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Dropsy? Hopefully not. | 10 comments (10 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: Dropsy? Hopefully not. (none / 0) (#3)
by miskairal on Mon Feb 14, 2005 at 12:35:07 AM PST

Sometimes it seems to kill them fast and you barely see any scales protruding, other times it's slow.

I've just been away for 2 days and returned to find 2 fish, who had dropsy before I left, still alive - no worse, no better. They've been like this for about a week, no, longer actually. I probably should put them to sleep with clove oil but I can't help but hope they just might get better.

I've had others who have appeared fine and within 36 hours are dead after sudden symptoms of dropsy appeared.

Dropsy itself is not actually a disease, it is the symptom caused by a bacteria or multiple different bacteria I think it causes distension of the abdomen with fluid. Sort of like us getting a headache - we can get a headache from an infection, or stress or concentrating too much or drinking too much alcohol. The headache is the symptom.

Metronidazole (antibiotic) is said to be the best treatment for dropsy but you can't buy it here in Oz for fish. Pimafix seems to prevent it but can also rapildy drop your pH. It's also too expensive to use frequently.

I haven't heard mention of anything else that causes scales to rise but that doesn't mean there isn't anything.

Cheers
miskairal
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[ Parent ]

Re: Dropsy? Hopefully not. (none / 0) (#5)
by Padders on Mon Feb 14, 2005 at 10:00:46 PM PST

Thanks for the info.

Yeah I probably couldn't euthanize a fish. I'm always hoping they'll just get better (and hey, it's happened to me before).

[ Parent ]

Re: Dropsy? Hopefully not. (none / 0) (#7)
by miskairal on Tue Feb 15, 2005 at 02:08:28 PM PST

I did it!

I put them to sleep yesterday with the clove oil. It was so peaceful to watch their stressed/laboured breathing decreasing until it stopped.

It was hard though. Normally I only do fish that are just about dead anyway. These two were like balloons blown up and had been suffering too long. They wre no longer eating and were mostly lying on the bottom. When I went to catch them, they zipped all over the tank which made me feel bad so I left them but upon watching them some more I decided it had to be done and I felt way better for doing it afterward.
--
Repeat after me,
I will read the Immediate Help
[ Parent ]

Re: Dropsy? Hopefully not. (none / 0) (#8)
by Padders on Tue Feb 15, 2005 at 05:37:00 PM PST

Understandable.

I havn't really had time to think about when I might need to euthanize a fish. Mostly, if they get sick, it happens really quickly.

I know this is going to sound really stupid... but is clove oil just something you get from the supermarket? And you just fill up a cup and put them in it or something?

[ Parent ]

Re: Dropsy? Hopefully not. (none / 0) (#9)
by miskairal on Wed Feb 16, 2005 at 08:33:23 PM PST

I think I got mine from a pharmacy. It's a tiny bottle of about 5-10ml and was only like $4-5AUS from memory.

I got a 1ml syringe from the vet and I put the fish in a glass dish with about 300-500ml of it's tank water (use glass as this stuff is mighty strong smelling and plastic absorbs the smell). Keep well away from your tank as I don't know what the clove oil fumes might do to healthy fish.

I add about 1/3 of the syringe full of clove oil and it works within 10 minutes usually although one fish took maybe 15 minutes.

I then put the syringe back in it's special envelope that is labelled so I can never use that same syringe for some other medication measurement.

It really is way easier than doing something more physical.
--
Repeat after me,
I will read the Immediate Help
[ Parent ]

Re: Dropsy? Hopefully not. (none / 0) (#10)
by Padders on Wed Feb 16, 2005 at 11:26:25 PM PST

Thanks again!

My mum works at a doctors surgery which is handy :) so I'll get some for future hopeless cases I guess. It does sound alot better than the other options I wouldn't ever really consider.

[ Parent ]

Amen to miskairal's comments about the bacteria (none / 0) (#4)
by unclescott on Mon Feb 14, 2005 at 08:47:25 AM PST

and the dropsy effect being the result of a whole bunch of possible bacterial build-ups. Your frequent (and more frequent) partial changing of water is still possible the best way to deal with that.

On another list, was surprised by something close to a rant against antibiotics because they are too little too late and they do little many times other than help breed anti-biotic resistant bacteria. He may be overstating the case, but water changes are preferable in many cases. Broad-spectrum antibiotics, again as miskairal has mentioned, can take out the good bacteria in a tank too, stressing the fish even more as waste materials build up.

All aquariums have established a certain unique equilibrium. The water changes (assuming seasoned water of a similar temperature and/or run through a carbon block filter) nudge those equilibriums in a more healthy direction. Sometimes, several nudges are necessary. :)

All the best
u.s.

[ Parent ]

Re: Amen to miskairal's comments (none / 0) (#6)
by Padders on Mon Feb 14, 2005 at 10:05:33 PM PST

Thanks ;p

Yeah I'll probably just continue with the seasoned water changes. It seems like the best way to go in my situation.

[ Parent ]

Dropsy? Hopefully not. | 10 comments (10 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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