Fading Lionfish

[thoroughbred]

So Ive had a dwarf zebra lionfish for a week and a half and he has spots on both his sides that are losing color (looking whitish). Hes still active and eats but I'm a little worried. The discoloration seems to be spreading a little on his one side too. When I brought him home from the LFS I saw he had a little discoloration on him already but it didn't look too bad, but its gotten worse. Water Parameters are as follows:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
Ph: 8.1
Temp: 80
Tank mates are one blue devil damsel, they don't bother each other at all. A little insight/comments please. Tanks a 65 gal.

 

[reefpro]

Sounds very much like Ich... you might want to get a tank to keep new fish in for a few weeks to make sure that they are healthy.
I'd suggest setting up a medic tank and putting him in a hypo bath.... I'd also post on the disease and treatment forum as it might not be too late... there are some good people there that can help... but you need to hurry!!!

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by Thoroughbred
So Ive had a dwarf zebra lionfish for a week and a half and he has spots on both his sides that are losing color (looking whitish). Hes still active and eats but I'm a little worried. The discoloration seems to be spreading a little on his one side too. When I brought him home from the LFS I saw he had a little discoloration on him already but it didn't look too bad, but its gotten worse. Water Parameters are as follows:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
Ph: 8.1
Temp: 80
Tank mates are one blue devil damsel, they don't bother each other at all. A little insight/comments please. Tanks a 65 gal.
What do you mean by spots? Are they larger discolored blotches or very small white dots? What has this fish been eating? Can you post a picture of him? How is his behavior? How old is this tank?

 

[thoroughbred]

Its not ich I know that much. They are larger discolorations, not little white spots. Its a patch of skin about 1/4 inch larger thats more whitish than the rest of him body. The one side doesn't look bad but the other side is like I said blotchy and light colored. Hes eaten in total 2 small feeder guppies (Just to get him to eat something) and then 4 ghost shrimp. Hes been sitting around a little more the last few days but I'm guessing that just because i fed him a lot one day and hes trying to digest it. The tank is a little over two months old. I'll try getting a picture of him, my camera isn't so good but I'll give it a shot.

 

[v-lioness]

Two things you need to look at with your lion right now...
If it is shedding, the lion can look faded (whitish), when it sheds it will shed the cuticle, this can look like whitish blotches through the shed. If your lion has a parasite such as Ich it could be shedding to rid the parasite.
I know you have not had this lion long, and if I remember correctly the LFS had it about 7 days before you brought it home and was eating at the LFS ...right?
If you seen this at the LFS and it is getting worse, Lions do not ship that well, the water quality in the bag through shipping can decline pretty fast, possibly bacterial from poor water during shipping.
I would set up a small med tank and treat for bacterial infection, if it is bacterial you do not want this going any further. I would treat with K-Mycin/Kanamycin or Maracyn 2, for a med tank you can use any small tank or holding container to treat, if you use a power-head, use a guard on the Power-head to protect the lion, add a hiding spot, I have rock that I only use in my hospital tank or containers but you can use PVC. Treat for 5 - 7 days.
Are the eyes still clear?
I just read what you posted, so edited......
Kaye

 

[thoroughbred]

His eyes arn't cloudy at all and he doesn't seem sick or effected by the discoloration at all. Its weird because its only happening on the one side (the opposite side that originally had the discoloration at the store). There were no signs of ich at the store or since I've had him, the store is very reputable IMO and I trust them when they said he was healthy the whole time in the store. Should I still go ahead with the meds anyways?

 

[v-lioness]

It is such a tough call with out actually seeing the lion. Does the lion sleep or sit in the same spot? Is it going in the rocks? Could it be scraping itself on the rocks? this could cause the side to look faded or blotchy.
Normally when mine shed it is a matter of days, they can look faded, I keep a pretty close eye on them and watch for the whitish mucus floating around or stuck on the rocks. But just about all of my lions I got because they were sick, I have just adjusted to keeping a eye on them.
If I did not think it was shedding and I did not think it scraped itself on a rock but was active and eating still, I would probably keep a close eye on it, if I really questioned what was happening with my lion, I would treat.
Kaye

 

[thoroughbred]

Decipher what you can from that blurry pic. The discoloration is on his body near the top. Feel free to try to clear that up for me anyone :joy: