laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 (edited) I cycled my planted tank fishlessly and added my fish a little over a week ago. It’s a 29 gal. I added a sixth tetra on Sunday and yesterday I noticed white cotton mouth appearing on my fish and now I’m panicking. I dosed with Maracyn but from what I’m reading that won’t be enough. I ordered more meds but they won’t be here until Thursday... water parameters: 75 degrees (lowering temperature steadily) ph 8.0 kh 12 gh 12 amm 0 nitrite 0 nitrate around 10 to 20ppm (hard to read) I am scared and new to the hobby and feeling incredibly disheartened. Is it safe to wait two days and start kanaplex? I have three snails in the tank and some Cory cats too. Edited April 13, 2021 by laritheloud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 That looks like fungus I would treat with API fungus cure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Hi, Colu! I called my LFS about the fish and they said the rest of the Diamond Tetra tank doesn't have these symptoms. They suggested I pick up aquarium salt and add it to my tank. I am going to get some Aquarium Salt this afternoon and add a little bit to help healing. Any recommendations for how much is safe to add for 29 gallon planted tank with 3 snails? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 (edited) Aquarium salt 1 table spoon for 2 gallon will help with fungal infection if you have live plants salt at that level will harm them I would Qarantine and treat Edited April 13, 2021 by Colu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 If you can't Qarantine I would recommend treating with API fungus cure as mouth fungus can spread quickly stoping your fish from eating Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Thank you Colu. Can I treat API Fungus Cure alongside Maracyn, since I started the Maracyn treatment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 I am not sure if you can use maracyn with fungus cure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Unfortunately no store near me has API Fungus Cure in stock, so again, I have to order and wait. 😕 I have Ich-X along with maracyn so i went ahead and dosed the tank with ich-x in combination with the maracyn........ How quickly will I know if my fish are getting better? How do these sorts of lesions heal? He's swimming pretty quickly and still eating (I fed a VERY small amount this morning), but unfortunately I do not have a quarantine tank, and I'm not sure if a quarantine tank at this stage of the game will prevent the need to treat all of my other fish. I'm worried I will lose my entire tank, and I just got started with this hobby! When I called my LFS, they said to try salt and general cure, and that the rest of their tetra tanks look fine... I'm beside myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 Maracyn will help just case of secondary bacterial infection Ich x treats some type of fungal infection you should see improvement in a couple of days general cure is a treatment for parasitic infection will no help in this instance if ich x and maracyn don't work use fungus cure and furan 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Okay, I have both Furan-2 and Fungus Cure on the way! I'll try to stay optimistic for my little guys. If the first round doesn't help, I'll do a water change and start Furan-2 (with a bottle of bacteria close at hand while I watch the water parameters). Thank you! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 So I honestly can't tell if my fish is getting better or worse. The scales around the mouth lesion are flaking a bit, but the lesion itself is a little less white. It is not red. I'm not sure if this is improvement or not. We are nearing 24 hours after the first dose. Ammonia is reading .25 ppm. Nitrites are 0, nitrates are still around 10 ppm. Is it safe to control ammonia with Seachem Prime during antibiotic treatment? Is this something to be concerned about? I'm so new to this, I'm very sorry for all the questions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 How he looks now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 Prime is sulfonate based and can interfere with some medication Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 So what do I do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 (edited) It's a difficult one the best way to get rid of ammonia is thought water change but that will remove the meds as far as I no most water treatment that bind ammonia and nitirte are sulfonate based Edited April 13, 2021 by Colu Miss spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quikv6 Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 Hey Laritheloud, It can definitely be overwhelming and discouraging when a fish gets ill, especially for someone who is brand new to the hobby. Try not to get discouraged. Every experience, good or bad, is something you can learn from, ultimately making you a better fishkeeper in the future. And that will allow for even more enjoyment in the future! Colu is very helpful here, and I would try to take his advice. Granted you have a planted tank, so even though that doesn't rule out a little salt, it may rule out an amount that would cure the fungus. While a hospital tank may be "ideal", you may be able to work around it. (Though I would add a minimal amount of salt to the tank regardless...perhaps 1 teaspoon per/5 gallons). You can try salt baths for 15-20 minutes at a time. I have had luck with a very juvenile molly who had a some small cottony growths on his head. I took a cup of tank water, added a small amount of salt (1/2 tsp, approx), and also very little bit of API fungus cure to the cup. (It'll turn the water green...totally normal). Then I let the molly swim in it for around 20 mins, a few times daily. Thankfully, it seemed to work after a few days. He also has a small amount of salt in his tank full-time. If you go the above route, just be sure to monitor the fish in the salt the whole time. Too much can have a pretty instant adverse reaction, in which case you would put him back in the tank immediately. Start with a very small amount. You end up developing a feel for how much to use. