PlanetCatfish.com

Hi!

When i made a quick check of my tank yesterday i saw that the Panaque L351 had a red skin irritation that looked like the result of a fight. Ill have to describe it because my cam wont make the injury visible enough. It looks like the armorplates are broken and the red area is in the center of the wound the outer part is whitish. That was yesterday. I separated it and treated the wound with the last drops of a general cure. Now the bloody wounds have spread and he has 4 of them now one on the edge of the pectoral fin ray and one right on the inner caudal fin rays...the part i treated yesterday is just white today.
Overnight the eyes have sunken in and hes refusing to eat. Hes respiring very heyvily and fanning from time to time...
Im now trating him with Nifurpirinol against internal and external bacterial infections...but its gotten worse rather than better. In addition hes developing some kind of slimey greyish stuff all over the back, head and dorsal fin...
Im quite clueless to what this could be and what danger it my be to my whole tank...
He was in a tank with newly aquired Gymnallabes that also have some scratches and torn fins but nothing on the body like this.
Any help welcome

never mind he just died...

I am very sorry friend...

Heya!

Thx dantouan. (I found it "funny" to see a greek write something to me...my dad and i are still angry that we (czechs) lost the semifinal in that stupid manner...

Checking the big tank today theres no sick fish from what i can tell...so the pleco mustve been "beaten to death" and followed by secondary infections...otherwise i cant explain what happened.

Its now in the freezer...is there any way i can preserve it? Like putting it in alcohol?

One word may have prevented this:

Quarantine!

Sorry about your fish.

hmm i know but i had no space as they sent more fish than i expected...

after i all i think now that the Synodontis acanthomias beat the pleco to death...with the infection being a secondary thing...maybe the netting+transport didnt do well...or the Nifurpirinol treatment...

i checked all 4 Gymnallabes and the torn fins have healed perfectly...

Hi!

I preserved mine for 2 weeks in common alcohol (the one you usually find for plate heaters) and then in 70% Ethanol...

Cheers
Yann

Hi!

Thanks for the link it gave me some ideas!
But id actually would like it wet preversed because it wont catch "dirt" so easy.
I wonder if normal cleaning spirit (known here as Spiritus) will do? Its 96% alcohol and usually has no color. If so i need to find a nice glass for the fish to fit in. Does it need to be "sealed"?

Hi !

Chris!

Yes Spiritus should work out fine for the first 2 weeks, then transfer it to 96% Alcohol... that is perfect... no need to be sealed but must be hermetic so the alcohol doesn't evaporate...

Cheers
Yann