Buying sick fish

[Thea_Belle]

So this isn't a problem I am facing right now but one I will have no choice but to deal with in the next couple of years.  So I am in the long process of an international move to Bogota Colombia. I've been scoping out aquarium stores when I am there and it is pretty slim pickings. In every store I've been to the fish are not healthy sometimes they look like they just haven't been fed but most times the fish are covered in ick with lots of dead fish floating in the tanks. The tanks are all on a shared water system and there is no guarantee on them.  So what would you do? Please don't say look for other places to buy I am and I have but I want to come up with a plan for the worst-case scenario to increase my chances of getting the fish healthy again and minimize losses.

 

[Chris]

I don't know what the laws are on medications in Columbia, and a quick Google didn't give me any results. That'll be your biggest factor - can you legally source medications there?

Essentially, I'd have a quarantine tank (10-20 gallons should suffice for most fish) cycled and ready to go, and take your time with additions. If you want a school of tetras, for example, buy a reasonably sized group for whatever size QT you have, and focus on getting those healthy before buying another fish, especially if they're coming from different sources. It'll slow down how fast you can add fish, but should improve your success rate IME.

If possible, I'd have the following on hand:

• The Med Trio https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/the-med-trio
• Aquarium Salt https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/fritz-freshwater-salt-1lb
• Expel-P https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/fritz-expel-p
• PraziPro https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/aquarium-solutions-prazi-pro
• Marine Salt

This is a relatively complete medicine cabinet, similar to what I keep in my fishroom. The Med Trio will cover 90% of the illnesses you'll encounter, since it has Maracyn (an antibiotic), Ich-X (an Ich treatment that also covers fungal infections decently well), and Paracleanse (a dewormer), at least with my experience here in the US (might be that some diseases are more common in Columbia). Expel-P and Prazipro will essentially cover the rest of the parasites that the Paracleanse in the Med Trio won't cover. Aquarium Salt will help stimulate slime coats in fish, and can also be used to combat some external parasites. Marine salt can be used similarly, but I usually use it to buffer the water and make sure that fish that enjoy harder water get the minerals they need - if your tap water is soft there in Columbia, you'll have a hard time with fish like Mollies that enjoy hard water. Adding marine salt will be a huge help for those fish.

The Co-Op has made tons of videos on treating sick fish through the years, so I'd watch through those. Lots of little nuggets of info that would be useful to know. Here's a playlist that's not even close to inclusive to all the knowledge they've shared:

If medications are not available, dosing Aquarium salt correctly can help resolve bacterial and fungal infections, and can help with external parasites. You may be able to use medications that are less regulated and intended for other animal use (such as goat dewormer), but this can be dangerous since it can be difficult to figure the dosage out. There are plenty of old forum posts about this route, so if Columbia doesn't allow fish meds, that may be a route to try.

Oh, and the obvious answer... If the fish are sick, do your best not to buy them. I understand you may not have many choices, but find the best vendor you can, and buy the healthiest stock you can. If a fish looks very ill in the store, you're going to be fighting an uphill battle the entire time. Purchasing the healthiest fish will, at the end of the day, be your best route to success even if you have to search around for the healthiest options.

Someone like @Colu should probably weigh in, too, as they'll probably have better information than I.

Good luck!

Edited 5 hours ago by Chris

[Tlindsey]

On 10/22/2024 at 2:00 PM, Thea_Belle said:

So this isn't a problem I am facing right now but one I will have no choice but to deal with in the next couple of years.  So I am in the long process of an international move to Bogota Colombia. I've been scoping out aquarium stores when I am there and it is pretty slim pickings. In every store I've been to the fish are not healthy sometimes they look like they just haven't been fed but most times the fish are covered in ick with lots of dead fish floating in the tanks. The tanks are all on a shared water system and there is no guarantee on them.  So what would you do? Please don't say look for other places to buy I am and I have but I want to come up with a plan for the worst-case scenario to increase my chances of getting the fish healthy again and minimize losses.

My best suggestion is quarantine all the fish you buy from that lfs. @Thea_Belle

 

[Thea_Belle]

11 minutes ago, Chris said:

I don't know what the laws are on medications in Columbia, and a quick Google didn't give me any results. That'll be your biggest factor - can you legally source medications there?

Essentially, I'd have a quarantine tank (10-20 gallons should suffice for most fish) cycled and ready to go, and take your time with additions. If you want a school of tetras, for example, buy a reasonably sized group for whatever size QT you have, and focus on getting those healthy before buying another fish, especially if they're coming from different sources. It'll slow down how fast you can add fish, but should improve your success rate IME.

If possible, I'd have the following on hand:

• The Med Trio https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/the-med-trio
• Aquarium Salt https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/fritz-freshwater-salt-1lb
• Expel-P https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/fritz-expel-p
• PraziPro https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/fish-medicine/products/aquarium-solutions-prazi-pro
• Marine Salt

This is a relatively complete medicine cabinet, similar to what I keep in my fishroom. The Med Trio will cover 90% of the illnesses you'll encounter, since it has Maracyn (an antibiotic), Ich-X (an Ich treatment that also covers fungal infections decently well), and Paracleanse (a dewormer), at least with my experience here in the US (might be that some diseases are more common in Columbia). Expel-P and Prazipro will essentially cover the rest of the parasites that the Paracleanse in the Med Trio won't cover. Aquarium Salt will help stimulate slime coats in fish, and can also be used to combat some external parasites. Marine salt can be used similarly, but I usually use it to buffer the water and make sure that fish that enjoy harder water get the minerals they need - if your tap water is soft there in Columbia, you'll have a hard time with fish like Mollies that enjoy hard water. Adding marine salt will be a huge help for those fish.

