EMERGANCY HELP PLEASE

[flower]

My Kuda female seahorse has a bad infection...I think she was stung by a bristle worm and it became a sore that is festering. Her anal opening is all white. Dhe is eating okay and I pout her in a 10g hospital tank. Then I got out the API Furan-2...but there are no instructions...how do I use this stuff? I have 10 packs

 

[flower]

Whew...I found the information. 1 packet per 10g, and I also have the daily dose and when to do the water change...
She is pretty alert and following a finger across the tank. She hitched to my finger when I moved her to the HT, but she isn't very strong.

 

[silverado61]

I googled it: 1 pack per 10 gallons. Mix it in some saltwater and pour it in.

 

[silverado61]

Sorry. Wasn't fast enough.

 

[beth]

Its a good gram positive and neg antibiotic. I lean toward Maracyn2 because most marine fish bacterial infections are gram neg. However, I have no exp with seahorses. The med you are using should be relatively new and not something that has been sitting around for any more than 6 mos. Keep lights off except during feeding because antibiotics degrade under UV. Do a small water change just prior to redosing. Is the seahorse in QT? If not, expect dieoff in the display which may cause environment to degrade.

 

[trigger40]

flower i hope your horse'e gets better!

 

[flower]

Its a good gram positive and neg antibiotic. I lean toward Maracyn2 because most marine fish bacterial infections are gram neg. However, I have no exp with seahorses. The med you are using should be relatively new and not something that has been sitting around for any more than 6 mos. Keep lights off except during feeding because antibiotics degrade under UV. Do a small water change just prior to redosing. Is the seahorse in QT? If not, expect dieoff in the display which may cause environment to degrade.

Thank you, Beth and Silverado. I hope she makes it too...she is 3 years old, so I'm a little attached...she's the runt and only 7 inches long. She has such a great personality, she even follows my finger along the glass like a puppy.

The seahorse is in a hospital tank all to herself. The medicine is not expired, I checked...it has a another year before it's no good. I got the medicine from Dan at Seahorse.org and I'm pretty sure Nova also recommended the Furan-2. I have no lights on the tank, just ambient light from the room. The biggest problem is keeping the tank cold enough since bacteria likes it warm...but the chillers I have are all on the main tanks. I have bottled water I freeze and use when I do a water change, to keep the tanks cold...but I'm reluctant to use them in such a small tank because it will make the temps jump around too much...steady I think will be better then warm and cold jumps.

I don't know if I can keep macroalgae in a hospital tank, do you have any suggestions on that?...what will the meds do to it, and will it affect the meds integrity????? I have a nice sized "good bacteria" saturated sponge in there to keep things stable. My small HOB filter bit the dust, so I only have the two air lines (no stone) until tomorrow.

The instructions I looked up says to dose two days, then do 25% to 50% WC...then dose another 2 days, then run carbon to clear the medicine out of the water....or if necessary (if he fish is still sick) do another WC and go another round...that it can be used for 10 days. I have exactly 10 pouches, and there is nothing in the tank except a small plastic decoration to hold the air lines down, I used zip-ties and left the stem long to give the horse something to hitch to, so it's an easy measure of 10g doses.

 

[beth]

Macros won't make it under antibiotics. Why do you want them in the QT? When you do a water change, you can use the water from the display (if it is good quality). WO the lights, the tank may stay cool enough. You can always crank up the AC in the room where the QT is located, use fans blowing at the QT. Why are you using airlines?? You are using air pumps for water circulation?

 

[silverado61]

I have three HOB's. 1 for a 10g. one for a 30g. And 1 for a 70g. If you don't use any filters, just the floss (or not), will any of these work for circulation?

 

[beth]

Are you talking about a QT?

 

[silverado61]

for Flowers QT, yes. She can't use a power head because of the horses hitching to it.

 

[beth]

for Flowers QT, yes. She can't use a power head because of the horses hitching to it.

Air pump either. That does zero for a fish tank. HOB filter would be good.

 

[flower]

Air pump either. That does zero for a fish tank. HOB filter would be good.

Hi,

I'm using a 10g tank...it is my quarantine/hospital tank, it's been in storage for a very long time. I either sold, or misplaced the HOB filter that I usually used with it. I did have a little mini canister filter but it I couldn't get it to work, so I decided to just toss it out.

