rapid breathing hunger strike

hello every one ;
I have two PB discus in hospital tank 80 liter.
http://i1378.photobucket.com/albums/...psfzpkkuew.jpg
http://i1378.photobucket.com/albums/...pssbckybed.jpg
They were 2 in a batch of 10 juvies that i bought 5 months ago and they are 7 months old ,they were in a 200 liter tank ,not planted BB the other 8 discus are good eaters but these 2 were fussy eaters till about 3 weeks ago they almost stop eating . my parameters are ph 6.8 ammonia 0 nitrite 0 nitrate 5 gh 2 kh 0 temp 29
Three weeks ago i transferred the 2 PB to a hospital tank ,filled it with 40 liter of water increased temp to 33 c put an extra air stone and add a cycled double sponge filter
http://i1378.photobucket.com/albums/...psy0ukk6wq.jpg
I have treated them with metronidazole 400 mg for 40 liter ( 10 mg per liter ) for 12 days ( 6 times with 1 day rest in between ) 50 % water change prior to medication and lights off during treatment , today i have noticed that they are breathing faster roughly 2-3 time per second so i have done an extra 50% W/C and put 1 table spoon of rock salt per 40 liter and they are breathing a bit slower but still refuse to eat , you can see the razor blade look on their face .
Any suggestion of my next move would be greatly appreciated.
Sayid

p.S
I forgot to mention that there is the presence of white poo ( looks like stomach lining ),also both fish were subdued in the corner .
Sayid

Hi Sayid,
Have you tired soaking their food in Garlic Guard? It helps with fussy eaters. And perhaps adding Stress guard to their water at water changes? It promotes healing and with stressed fish. Seachem makes both these products. One of my juvies breathes faster than my other discus, though he is growing very fast and looks healthy otherwise. Im not sure i would have the water temp so high, i would lower that to 30c, it could be adding to the problem they have with breathing. Is it the warmer the water the less oxygen in the water? And just remember, taking them away from the group will have added to their stress levels and anxiety making it harder to get them to eat. I would soak some black worms in Garlic Guard and try that, also adding stress guard at your next water change and see if that helps at all...

I was going to suggest epsom salt 1 tablespoon/10gallons, but looks like you have that already covered. A iodide salt dip for 10 minutes can also help, but I would do that in a bucket and watch them all the time, and remove if too stressed, this might help the heavy breathing. Breathing fast can be caused by changing parameters or parasites, so make sure your water changes are similar, but sure you have that covered too. Have you tried them with black worms? That normally temps them to eat, or live bloodworm, if you can get a clean supply.

I hope they improve soon.

Thanks sabrina and hollowman for your suggestions, they both have their breathing slowed down ,they also are more comfortable and are coming to the front window so that is good news but still refuse to eat but i am optimistic that soon they would start to eat ,patience is the only weapon i have got ,what i have been doing in the pass few days after finishing the metro treatment has been doubling the water change ( i know that is hollowman suggestion to every one and rightly so ) that has helped the general well being of the fish .any way i still have a long way to go .THANKS .
Sayid

Maybe the metro affected them sayid, but you are doing everything right.

Super clean tank btw

Hi guys;
Just a quick up date on the 2 PB ,this afternoon i gave them a salt bath 2 TBS to 3.78 liter of water + prime in a bucket ,put the light out for 30 min watching allthe time in case they roll over which they did not , i then transfer them to a super clean fresh water tank with cycled clean sponge ,i am happy to say one of the fish which was breading through one gill is now having both gills working , i used rock salt bath to get rid of any fluke in the gill ,still not eating but i am hopeful . i am going to try sabrina suggestion of putting seachem garlic juice on their food and see what happens ,i will be reporting their progress .
sayid

Salt dips can be scary, let's hope it cleared the flukes and it gets its appetite back.

i thought salt at the rate of 2 TBS PER gallon is not that harsh ,if i was braver i would have have used PP but probably not right for these fish ,lets hope it works.

Sounding better Sayid, i hope this works and they will get better soon! Was it epsom salt you used?

The salt in the salt bath was pure na cl i.e your normal table salt .

Oh right, i didn't know you could use that! Thnx :)

hi every one ;
i have got some good news ,the smaller discus has started to eat this morning (small granules of sera and some FDBW ) but the bigger one still refuses ,will continue with w/c and rock salt and patience .

You have hit them quite hard over the last week or two, maybe time to give them a rest for a few days see it the other one decides to start to get its appetite back.

I think Steve is right Sayid, they need a rest for a few days..
I also wrote something else here today, looks like the Moderators deleted it :o

hi guys ;
i gave them a second salt bath treatment this afternoon which they took well and i thing you guys are right and they are going to have a week of rest and let see how they go .