The Co-Op has made tons of videos on treating sick fish through the years, so I'd watch through those. Lots of little nuggets of info that would be useful to know. Here's a playlist that's not even close to inclusive to all the knowledge they've shared:

If medications are not available, dosing Aquarium salt correctly can help resolve bacterial and fungal infections, and can help with external parasites. You may be able to use medications that are less regulated and intended for other animal use (such as goat dewormer), but this can be dangerous since it can be difficult to figure the dosage out. There are plenty of old forum posts about this route, so if Columbia doesn't allow fish meds, that may be a route to try.

Oh, and the obvious answer... If the fish are sick, do your best not to buy them. I understand you may not have many choices, but find the best vendor you can, and buy the healthiest stock you can. If a fish looks very ill in the store, you're going to be fighting an uphill battle the entire time. Purchasing the healthiest fish will, at the end of the day, be your best route to success even if you have to search around for the healthiest options.

Someone like @Colu should probably weigh in, too, as they'll probably have better information than I.

Good luck!

So they are legal so that makes things a little easier, and I can source all but ich x there. Ich X isn't illegal just not sold somewhere I can get it but I can always bring it back with me. The timing is the component that still seems unclear to me. Like how long should I quarantine, and how long should I wait after adding the now healthy fish to the big tank, it will be a 125 if that matters but since we are talking hypotheticals I don't think it does, should I wait before quarantining the next batch.

[Chris]

2 minutes ago, Thea_Belle said:

So they are legal so that makes things a little easier, and I can source all but ich x there. Ich X isn't illegal just not sold somewhere I can get it but I can always bring it back with me.

Just make sure it's legal to bring the Ich-X back into the country. Might get a little hairy bringing a chemical like that in - just do some research to be sure. Salt or Methylene Blue are also good ich and fungal treatments, so they may be good alternatives.

3 minutes ago, Thea_Belle said:

Like how long should I quarantine,

It varies - I think the average I see people recommend is two weeks. Some people do more, some people do less. Personally, in your situation, I'd do a bit longer (maybe 3 or 4 weeks?) since you're concerned. Or, 2 weeks since the last sign of illness/stress.

4 minutes ago, Thea_Belle said:

and how long should I wait after adding the now healthy fish to the big tank

Typically I suggest additions to be spaced at least a week or two apart, just so the tank can adjust.

5 minutes ago, Thea_Belle said:

should I wait before quarantining the next batch.

Typically not required. Some people choose to sterilize their QT's between batches - take it apart, and clean the tank and all equipment with vinegar. I don't do this unless I have a batch go horribly wrong. In those scenarios, a sterilization may be worth it. Keeping some extra cycled filter media in your main tank would allow you to insta cycle the QT if you did choose to sterilize it.

[mynameisnobody]

Imagine there are some interested fish keepers in the area. Then imagine breeding and selling healthy, quarantined fish. I’d imagine if you can figure this out, it would be a lucrative little side hustle. 

[Colu]

On 10/22/2024 at 7:41 PM, Thea_Belle said:

So they are legal so that makes things a little easier, and I can source all but ich x there. Ich X isn't illegal just not sold somewhere I can get it but I can always bring it back with me. The timing is the component that still seems unclear to me. Like how long should I quarantine, and how long should I wait after adding the now healthy fish to the big tank, it will be a 125 if that matters but since we are talking hypotheticals I don't think it does, should I wait before quarantining the next batch.

If you can't source ick X an ich medication containing malachite green is what you want as you can get most of the medication @Chrisrecommended they will treat the majority of disease your likely to encounter I would assume that the vast majority of fish available in Colombia would be wild caught so I would deworm any new batches of fish you get with prazipro and expel p quarantine for a minimum of 30 days if during that 30 day quarantine period you see any disease i would treatment with the appropriate medication and start the 30 day quarantine again from the  last day  of treatment good quarantine protocol will pay off in the long run 

Edited 27 minutes ago by Colu
Typo

[Thea_Belle]

2 hours ago, mynameisnobody said:

Imagine there are some interested fish keepers in the area. Then imagine breeding and selling healthy, quarantined fish. I’d imagine if you can figure this out, it would be a lucrative little side hustle. 

That's the dream but to be fair I haven't successfully bred anything but neocardinas yet and I don't think those count lol. The fish I keep are egg scatters so I think I started with hard mode. 

8 minutes ago, Colu said:

If you can't source ick X an ich medication containing malachite green is what you want as you can get most of the medication @Chrisrecommended they will treat the majority of disease your likely to encounter I would assume that the vast majority of fish available in Colombia would be wild caught so I would do deworm any new batches of fish you get with prazipro and expel p quarantine for a minimum of 30 days if during that 30 day quarantine period you see any disease i would treatment with the appropriate medication and start the 30 day quarantine again from the  last day you of treatment good quarantine protocol will pay off in the long run 

Thank you I will add this to my notes. And yes for the most part it is all wild-caught. 

Edited 31 minutes ago by Thea_Belle
Sorry I cant spell apparently