Loaches Online Forum

I think some sort of gill parasite has come in with one of the bunches of loaches I bought.

The fish are flashing (turning sideways to scrape the side of their face against rock/wood then turning back to swim normally) with some frequency and seem overall uncomfortable.

Sometimes when they flash on a completely clean surface, like a granite rock, I see a 1mmx1mm roundish brown thing come out of the gill when the fish flashes, as if it has scratched the parasite out of its gill. It is too small to scoop out and I cant get a photo... its just a roundish brown thing. Im sorry thats a pathetic description.

I've made drawings also here- the burmese cross breed loaches are 'yawning a lot' (image 2) where they curl the barbels all back to reveal the inner 'mouth'. Image 1 is a normal mouth. Also, one of the burmese cross loaches, only just today, has been holding his barbels in a rather unhappy pose, as in image 3. He appears rather timmid to the other loaches today.

Also the burmese are being very beligerent, appearing quite frustrated, and are taking it out on the rostrata by tryint to bite their caudal fins.

All my fish show symptoms except the plecos. The bolivian rams are flashing as well, and on occasion are coughing and fluttering their fins and fidgetting their bodies in discomfort.

I need a recommendetion for medication please
(bolivian ram, brislenose pleco, burmese X loach, rostrata loach, aeneus cory)

I would greatly appreciate this. Thank you.
Water parameters have been checked by the way. pH is 7.0 ammonia nitrite zero nitrates are under 10ish ppm...

If its flukes, I'd probably try Prazipro on the tank for a few weeks. Prazi Pro is about the safest med I've ever used.

angelfish, you'd be best off asking your fellow Canadian's, as the medications we have in the UK are somewhat limited and are different to the stuff you have available over there.
Good luck,

Emma

Also Emma do you have any thoughts on why one of them has its barbels sort of curled back like that? And why they keep yawning? please?

For gill parasites, I'd suggest trying Waterlife's Sterazin to people over here - but I don't think you have that product over there.

I wouldn't worry too much about the yawning, as all Botia do this from time-to-time. It has been 'suggested' in the past that this is linked to poor water quality (presence of ammonia and nitrite in particular) but I personally do not believe this to be the case. As you know I've spent years observing the behaviour of the large number of clown loaches I have at home, and pretty much any of them will do this every now and again. The water quality is always excellent (we wouldn't accept anything less for them ) and I am of the opinion that it is more of a stretching reflex.

Here's an old pic of one of mine caught in the act:

Can you provide a close-up picture of the one with the 'curled barbels'?

Emma

Thank you for helping out. Ive never heard of that product before.

Mine do this 'yawning' thing more frequently than that... I notice one or two do it every time I stop to watch the tank for five minutes.

I only do weekly water changes atm because the population of the tank fits in both my hands and its a 55G. My nitrates are <10ppm

I've considered that this might be a particulate issue as I've always only filtered with sponge so I bought some floss tonight to put in the filters...

I'll try to get a picture. They arent curled so much as held down, whereas most of my mutant histrionica usually hold them all forward. The same way some of your clowns there have aimed their barbels differently. I will try to get that photo.

thanks.

Im ever more convinced I have a clown loach hybrid- which bothers me because that isn't what I was trying to buy at the time.


Many of them have a blackish spot on the tummy like your loach in foreground lower right...