we can use our knoweledge to view your photo looking for tell tail signs.
Now what we are looking at indicates that this fish has flukes though I'm not sure which or both .
Neither are visable to the naked eye a sKin scrape and microscope can ascertain this .
Gil flukes attach themselves to the hosts body and make their way towards the gills skin flukes around the the body of the fish and once a fluke it attached to a host they begin to Live on mucus skin and blood .
When a fish is infected with skin flukes it may produce large amounts of mucus the same can be said for gill flukes which can be characterized by discolouration of the gills and the presence of large amounts of mucus .
if this builds up then the operculum [gill cover] may appear lifted because its unable to shut .
If you look closely this is already starting to lift at the tips
The effected fish will hang{park} close to the surface near to heavily oxygenated water near airstones waterfalls or water returns food may not be taken by the fish as normal .
So your best bet wuld be to put this fish back into the pond and treat all of your fish.
After treatment I would suggest you really give your pond and filters some heavy maintenance mid summer and going into fall reading your fish for the winter months

Dave

 

[Mmathis]

@Dave 54 I believe his vendor was a mail-order business and not local.

 

[Dave 54]

@Dave 54 I believe his vendor was a mail-order business and not local.

On average for every good vendor of fish on line there are others who arent as good or are damn well dangerous .
This is when the problems start if cerceau had have known then she wont have purchased the fish but when one is told to just add the bag to the pond float for half an hour then release with no mention of QTing a fish then one would be right to worry and alarm bells should start to ring .
Its a lesson learned the hard way thar cerceau wont forget in a hurry , one must always QT fish its not worth the risk not to..
No worries though all we have to do is to treat for flukes and that will be the end of the problem .
cercau can you please order a good over the shelf Flke treatment then follow the instructions on the bottle to the letter .
Then one can quickly get back to get back to enjoying her fish again

Dave

 

[cerceau]

Again, many thanks for your concern, TurtleMummy and Dave54.. It never occurred to me to distrust your advice; I only related what the vendor said after looking at the same picture.

The poor thing died today, before the Kusuri Fluke I ordered arrived.

 

[Dave 54]

Again, many thanks for your concern, TurtleMummy and Dave54.. It never occurred to me to distrust your advice; I only related what the vendor said after looking at the same picture.

The poor thing died today, before the Kusuri Fluke I ordered arrived.

Just because this fish died it may still be advisable to go ahead and treat your pond for flukes anyway.
But please cereau dont buy mail order again its always better to source your fish from reputable dealerships where you can go into the dealership and view your fish for any possible probelms then if there is make an informed opinion as to whether or not to buy...
Then remember put your fish into QT when you get it .


Dave

 

[cerceau]

Thank you for your advice. I'll certainly remember that. Trouble is, there is no dealership locally, only petshop that stock fishtanks: it's a small university town.

When the flukes treatment arrives, I should treat the pond water — Should the filters come out? Must the water be changed before or after treatment? I hope the instructions are clear as to the procedure.

 

[Mmathis]

@cerceau I have to buy my goldfish via online sales. We have local places that sell just your average goldfish and koi, but not the particular varieties I like [Watonai & Wakin]. I have no choice. But I think that after a while you start to learn who you can trust and who to stay away from.

 

[cerceau]

Thanks. Which ones do you buy from? Is there somewhere on this forum a list of those trustworthy online firms?

 

[Mmathis]

Thanks. Which ones do you buy from? Is there somewhere on this forum a list of those trustworthy online firms?

Alas, my resourcess are few, and there's nothing here locally. I've gotten a few nice fish from KoiToTheWorld, but have also gotten some questionable fish from them, as well. This spring I sprang for the "big leagues" and got 2 from RainGarden, based in Hawaii. VERY nice fish, but expensive for godlfish (Watonai). I will buy from them again, but only from KTTW, if I see one I can't live without.

Where do you live? Maybe someone on here is familiar with a breeder/seller close to you.