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Hi quikv6, thank you for the tips. I considered doing a salt bath earlier but felt insecure about how to proceed. I did add 1 tablespoon of salt to the entire tank but felt wary about adding more. API Fungus Cure is not in stock at any store near me so I have to wait until Friday for it to arrive at my door. Furan-2 should be here on Thursday, and I got Kanaplex as well that should also arrive on Friday. Can you tell I panicked? As I mentioned above, I'm not sure if he's doing better or worse, but he's still eating and it looks less white. There hasn't been any spreading. I just added my second dose of Maracyn and I'll continue to monitor water parameters. I am not changing the water if I can help it, and I'm not adding any more Ich-X until I change the water (if necessary). I have bottled bacteria on the way, and it should also arrive sometime between tomorrow and Friday. I'm hoping that I won't see signs on more fish. I've already got a 10 gallon quarantine tank sitting in my cart on Amazon, along with an extra filter to run alongside my main one in the display tank for quick cycling. I'm feeling incredibly bad about myself with all of my scrambling and trying to maintain hope that I won't kill all my fish within the first two weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 14, 2021 Author Share Posted April 14, 2021 Morning update! The fungal spot hasn't spread, and there's no fuzzy fungus on it anymore. I can see his little teeth where it ate at his top jaw a little, but again, it doesn't look inflamed to my untrained eye. I'm not seeing any spots on any other fish. He ate voraciously along with the others and he is swimming normally. Hopefully things continue to move in a positive direction! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 14, 2021 Author Share Posted April 14, 2021 (edited) How he looks now. Also, my lights are a little bit different for 'dawn' and a little red/orange-tinted (I use the Finnex Planted+ 24/7 light). So that's the warm glow you're seeing! Edited April 14, 2021 by laritheloud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 14, 2021 Share Posted April 14, 2021 It's looks better I would keep going with the treatment till it fully healed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 14, 2021 Author Share Posted April 14, 2021 That's the plan! Thanks, everyone, for sticking with me through the anxieties. At least I'm fully stocked for any more emergencies now! 🙂 And I'll be picking up a cheap 10 gallon tank kit for a quarantine tank, so I can properly quarantine any new fish I purchase for a few weeks to a month. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 15, 2021 Author Share Posted April 15, 2021 Hello again, everyone! I have another question. @Colu you've been tremendously helpful and thank you so much! I can't get a picture of the little guy this morning because he's incredibly active and zipping everywhere. He ate with the rest of the tetra just fine, though I'm noticing my alpha male chasing him around a bit (to be fair, the alpha male chases all of them when he's in a mood). I'm not sure if he's healing a bit more or if I'm seeing things. There have been 3 out of 5 maracyn doses so far, and since then I've gotten in Kanaplex and Jungle Fungus Clear tabs. I'm still waiting on Furan-2 and API Fungus Cure. I intend to wait 24 hours after changing the tank water on Saturday (which is 24 hours after the last dose of maracyn) before attempting any other treatment. Is it necessary to treat with something else if the wound on his face is still there, or do I wait a few days and see if it heals post-treatment? I'm not sure if it's something I have to keep treating until fully healed or if, after the fungus/bacteria is gone, it should continue healing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 15, 2021 Author Share Posted April 15, 2021 The best pics I could get of master wiggler zoomed guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 If the fungus has gone after treatment you can monitor the wound if it shows signs of getting better I would leave it a lone if it gets worse or the fungus reoccurs treat with fungus cure Frist and then furan 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laritheloud Posted April 15, 2021 Author Share Posted April 15, 2021 Just now, Colu said: If the fungus has gone after treatment you can monitor the wound if it shows signs of getting better I would leave it a lone if it gets worse or the fungus reoccurs treat with fungus cure Frist and then furan 2 Perfect, thank you so much! I monitor these guys like my babies. I really appreciate the confidence this community has given me to calm down and take it one step at a time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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