Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 (edited) I added 3 hillstream loaches to my 20 gallon Sunday. Today I find one dead and another one with a white patch. Tank has been running for a year, heavily planted, temp 76, 1 large sponge filter and one hang back filter on high flow, in which I am growing a large fitonia and a large peace lily in aquaponic. Ammonia 0, nitrites 0, nitrates 0-1, phosphate 0, ph7, gh6, kh2. It is stocked with cherry barbs, amano shrimp and mystery snails. I included a pic of the white patch. The other fish don't show any behavior change or white patches. I don't have a quarantine tank running or room for it. My option is to treat the whole tank. It could be a fungus, columnaris or a wound... What do you guys think? On hand I have : maracyn, maracyn 2, para cleanse, exelp, hikari ickX and kanaplex. Which one of these is safe for hillstream loaches and which one should I use? Please help. Edited January 25, 2023 by Clo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwissAquarist Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 Looks a bit like a scratch from decorations. Aquarium Salt??? @Colu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 (edited) I would say an injury I would just monitor for a couple of days it should heal on its own you could add some Indian almond leaves as they have antibacterial and antifungal properties did the other one you found dead have any injury's or signs of disease @Clo Edited January 25, 2023 by Colu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 Thanks! I'll monitor it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 Just got eyes on that loaches and it has been getting worse overnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xXInkedPhoenixX Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 I'd be less inclined to say this is injury since you had another one die. Did that one have the same white patches? Any chance they have severe ammonia burn? How did you get them from the LFS or shipped to you? IF it is injury (meaning happened right after you added them to the tank) I'd quickly find the potential culprit - My method is to make sure I have a finger's width of space all around my tank between decor/wood/filters or it's otherwise RIGHT UP against the glass so they cannot fit through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 I got them from my LFS, they do medicated quarantine there. I never had problem with them so I don't quarantine the fish again. The Dead one did had a wound, but when I found it my barbs where eating it. On the morning I did spot all 3 loaches and they were fine. I took a pic of the dead one. It had red marks inside it's mouth and belly, see the pic. I just added maracyn to the tank. I have a plant/black worm culture bin of about 6 gallon I could transfer the loaches in. It has 2 air stone but no heater and no lid. I can fix the lid thing by taping window screen. Temp in the room is about 70. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 I just checked on it and she is dead now. This is very sad, I waited 3 months to get these fish, and I fell in love with them right away. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMartins Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 Sorry for your loss. I tried keeping Hillstream Loaches in the past in a standard 20 gallon but found them way too aggressive towards one another and to other fish in the aquarium. I had lost some fish from getting knocked around by them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 Oh really I thought if you had 1 or 3 it should be fine. It's my first time keeping this fish, so I tried my best. My tank has a cliff of dragon stone with caves that my shrimps and my fry barbs love. The back stone is indeed close to the glass and I can't pass my thinger there. I'll fill it up with filter floss after work. The third loach seem ok for now. Thanks for your help everyone. Hopefully the fatalities will stop here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 It looked like an injury in the first pictures the fact it progressed so quickly it could be columnaris that's a gram negative bacterial that spreads more quickly at higher temperatures and can kill your fish in a couple of hour to a week depending on the strain if you notice any other fish developing similar symptoms I would start treating straight away with kanaplex and jungal fungus clear fizz tabs containing nitrofurazone following this treatment plan @Clo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 (edited) Thanks, I'll get some jungle tabs right now online to have it on hand. But this nitrofurazone doesn't seem safe for inverts and scaless fish. Will a combination of kanaplex and maracyn and salt work? Edited January 25, 2023 by Clo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 Columnaris is a gram negative bacterial maracyn predominantly treat gram positive and some gram negative bacteria the combination of jungal fungus clear and Kanaplex is most effective treatment for columnaris I have found I would finish the course of maracyn and monitor for any similar symptoms jungal fungus clear fizz tabs is safe to use with invertebrates the amount of nitrofurazone is under dosed so it won't harm your shrimp or snails kanaplex can cause shrimp and snails to slow down I what you could is a course of maracyn2 in food feeding a small amount twice a day for 7 days maracyn2 is safe to use with invertebrates and jungal fungus clear fizz tabs containing nitrofurazone to treat the tank that's if you need to follow up with more treatment @Clo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 25, 2023 Author Share Posted January 25, 2023 Thanks a lot @Colu. I don't understand why they put on the maracyn packet that it treats columnaris 🤷. I should receive the fungus tab today. So I will have it on hand. As of this morning I did a 30% water, added aquarium salt 1tbsp, and 2 packs of maracyn, before I left for work. Tonight I will add another tbsp of salt and start feeding them maracyn 2. Thanks for the recipe. Hopefully I'll get that loach to eat it. I am already making homemade food for my algae eater with spirulina powder, spinach, yeast and garlic. So I'll incorporate antibiotics to that. As for the barbs they eat anything I throw at them so it should not be too difficult. I don't have seachem guard or focus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted January 25, 2023 Share Posted January 25, 2023 (edited) Maracyn does suppose to treat columnaris On 1/25/2023 at 8:13 PM, Clo said: Thanks a lot @Colu. I don't understand why they put on the maracyn packet that it treats columnaris 🤷. Maracyn say it treats columnaris from people I no who have used it hasn't been very effective they have suffered higher mortality rates among their fish they have seen better success when using maracyn with a high levels of aquarium salt but loaches and catfish don't tolerate high levels of salt well couldn't say for sure if it was the salt or the combination of the two that increase survival rates Edited January 25, 2023 by Colu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 28, 2023 Author Share Posted January 28, 2023 Update. Third loach died quick. I added maracyn 2 and fungus clear into the tank two days ago. Also Feeding the fish with kanamycin food. Monday I'll do a 50% water change to end the maracyn treatment and I will put a new dose of fungus clear and maracyn 2. Today two of my barb show sign of infection. One has white lips another one white scale lesions. I have 5 adults and 7 youngs in there, for long time it was a species only tank and I watched the little ones grow up. Not much else I can do than keep the treatment going and watch what happens. Very sad on how it turned out. Also reorganizing the apartment to make room for a proper quarantine tank. today is shopping day, I'll get some transparent bin and river rock and start my quarantine to grow algae there. I am not giving up on getting hillstream loaches in the future. It's going to take time and I have a long way to go to save my barbs and make the my 20gallon habitable again, but I am trying to stay optimistic. I'll take any advice for tank clean up and quarantine set up. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nabokovfan87 Posted January 30, 2023 Share Posted January 30, 2023 This definitely sounds like columnaris. I would encourage you to treat the tank. As others and yourself have experienced it can be a pretty nasty illness and move extremely quickly. I am sorry for your losses. Best of luck. Also be sure to clean / sterilize any equipment to avoid contamination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 30, 2023 Author Share Posted January 30, 2023 Thanks I am already treating the tank directly. The medication maracyn2 and fungus clear in the water and kanaplex feeding seems to work for the cherry barbs. The white patches on my adult male are slowly going away and healing, one of the young still have whitish lips, but his behavior is normal. Barbs have started mating again yesterday evening and the shrimps finally came out of hiding. So I'll do my big clean today and another round of treatment. How do you usually sterilize your items? A while ago I had to deal with a little bit of ich in a tank and I just soaked everything in bleach for 24h after using. Will that work for columnaris too? Or should I also boil everything that can be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted January 30, 2023 Share Posted January 30, 2023 (edited) What I would do 3% Hydrogen peroxide leaving them to soak for 24hr before rinsing them with dechlorinated water @Clo Edited January 30, 2023 by Colu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clo Posted January 30, 2023 Author Share Posted January 30, 2023 Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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