My bedroom stays pretty cool. So the temp is staying at 74 degrees, I wish I could lower the temp (as recommended by those on seahorse.org to slow the bacteria infection) but that's the best I can do. Seahorse tanks have bubble lines to move the surface water, and makes their frozen Mysis jump around so the horses can chase it down to eat it, so they have their uses for seahorse tanks. No power heads, certain ones are closed enough to keep a horse from hitching and getting it's tail caught, but they also heat up the tank. In such a small tank an air line is all that's really needed anyway.

I like macros, not only do they provide hitches for the horses, but also feed on any nasty stuff in the water, and make the tank look better. I got a HOB today, I have nothing in it except a bacteria colonized sponge. I can't put the cartridge in it because it has carbon mixed in it. No macros, I didn't think they could hold up to the medicine, but it was worth it to ask.

Thank you so much for all your help and taking the time, I knew you didn't know much about seahorses, but you do know you meds and that's where I was totally lost.

 

[beth]

Can you post pics of the problem?

Just be sure that your HOB filter does not have carbon filter cartridges.

 

[flower]

Can you post pics of the problem?

Just be sure that your HOB filter does not have carbon filter cartridges.

I can't get a picture posted on this new site to save my life. I'm pretty sure it's going to take the whole 10 doses. I did a 30% water change this afternoon. I don't see any changes in her sore, and she looks so lonely, and didn't even eat much this morning. Before I put her in quarantine she didn't act at all sick, she was eating good and running around with the male...she just had a sore on her belly, now she acts lethargic. I believe the bristle worms sting them... and it becomes a sore, which develops into a bacterial infection and leads to death. I have lost two horses to this over the last two years, I have never been able to save any of them, but this time I had medicine on hand.

I know about not running carbon, since that would remove any contaminates from the water...in this case, that means the medicine. The only thing in the filter is a sponge from a filter in the 56g...so it has lots of good bacteria to prevent an ammonia spike.

 

[beth]

The benefit of using macros in aquarium is that they can host/provide a nursery for britleworms (as well as a host of other nice beneficials to aquaria); however if a seahorse is using the macro as home....well, you can see the problem I'm referring to.

I'm assuming that you have explored all the other possibilities related to seahorse diseases? Repeat bristleworm problem that results in deaths seems unlikely.

 

[flower]

The benefit of using macros in aquarium is that they can host/provide a nursery for britleworms (as well as a host of other nice beneficials to aquaria); however if a seahorse is using the macro as home....well, you can see the problem I'm referring to.

I'm assuming that you have explored all the other possibilities related to seahorse diseases? Repeat bristleworm problem that results in deaths seems unlikely.

Hi,

The seahorses are very messy eaters, and the bristle worm population has just exploded. I can't get them to use a feeding station like the Erectus I had did, they want to chase their food around or they won't eat it...same with the potbelly horses, they just prefer to snick the food as it churns in the water flow.

I'm just assuming the bristle worms are at fault. There is a long span between deaths...a year between the first and second, and at least 5 months between the last one and this one getting sick.

I'm also assuming it's vibrio from research, and was told to treat with Furan-2. It isn't like a flesh eating disease that spreads to all parts of the horse like in pictures I've seen...the white spot is localized and eats away at that point....like a festering (white) sore that won't heal. The only thing that would make a sore that I can think of would be a bristle worm. I'm going to go to the seahorse.org site and ask some more questions. I wish I could post pictures here like before...sigh

 

[beth]

Why are you having a problem posting a picture? Error message?

 

[flower]

Why are you having a problem posting a picture? Error message?

Hi,

I am asked for a URL...I assumed that meant the path in long speech instead of the double click I'm spoiled in using. I find the path, and copy/paste it, but when I post it, all I get is a little X in a box where the picture should appear.

I did contact seahorse.org...the seahorse experts... they also said it sounds like a bristle worm sting. I don't know what to do about those things except maybe get some dry rock and let it get some good bacteria, by cycling in a tub or something...then swap it with the rock that's loaded in the tank...but if I miss one little bugger, in the sand or décor, in no time the population will be right back up there. I wish I could set up a whole new tank to transfer them into. I have tried to get the horses to go to a feeding station, I even found a few tricks people have done to create a feeding station...all to no avail.

I don't have a single bristle worm in the 90g potbelly tank...I used all dry rock when I set up that tank. Both sets of seahorses will not go to a feeding station no matter what I try.

 

[beth]

At the bottom of your post right, instead of clicking post reply, hit upload file. That gives you the opportunity to post a pic.