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Post by bikeguy33 on Feb 14, 2009 18:54:09 GMT -5
also....i would demand a discount or free fish for their "F" ups that have so greatly inconvenienced you. with the economy how it is in the states....no one wants to lose a good customer...
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Post by kagome on Feb 15, 2009 1:07:08 GMT -5
I am definitely going to bring this up with the owner. I think that part of the problem is that a lot of the people who work there just don't really give a crap about customers and are little more than warm bodies wandering around ringing people's purchases up. I made sure to let them know that they had really put me out on several occasions now. The girl who waited on me was really nice so I didn't want to get at all grouchy with her, she apologized profusely and I think at this point that if I make sure to get a hold of her or the owner when I call that I will actually get the right answer to my questions. I also asked them to get me a price on angelicus loaches to see if I can do better than $21 a piece.
Today is the second day of nuking the 38g tank with the two medicines. So far the fish still have milky slime. I am hoping to see some improvement tomorrow. The furan II has turned the water a bright yellow/green, almost like Mountain Dew, it's kind of funny.
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 15, 2009 10:16:05 GMT -5
Good idea on bringing it up with the manager. I would be really unhappy by now too. I hope the slime clears up. It must be really fustrating having your fish sick with that.
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Post by kagome on Feb 16, 2009 12:03:28 GMT -5
I am very concerned. The milky slime does not seem to be getting worse but it also doesn't seem to be getting any better. The loach with the slime is starting to act stressed. He is still eating but is not loach dancing, is very inactive, and his breathing seems a bit labored. I tried to test the ammonia but the water is all funny colors and I'm not sure if the reading of zero was accurate or not.
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Post by kagome on Feb 17, 2009 0:17:26 GMT -5
Ugh, things are not going well with treating the 38g. The milky slime is way worse today. I went to the store to try and get more Furan II since I don't have enough to make another dose. I usually try to buy all my stuff from Carl but this is sort of an emergency. The only problem is that no around here carries Furan II. I called four different stores and then even tried to find things that had the same active ingredients. Then I figured that since I couldn't find it and it didn't seem to be that effective for the current situation that I would try a different suggestion that Carl put forth and try erythromycin (which is somewhat ironic since I am myself allergic to that antibiotic). So I picked up enough to do a full course of treatment with that. I hope this works, I am so frustrated right now.
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Post by babygeige on Feb 17, 2009 13:26:27 GMT -5
Ew, sorry that you've been having such a hard time Kagome. I hope that the erythromycin works for you!
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 17, 2009 16:48:18 GMT -5
I'm really sorry to hear about the rouble Kagome. I ahve never had slimy skin disease on any of my fish but I found a link on it. It suggests a different med for treatment than you are using but hopefully it was accurate information and is helpful. Scroll down the list until you see slimy skin disease. www.pets-warehouse.com/marinefishdisease.htm Renee
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Post by kagome on Feb 17, 2009 18:21:55 GMT -5
Thanks for the link Renee, but that is for salt fish. I had a medicated wondershell in the tank when this latest infection popped up so I don't think that malachite green is the answer in this case. I am fairly certain at this point that it is a bacterial problem and not a parasite.
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 17, 2009 18:34:31 GMT -5
Sorry then. I am not sure what it is. If anyone else knows has advice to offer, please some don't hesitate to post it! Kagome is in a tough spot here.
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Post by kagome on Feb 19, 2009 19:06:02 GMT -5
I am still dealing with milky slime in the 38g. I am also now adding tetracycline in an attempt to just overwhelm this stuff. I am scared that if the fish don't get better soon that they will get so bad that I will have to euthanize them. This is a very upsetting idea to me, but if it looks like they are going to just die a slow death then I will do what is necessary to spare them additional suffering.
On the good side of things I finally have my butterfly loaches for my 10g. I have them acclimating right now. I picked up two of them. They were unable to get any angelicus loaches but will try again next week. Wish me luck with the new loaches.
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Post by kagome on Feb 21, 2009 12:21:43 GMT -5
So far so good with the butterfly loaches in the 10g. They seem to be trying to stake out their own territory in the tank among the other fish. No one is bothering them, in fact I really don't think the other fish even realize that they're there. For the most part they spend their time stuck to the glass behind the bubble stream or hiding in one of the caves. I am hoping that once they settle in that they will hang out on the smooth river rocks that I added to the floor of the tank. I put them right in the flow of the powerhead to try and entice the butterflies to hang out in the open.
