More problems

[mstenorsaxplayer]

Now his gills are swollen and are protruding out of the gill covers. He is breathing kinda heavily. The bloated belly has gone down a bit, but is still there. I didn't overdoes his medicine or anything. I am so confused. What is wrong with my fish? What am I doing wrong???

[mstenorsaxplayer]

He also has two black spots on his lips. One in each corner of his mouth.

[callistra]

Inflamed gills can be a sign of ammonia or nitrite issues (which can not be present with 100% daily changes) or bacterial gill infection or gill flukes.. You sure he has Velvet? Doesn't sound like it.

I know I posted some comparison pictures a while back for you to compare it to.. I can't really tell much of anything with the photo quality of the pics you are sharing.

The treatment you are using should work for Velvet and probably also for gill flukes so I would say the problem is now probably bacterial gill infection... as long as you are keeping up water changes it can't be an ammonia/nitrite issue, which is the most frequent cause of what you are describing.

ETA: Are you sure they are really swollen and he is not just breathing heavy? How exactly are you doing these water changes? Are you using same temp water and adding conditioner before he ever hits the water? How are you acclimating?

[AyalaCookiejar]

I am thinking the same. Where is that good picture of velvet I saw awhile back? Velvet is misdiagnosed often. You describe a coppery color, whereas velvet looks like gold dust under a flashlight, not a thick copper color in plain lighting. Velvet would make him look like he's colored in pollen and would not be concentrated in one spot...

[mstenorsaxplayer]

I know what velvet looks like because I have treated it before. Its just that was the closest thing I could think of that fit his symptoms at the time. I don't think he has velvet either which is why I am so confused. I have been doing 100% changes since I thought he had an external parasite.
So the shiny copper is nothing to worry about?
I noticed his gills swelling a bit after I did his water change. I always make sure that there is no way for him to come into contact with any soap.
What should I do? Thanks so much for your help!

[mstenorsaxplayer]

He is still scratching too.

[callistra]

When you do a water change it's important to make sure to match the water coming out of the tap to the same temperature he's used to - I use the thermometer from the tank under the tap. Then fill up your tank, add conditioner, mix it around a bit, then acclimate him by floating in the water for about an hour while adding a couple tablespoons of new water every 10minutes.

If you're not matching temp, you're doing no acclimation, and/or you're not adding conditioner before he sees the water, this could be the cause.

If it "swells" right after a water change I still wonder if what you're seeing is him breathing heavily from shock.

[mstenorsaxplayer]

I age the water for a little over 24 hours. Then I take him out of his tank and out him in a holding container. Then I add in the new water and heat it up. I do that for 100% changes. For the 20% changes I do when he isn't sick, I heat the aged water to the same temp as the tank and then change it out.
What about the bacterial gill infection you mentioned? Can that cause scratching?

[AyalaCookiejar]

If he's scratching, I would not be surprised if he has some type of parasite... But it does not sound like velvet. My VT has a coppery color on his gills that shines under a flashlight, but its not velvet and he had no other symptoms. He was scratching when he had internal parasites, which I didn't figure out until after I QTed him in a bare bottomed tank (I could not see the white stringy poo because it was semi-transparent and blended in with the substrate). It caused slight bloating, as well, and his poo was sometimes white and stringy and sometimes normal looking.

Ich and velvet are not the only types of external parasites, either, though I don't have much knowledge on others.. It is frustrating not being able to figure out exactly what's going on. >:/

[mstenorsaxplayer]

It is frustrating. I really appreciate y'all being so patient.
He did have an internal parasite last august. I treated him with prazi-pro and it seemed to go away.
Now his poo is long sometimes, butI thought maybe that could be from the bloodworms I feed him for treats. That is the only time it seems long.