Why Me? ASAP Help

[JKfish]

I feel really, really stupid. Phoebe is still in the harlequin's tank being treated for velvet seeing as she was stuck in there for 3 days while my siblings mom and I were out of the house. Velvet is not longer the major issue, seeing as that underlying issue has appeared.

The harlequins are pineconing and so is Phoebe *headdesk*. I feel absolutely horrible because if I used my brain, Phoebe wouldn't have been in that tank in the first place so my harlequins wouldn't be sick as well... and because I have no clue what is making them sick, obviously Phoebe brought it with her..... and with the other three bettas I've lost, I have a feeling the same issue is coming up. Chances are in less then a week they'll stop acting fine. Once they stop acting okay, they'll develop SBD issues, and then be miserable. Depending on whether or not I decide to humanely euthanize, they'll hang in there like that for several days, go off their feed, and then die. I figure I have less than a week to get the right meds and save them, once they stop acting fine it'll be too late.

tanksize: ten gallons
heating 78-80
Fish: one betta, three harlequin rasboras
Water change schedule: because I'm treating for velvet, roughly about a 50% four days of the week and 25% the other three. (basically every single day I'm doing water changes)

Any ideas what the heck is making them sick, how to cure it (FAST), and (god forbid) if they die, how to go about sanitizing the tank.

help help help help help help help help help pleeeeeasse

[Sweeda88]

Pineconing makes me think of Dropsy... That's the only thing I've heard of that causes it.

[JKfish]

Believe me, I treated for that, when the whole sorority was sick. heavy 2 tsps per gallon of Epsom salt, high temps, water changes galore etc, and it didn't work (hence why I'm down to one female).

Plus, something always seems off that I can't exactly place. My gut tells me that it just doesn't seem perfectly like dropsy, there's more to it, but I just can't figure out what.

[Sweeda88]

Well, good luck to you. My girl also has a mysterious illness right now, and it's driving me nuts. She was PERFECTLY fine one day(or so it seemed), and the next day she was a sick little monkey. Poor Aurora... =(

[Creat]

If its not dropsy its beyond me I would take the betta out cause and treat her separately you can go up to 3tsp/gallon heat and also tannins help. Then treat the tetra without her in there. But thats my best idea

[JKfish]

I have nothing with tannins in it on hand. Mom's making me go to bed, so I'm going to wake up early and add a tsp of epsom salt per gallon to start. I'm starting to wonder if it's parasites. One of my girls had an issue with white feces a bit before she passed (she was in qt treatment), and I thought it was eggs... If I treated the tank with something anti internal parasites, how much harm could it do to them if that's not an issue? >.<

I'll be back tomorrow morning, any more ideas/feedback is welcomed....

[LeroyTheBetta]

Originally Posted by JKfish

I have nothing with tannins in it on hand.
.......
I'll be back tomorrow morning, any more ideas/feedback is welcomed....

Pardon my ignorance, I am new to keeping fish, but when you said you had nothing with tannins, I first thought of tea. Is this the same kind of tannins you're talking about? I don't know of tea is safe for fish or not.

Also, tannins in a piece of driftwood? If you don't boil a piece of wood, ie. for an aquarium decoration, several times (discarding water after each time), it will leach tannins into the water discoloring it, giving it that dingy look.

Again, I don't really know the effects of tannins on fish, but the above listed things contain tannins.

[wallywestisthebest333]

Good luck with treating them! hopefully someone will have an answer for you soon! <:[

[baylee767]

I've heard there is a disease that mocks dropsy... but it isn't deadly so I don't know what you have. Sorry I wasn't more helpful /=

[CatherineMPLS]

To clarify, dropsy isn't a sickness or disease itself. Dropsy is a symptom.

Have you thought about using kanamycin -- such as Seachem Kanaplex?