AHHHHHHHH a fish with dropsy and a really stuborn mom!!!?

Question

55 gallon tank
she is a sunset platy
levels in the tank are fine
the secound one to get it
dont have another tank
she is in the breader tank that floats in the fish tank
the last one had babys as soon as we took it out of the tank (put it in a cup)
all scales are standing but no bulging eyes as far as I can see
WHAT SHOULD I DO???? I love my fishys!!!
the story (it has more info and details and stuff)
this is out secound fish that had it but sadly we dont have another tank! we took it out and put it in a cup (not smart I know) but about 10 or 15 min. later she had babys!her fins wher still up, and she had a weird white spot on her side, so idk what it was but I think that it was dropsy and maybe somthing else. my mom put her in a net so that she was in the water but could not get out. all the babys died and after like 3 hours I got her to flush it. now another one has standing scales but no bolging eyes. she is in a breader tank but it shares water with the tank, WHAT TO DO?

well now I am really confused. I can not get a good look at it but it looks like the fins have gone down slightly. sadly I know that it is going to die and that it is going to kill the other fish but my mom will not face it and she has now gone to bed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

never mind I was looking at a wrong angle. I am not going to be able to take her out but can I do anything to keep the others safe? and even better do you know how likley it is that the other fish will get it?

Answer 1

Dropy itself is not contagous, but what ever is causing it maybe. Dropsy is generally swelling cause by organ failure (liver, kidneys). Often the sick fish will expel large amounts of bacteria which could over whelm healthy fish's immune systems. No studies have been done on dropsy in tropical fishes, but there was one done on carp. It found the majority of dropsy victims had massive numbers of gram-negative bacteria.

Personally what I'd do is:
0)If possible isolate all fish with dropsy in another tank.
1)Add 1 teaspoon of salt per 5 gallons to the tank. Add it gradually over an hour. Put the salt in a cup of tank, and stir it before adding to the tank.
2) Obtain an antibiotic that targets gram-negative bacteria. Be sure to follow the directions including the removal of the carbon filter.* Personally I'd go with a wider spectrum med like a trisulfa, or a med combining 2 broad spectrum antibiotics. IE Gel-Tek Ultra Cure BX, Mardel trisulfa, Mardel Marcyn Plus.
3)Continue treatment for recommended time even if the dropsy fish die.
4)Watch your ammonia levels. (You'll be killing good bacteria too.) If your ammonia levels spike be prepared to do a 30-40% water change.
4)Once the course of treatment ends be sure to replace your carbon filters.

*With bag filters like yo have on most hanging tank filters. I advise just making a silt in the filter, and emptying out the black carbon. Then put it back in.

Answer 2

From http://www.flippersandfins.net

"DESCRIPTION: A condition in which the internal organs, specifically the kidneys, fail, leading to fluid accumulation within the body.

CAUSE: Unknown. May be bacterial in origin from Aeromonas or Mycobacterium, viral, water quality problems (e.g. elevated ammonia or nitrites and unstable pH), nutritional deficiencies, abdominal tumors or related to parasites, as from Costia, as implicated in goldfish.

SIGNS: Markedly swollen abdomen, scales sticking out and away from the body giving it the appearance of a “pinecone”, pop-eye and/or rapid gill breathing. To look for the scales sticking out in the early stages of this condition, look at the fish from the top down...Or, view the fish from the side, looking for a "saw-toothed" appearance along the back...

SYMPTOMS: Poor to no appetite and sluggish behavior.

PROGNOSIS: Very poor. Most cases are fatal.

TREATMENT: Most cases of dropsy in tropical fish are diagnosed when it is too far advanced for any treatment to be effective, so euthanasia should be performed. If dropsy is caught very early, then it may respond to the following treatment. Goldfish tend to respond more than any other type of fish.

1. Test your water parameters (pH, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates) and correct any abnormalities.

2. Romet B or Medi-Gold (antibiotic foods)* for two weeks (one that covers gram negative bacteria).

3. Maintaining the water at 84-86ºF (29-30ºC) for two weeks. Be sure to provide extra aeration/oxygenation when treating at these high temperatures because warmer water holds less oxygen. This can be done by adding an airstone.

4. Abdominal swelling might be lessened by adding Epsom salt at the rate of 1/8 teaspoon per every 5 gallons of water, as it will draw fluid out of your fish. Never use aquarium or other types of salt, as these may pull even more fluid inside of your fish, worsening the dropsy.

5. Always remove your fish with dropsy from the main tank and treat in a hospital tank.

6. Consider treating with RidIch+ or Maracide for external parasites, especially with goldfish.

*Use kanamycin (KanaPlex) or minocycline (Maracyn-Two) as a bath, if unable to find medicated food, for 10-14 days.

*The best antibiotic to use for prolonged immersion, which can only be obtained from your Vet, is tauted to be Augmentin (amoxicillin/clavulanic acid) 500 mg tablet crushed per every 10 gallons water after a 25% water change has been performed, daily for 10-14 days, though I have been disappointed with its’ results in tropical fish.

Feeding antibiotic food is the best course to follow. Once a tropical fish with dropsy has stopped eating, in my experience, it uniformly dies. The goldfish community has had a different and much more encouraging experience with successfully treating dropsy than the those with tropical fish."

I've never had any experience with dropsy, so I can't tell you any personal experience. But I have had other problems with my little guys, and Flippers and Fins has helped me more than any other online site.

Good luck!

Answer 3

i know you said your levels are fine but i would do a 10% water change anyway then treat with a fish medicine meant for dropsy like maricine 2. dropsy is really hard to cure though, so good luck

Answer 4

Dropsy is led to by a large selection of issues. Bacterial, parasites and so on. frequently once you observe the swelling and pine-cone look frequently attributed to dropsy that is to late because the organs have began to fail. attempt raising the aquarium's temperature some tiers - particularly better than commonly used. including Epsom salts (Magnesium sulfate) to the water (at a fee of 20 mg/L) helps to inspire the fish to expel unnecessary adverse fluids. make certain Bruce is in a tank by himself so he would not placed unnessasry stress on different inhabitants and also you may save a extra ideal eye on him. i wish that you stuck it quickly sufficient and he receives extra ideal.

Answer 5

you have to separate it from the others altogether and treat it otherwise it will kill all your fish. ideally in a separate small tank/plastic box like a 2 litre ice cream carton with an air pump running. dont worry about temp as room temp will keep it warm unless you live in the n.pole !!!!

Answer 6

drospy is caused by poor water quality. i would do a water change as it can occur in other fish.

while drospy isn't a diesase so it can't spread, poor water will.

there is little that can be done with drospy fish. it is when an internal organ shuts down b/c of the water and luids build up.

99% of the time drospy is fatal, basically it is impossible to re-start up that organ.