There is no change in the milky slime today. I don't know if the treatment is working but at least it seems that the slow progression over the skin and eyes of the biggest clown loach has stopped. He does seem more active and is eating better, both of which I take to be good signs. He did have big spots of the gunk on his fins and those seem to be gone. I went through the full course of erythromycin but they still have it. I still have several days of tetracycline and am still hopeful this will kill this stuff off.
I have done a bunch of research on the streptococcus in fish and it seems that it is a major blight on the fish farming industry. I looked at reports of the clinical signs and they match exactly what the loaches have had. Unfortunately, I have not learned a more effective treatment then what I am already doing. On the fish farms they have to let them die off because if they treat them with antibiotics they can't sell them as food. I'm really trying to save these guys. Wish me luck.
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Post by murdock6701 on Feb 21, 2009 12:41:58 GMT -5
you are doing your best short of dumping and starting over....still doesn't cure the sick ones though - am proud of you for all your efforts - you are a good keeper as long as your frustration doesn't take away from the enjoyment of having them in the 1st place.....
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 21, 2009 13:07:05 GMT -5
Good luck Kagome! I lost 2 fish yesterday and I hope you don't lose these like I did. I will pray for your fish. Best of luck!
Renee
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Post by kagome on Feb 21, 2009 17:10:22 GMT -5
Thank you John and Renee. Frankly, my frustration with the 38g has overwhelmed the fun of setting this tank up. It took forever to get it to cycle, then I finally get the point where I can really start to stock it and the fish are sick. This tank has most definitely had it's ups and downs, and to date mostly downs. In the long run of course I enjoy this hobby very much but the really rotten run of luck lately has been hard to take. I ask myself all the time "What are you doing wrong?" and I honestly can't come up with anything. I do and have done the proper thing with this tank and it is because of this bug riding in on the pleco that I have had all these problems. And even if I had had him quarantined for a month he has never shown any signs of sickness and so he would have been put in with the rest of the population anyway. I have been pulling my hair out over this tank and it's problems but I think that in the end I will have a positive outcome and I'll get to sit back and actually enjoy my tank.
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 21, 2009 18:06:55 GMT -5
I know fishkeeping can be hard. You should have seen me back in when I first started with feeder goldfish in 6th grade. I was really upset and was lucky to have anything live over a month. I refused to keep anything but feeder goldfish which made it tougher (I wanted to rescue them and would settle for nothing else). Plus many of them were sick, I was cycling a 10 gallon for the first time, all the peststore were all giving me different advice, and my mom knew nothing about fish. This went on for over a year (possibly why 6th grade was so hard)I'm not sure if that compares much to what you're going through but trust me, we've all been there so you know you're not alone. Even experienced fishkeepers can have big problems. Fishkeeping cvan be hard but with perserverance, you and yoru fish can get through this! Best of luck!
Renee
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 21, 2009 18:11:04 GMT -5
Kagome, also check your private messages. I answered the question about your fish from earlier.
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Post by kagome on Feb 24, 2009 10:16:36 GMT -5
So the cycle of the two antibiotics is finished. The tetracycline is very messy. It make brown foam at the top of the tank and it turns the water a yellow brown color. It looks like the whole tank is filled with stale beer! Not exactly my favorite look. I put carbon back in the filter which is supposed to take the color out and am going to try and do a water change while the baby is taking a nap. This is the worst possible day to try and do anything to the big tank since my husband does extra work today and is either sleeping or gone almost all day. Hopefully I will be able to get it done on my own.
Now starts the waiting game. Did this work? Are the fish finally cured or are they going to die anyway? I am trying to stay positive but there have been so many setbacks that it is hard.
As for the 10g, everyone in there seems to be doing well. The two butterfly loaches have established their own territories and are seriously making a dent in the algae. They seem to be quite happy in there. One thing that I have noticed is that they are not very skittish but when one of them does get scared they can swim faster than the eye can see. One minute they're hanging out on a rock, the next they vanish. It's as if they can teleport! I'm so glad that I finally found some, I'm really enjoying them.
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Post by murdock6701 on Feb 24, 2009 11:10:45 GMT -5
enjoy your birthday dear - your tank will either clear up or not at this point, kind of redundant I know - I admire you for your patience and perserverance - I'd have dumped it and started over long ago, but that's just me - I don't exactly have the patience of a saint nor the time to deal w/ continuing frustration - good luck!
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Post by brenda on Feb 24, 2009 19:14:40 GMT -5
I hope this is the end of the issues and everything gets cleared up. You have done everything you could.
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Post by goldenpuon on Feb 24, 2009 19:53:59 GMT -5
I hope it is the end of your problems too. I didn't know i was your birthday Kagome. Happy birthday. Try to not let your fish worry you too much on a day like this and enjoy yourself. Best of wishes and good luck!
Renee
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