[Smiladon]

My Discus (which I recently acquired) seem to be sick.

They are very Dark in color and one of their fins seem to be stuck to their body. I am also beginning to see some patches in some of them.

Not sure whats wrong. Tried to call some Discus friends, but can't reach their phone.

Someone please suggest the proper medication. I will post pics if necessary.

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UPDATE Sept 15th.

I just noticed that one of my small Angelfish is dead. The male from my Angelfish pair has some kind of fungus growth on him and looks like he will only survive for max of 1-2 days.

All the other Discus are also sick --> dark and white stuff on them (including the new ones I got)

Please help. I have no clue whats wrong and no idea how to fix it.
I cant get any meds until tomorrow evening. What can I do now?

Images Below:

 

[Smiladon]

UPDATE:

I noticed that the temperature in the tank was low (lower in one side than the other). The Temperature is around 78F

I am assuming I need to get more water circulation or something similar to move the warmer water to the other side of the tank.

I changed the temperature setting in my ehiem heater to 84F and I will be adding some salt (1Tbsp/10g).

The tank is planted, so any other advice would be helpful.

Below is a picture of Discus (not mine) that looks similar but not as bad as the pic below.

DISCUS PLAGUE - SimplyDiscus
Is a Quarantine Tank Necessary

From reading the above, I am thinking that it could be a Columnaris problem.

 

[ibenu]

eek, that low a temp (it ccould should be up to 10 degrees more) Means they have been stressed and NOW are sick.... Get that temp up, plus daily water changes see where you are at then..
PIcs,
Temp
Nitrates
Ammonia
PH

all those readings will help.

But really I would say they are sick from wayyy too low a temp for sure...
Too bad.. Did you have a heater malfunction? If only one side of tank was that cold then you have poor circulation and I imagine filtration also....

 

[Smiladon]

Lisa, it was my fault for the temperature. I had it at 78 for a long time before when I didn't keep any Discus. I then got a Discus from Anthony and he was doing great (he still is doing great), so I forgot that other Discus REQUIRE higher temperature.

I just realized the reason today and then I increased the temperature.

I did have a chat with a friend and he suggested that it is most likely just stress --> slime + darkness of color due to the low temperature.

I did increase the temp. to 84F (maybe I should increase to 90F?) and added 8 Tbsp of salt.

After about an hour of salt treatment, I fed them bloodworms and most of them were eating from my hand, but still a little skittish. 2 of them were hiding in the back and did not eat.

pH. 6.8
Didn't check Nitrates + Ammonia because I did an 80% WC 2 days ago, so the measurement would be useless anyways.

When I went to feed them, most of the Discus went back to normal color and ate, and then after a few minutes they went back to being dark. I also noticed one of them "shivering".

Pics Below:
Worst Guy in Tank:

2nd Worst (shivering sometimes):

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Same fish as above, after a few seconds - Normal Color:

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Another pic of the dark part (this one had some white stuff...maybe slime coat?)

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Angelfish Tail crimped looking

Notice the while splotch on the female angelfish...is this slime coat or something else? This is what caused me worry.

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Wider Shots of Tank:

 

[Smiladon]

-----
Dark at one second and normal the next for a few secs then dark again..

New BD:

 

[Peterchow]

Looks like your new discus are shocked & stressed from :

1) New environment from bare tank to planted tank with other inhabitants
2) PH fluctuation
3) Change in water temperature
4) Insecurity from a larger discus community to a smaller discus community.

DISCUS ENJOY THEIR OWN TIGHT COMMUNITY WHETHER PLANTED OR NON PALNTED.

Just my two cents !!!!!

 

[ibenu]

You have to see that if half your tank has a different temp than rest poor circulation would inevitable = poor filtration. Dead zones are a bad thing by any account. Good luck getting them better, hope it all works out

 

[Smiladon]

Just an update. They look a little better now after the salt. I still see them being dark etc aka stressed out.

I did feed them again this evening and they ate from my hands again.

I think PeterChow hit the mark on this one. I am assuming the same as well.

Lisa, I put in a pre-filter in the tank earlier because I had Angelfish Fry in the tank. It is possible that the pre-filter is slowing the water circulation through the filter.

