rapid respiration and bloated tummy

[eykw]

hi there, i am new to the discus madness. and i've got a couple of questions regarding one of my newly acquired. i bought 2 5cm red turq 1.5 month ago and they were great in hospital tank, eating, pooing, coming to the front etc. i placed them into the main 2.5 ft tank. however after a week or two, one of them displayed some "symptoms" while the other became the king of the tank. water parameter is good and temp is 29C. there are x4 5 cm PB and x2 4 cm BD, x2 sterbai cory and x1 peppermint BN. symptoms included slightly bloated tummy, rapid breathing and colour seemed to be a bit darker than the other one. and the strange thing is he was not bullied at all. it hides after a while however comes out when i approach the tank. i took him out 4 days ago and starved it for a little while to make sure the tummy's bloated. it's still doing ok, feeding and comes to the front glass. however i ve noted the membrane inside the gill is "flapping" and exposed more prominently. tummy is still slightly bloated. my questions are:
what medication should i use and where can i buy them?
should i medicate the main tank too? i think so. and what should i do.
after reading more on the forum. i think the fish is stunted too cos it's got relatively big eyes compare to the "king". is there anything i can do with stunted discus? many thanks in advance.
Eric

[mistakes r crucial]

If your fish is breathing out of one gill the chances are it has gill fluke and if that's the case at 5cms you need to get rid of them quick smart, they really knock them around at that age. If it is flukes then Praziquantel or Trichlorofon is the go, Prazi is much more gentle but some strains of fluke are resistant to it. If the fish is continually bloated then it could well be worms. Bit hard to tell without looking at the fish so sorry but its a best guess looking from a far. Your LFS will be able to sell you both drugs but commercial forms of Prazi I have no respect for, Aristopet and the pure powder are the way to go if you don't mind spending a bit for alot. In fact, if you only have the one tank mate give me a hoy and Ill send you some as the minimum you can buy is like 200gms for around $160 which would last you 200 years.
MAC

[eykw]

Thanks MAC. now i ve got a much better idea. Here is a photo of the sick juvi i took a minute ago. hope it helps with the diagnosis and as a comparision the other juvi bought on the same day was also included.

[eykw]

it's gill fluke! the poor little discus started breathing thru one gill a couple of days ago. bought some prazi from LFS. treating it now. will see how it goes. see eating and pooing black stuff however not solid at times.

[gfindura]

Eric,

How is the prazi tx going? Are you treating the affected discus in a separate tank?

Also, I saw no one answered your question about treating the main tank too. I do not have a recommendation for you on that as I don't have much experience with parasites. However, we were talking about this on another post. If the rest of your fish are doing fine and no one is getting sick or showing symptoms, you probably don't need to do anything special with the main tank. Just keep up with the water changes. Or, at most, use some medication but only at a prophylaxis amount. Not a full tx dosage.

However, if other fish are showing similar symptoms, you might have to do something more with the main tank. Of course, I do not have a lot of experience with parasites and I'm sure one of the members here with more experience can help with better input.

Anyway, let us know how they're doing now.

-Greg

[eykw]

Thanks Greg. The main tank is doing fine and all juvi have grown considerably in this short period of time. I have been doing regular daily 10% WC. I don't think i am going to treat the tank however I am paying very close attention to every single one of them :)
the little fella is still struggling. Prazi treatment seems to work initially however it's color has gone even darker and the edge of the dorsal fins is rotting a bit. I ve put in melafix tonight and will see what happens. I had a feeling I ve OD the hospital tank. but the little fella is still eating and pooing normally. I will do another WC tomorrow and see how he goes. fingers cross!
cheers,
Eric

[gfindura]

Eric,

Good to hear that your main tank is doing okay. Another piece of advice with the hospital tank--keep it dark most of the time. Only put on the light maybe an hour before feeding. The dark will help with the fish's stress levels a lot. And, make sure there's some driftwood or other hiding place for your sick discus. Gotta try to make 'em as comfortable as possible.


-Greg

[Bill T]

I and others are not keen on Melafix as we think it effects the discus slime coat.
Do you have a UV sterliser, by the way?

[eykw]

Oh Greg thanks for that reminder. I ve had the light on all the time when i am home. it does look a bit better with the lights off tonight. more settled and I ve returned the little driftwood and plant in the tank for her comfort. She is still eating at the moment however it looks quite skinny and the eyes seems to be bigger than usual. umm...

Bill, thanks for that advise. now i know not to use it on discus. :D
and i am in the process of purchasing an UV steriliser. maybe the 11W pondmaster? any good advise/suggestion?

and how frequent should i do water change in the hospital tank? I changed 25% 2 days after the prazi Rx but then how often afterwards?

many thanks.