I am assuming that they will get better in time and this is mainly related to stress (due to my mistake of leaving the temp low).

I will update again if the discus go downwards.

Thank you all for your help and support

 

[April]

the cold water wouldve done it for sure. they get very quiet..off their food..flashing dark etc..id keep it at least at 84 to 86.
they will be fine..maybe you also taxed your filter with the sudden surplus of new discus.
they are strong..they should be able to take it. its not columnaris or they wouldnt be flashing dark and light. but bioload or dead spots would do it..or ph fluctuations.

 

[Smiladon]

Thanks for the tips April.

Today I did a 20% WC and replaced with "warm" water and then added 2 Tbsp salt again.

I also cleaned the filter (rinsed the sponges and dumped the crap filled water) and took away the pre-filter sponge, then I positioned the output hose on the side of the tank (instead of the back). This way the water circulation is increased.

I also hand fed them tonight and most of the fish ate...still had a few hiding in the back.

 

[catgoldfish]

Nice tank. I usually keep the temp at 86 degrees and when I do a water change the new water is always the same temp. Less stress the better. They look better now good work.

 

[chillin]

84 86 seems a good temp ,plants may not like the higher temp, unless are tolerant of higher temps i keep my 300 at 87 88 .discus are all thriving..lots of water changes and large filtering capacity helps ..the higher temp seems to ward off some of the health issues with discus ..they love warm water...chillin

 

[Smiladon]

thanks for the support guys.

The temperature is warm and stable now. The newest Discus I got (from bonsai dave) are doing great. The very first one I got from Anthony has been doing well the whole time, so nothing to say there...he is just an awesome rock solid discus.

The others are still dark and I notice more white stuff on them (slime?) today. Some of them ate and most of them were hiding in the back of the tank. I usually dont have time in the morning to hand feed them, but in the evenings I try my best to give everyone a chance at the food, but I cant reach the ones at the back

 

[tony1928]

I've seen people use a piece of pvc/abs pipe to target feed before. So maybe that would help you with reaching the back of your tank.

 

[TCR]

I almost never see my discus but when i do they are a nice orange

 

[Smiladon]

everything turned for worse now!!!

One small Angelfish dead and the male Angelfish has fungusy growth around him and looks like he can die anytime soon.

All discus are stressed out.

Only 2 fish seem to be ok in tank:
1. small black angelfish I got from april
2. Discus from Anthony.

Pics in first post. Someone please help!

 

[Smiladon]

I did a 25% water change (didnt add extra salt this time) and I moved the Male Angelfish to a 10gal tank.

He is already going sideways and upside down etc, so I dont expect him to survive

I am really hoping that the other fish are ok.... They are not going to get any food for a few days to keep the water "clean"

 

[MNP]

Looks like a toxicity issue. Ammonia-nitrite. Note your planted are you dosing fertilizers. Seen similar with people using Excel with discus, rams, cories. May have inadvertently introduced something off your hands. Substrate may be sour depending on time since last overhaul.

Load filters full of carbon (100%) and change 10% water (double dosed with Aquel) daily for 5 days. If fish bounce back, overhaul tank.

 

[jiang604]

hmmm, looks like discus plague to me. I've had it happen to mine before right after I found out it had parasites. Aquaworld Aquarium - Discus Plague It can spread to angelfish too http://aquaria2.ru/node/2350

I've found that quarantining the fish and using acriflavin plus ( i think i spelled it right) does work and speed up recovery. BUT this med is essentially sterilizing the fish.

If you want. You can come by my parents place and take the acriflavin plus. I have 1/3 a bottle left which treats about 40 gallons. PM me if need.

 

[seanyuki]

Just a few questions
did you check your water parameters?
did you quarantine the new arrival b4 adding to the main tank?
are you medicating all the sick fish in the main tank or already transferred them to the hospital tank.?.....what medication are you using now?....some meds cannot be mixed?

And if it's probably pathogen related......do a 100% water change and add water conditioner like Prime.....ensure a good flow of aeration and no filtration.
One hour after water changes and if no improvements and may want to use either one of these.....(1) Potassium Permanganate bath for 24 hours....(2)Formalin 30 minutes bath and do another 100% water changes.....(3)Malachite Green with no light on since it's light sensitive