!!!Sick Horse!!! :(

[rykna]

:scared: Just when I thought everything was fine.....I came out this morning and I thought Valiant was dead. :scared:
I scooped him up and he wriggled away......but there is definetly something VERY wrong....I think he has external parisites....he twitching and rubbing against every piece of rock he came upon.
man....He was fine last night....and now he can't even swim straight.

I have him in a 10 gallon tank right now...I put some meth blue and stress gel in.
which seems to be helping to calm him down...but still rapid breathing....
So...next step Furanase?

 

[darthtang aw]

Water are your water readings? Parameters and such. This is important. If he is weak, dial back your water flow rate a bit if you can. What have you been feeding? How long have you had the horse. What species? The more info you can give me the better off. I hate when people start dumping medication in a tank right away.

 

[rykna]

Kuda 5 months old
had for 2 mth
I have him in a 10 QT right now
The 90 gallon
S=1.026
Nitri= 0
Nitrate= 20
Alk= 300
Ph= 7.8

 

[darthtang aw]

Your PH is low, that may contribute to it but I doubt it. What is your ammonia level? Temperature? If there is nothing else in this tank I would bring your salinity down to 1.023, no sense having it that high and a lower salinity can help stop disease and parasites from starting. I know people that run their tanks as low as .021 even.
Is it possible your heater or powerhead could be leaking stray voltage into the tank?
Sounds like it could be Vibro to me If this is the case you can treat with Kanaplex (sp?) if I remember right. Will have to dig out my notes to confirm the treatment and I am at work right now.

 

[rykna]

Originally Posted by Darthtang AW
Your PH is low, that may contribute to it but I doubt it. What is your ammonia level? Temperature? If there is nothing else in this tank I would bring your salinity down to 1.023, no sense having it that high and a lower salinity can help stop disease and parasites from starting. I know people that run their tanks as low as .021 even.
Is it possible your heater or powerhead could be leaking stray voltage into the tank?
Sounds like it could be Vibro to me If this is the case you can treat with Kanaplex (sp?) if I remember right. Will have to dig out my notes to confirm the treatment and I am at work right now.
temp is 74
PH buffer solves that problem...
The Kuda does have a thin white film over his right gill.
I just fed Valiant lunch...he ate 8 mysis
So far all I did was treat the 10 gallon with furanase and a little bit of meth blue.

 

[hatessushi]

You don't need to change to pH or make any drastic changes for that matter to the water. Ocean water ranges from 7.6 in the open sea to 8.4 in the reef areas with 7.8 being the average. Most keep their tanks around 8.2 to 8.4. With that said the most important thing is stabilty with the pH. No more then a .2 change in a 24 hour period.
Also, what is the temp of the tank?
You might want to post this in the Disease and Treatment forum so Beth can see it.

 

[rykna]

Yeah..I'm not changing the QT tank PH....I'll have to drip acclimate Valiant if he pulls through

 

[darthtang aw]

Ok, your horse has a parasite. Stick with the meth blue treatment. A freshwater dip may be in order. If you attempt this, the PH and the temperature of the freshwater must be EXACTLY the same as your tank. or you will shock the horse and kill it. But this is a drastic treatment.
Normally a parasite like this is brought on due to something stressing the horse out, a low PH would do this or to much water flow even.
Is your horse still twitching?
I would definitely lower your salinity over time as parasites like these have a tougher time surviving in lower salinity. Your horse will sustain a lower Salinity but this has to be done over a two week period.
HatesSushi, seahorses are different than fish when it comes to what can cause a disease. Imagine the most difficult/sensitive fish and you have the same things with seahorses.
For Kuda's this is the basic parameters you need to keep.
pH - 8.0 to 8.3---I prefer 8.2
Specific gravity - 1.021 to 1.024
Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - <20 ppm
Temp 74-78....I prefer 78 personally this way if your heater goes out it won't get to cold quickly. and with a slower flow rate the water may have a dead area that only heats up residually thus being a lower temperature.

 

[rykna]

Originally Posted by Darthtang AW
Ok, your horse has a parasite. Stick with the meth blue treatment. A freshwater dip may be in order. If you attempt this, the PH and the temperature of the freshwater must be EXACTLY the same as your tank. or you will shock the horse and kill it. But this is a drastic treatment.
2 drops per gallon...how long is the treatment?
should I countinue with the furanase?
I've done a freshwater dip before...but I agree it's a drastic treatment
Normally a parasite like this is brought on due to something stressing the horse out, a low PH would do this or to much water flow even.
Is your horse still twitching?
Nope....doing much better. He ate 9-12 mysis for lunch and is still hunting around for left overs
I would definitely lower your salinity over time as parasites like these have a tougher time surviving in lower salinity. Your horse will sustain a lower Salinity but this has to be done over a two week period.
Okay

Leave Valiant in the QT for 2 weeks, bring the salinity down to 1.022
For Kuda's this is the basic parameters you need to keep.
pH - 8.0 to 8.3---I prefer 8.2
Specific gravity - 1.021 to 1.024
Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - <20 ppm

yeppers...
Temp 74-78....I prefer 78 personally this way if your heater goes out it won't get to cold quickly. and with a slower flow rate the water may have a dead area that only heats up residually thus being a lower temperature.
hmmm very intersing thought....I had put plexi shields over the intake flows & the heater....I removed them last night. I haven't noticed any unusual temp changes. :thinking:
Thanks,
Rykna

 

[darthtang aw]

skip the furanase. I dislike mixing two medications...can have sid effects. The meth blue should be enough, however if he is twitching a lot and dark color this is great cause for concern. I would put the shields back on in your main tank if this is what you changed recently.

 

[rykna]

Skip Fur.
He's not twitching any more. He has eaten at least 12 mysis today as of 4:40pm, is not breathing hard anymore, but is very listless...which is to be expected. He is sitting upright, but curled up tight.
I spotted a small white worm attached to his side. SHould I try to remove it with a tweezer??

 

[darthtang aw]

No you could damage him....How big is the worm...maybe a freshwater dip is in order if he gets worse. But he seems to be doing better so I wouldn't panic yet.

 

[rykna]

Originally Posted by Darthtang AW
No you could damage him....How big is the worm...maybe a freshwater dip is in order if he gets worse. But he seems to be doing better so I wouldn't panic yet.
About an 3/8 inch long.
What specific actions should I look for if he gets worse?
Thanks for all your help :happyfish

 

[darthtang aw]

twitching/scratchiung and heavy breathing or rapid breathing

 

[rykna]

:cheer:

Valiant is up and swimming about, still itchy, but not thrashing.
I looked on the package, found the dosage, but could not find how long to treat fish with Meth Blue. :notsure:
Two weeks in QT and daily treaments of Meth Blue?? :notsure:

 

[monalisa]

How's he doing Ryk?
Mmmm, you posted the above post while I was posting this one. Sounds like he's doing better...great to hear!!
Lisa :happyfish

 

[flpriest]

I'm praying for ya Rynka and for Valiant. Hope he comes through ok!! Good luck!

 

[rykna]

Originally Posted by MonaLisa
How's he doing Ryk?
Mmmm, you posted the above post while I was posting this one. Sounds like he's doing better...great to hear!!
Lisa :happyfish
Thanks. :joy: man.....what a day. I am very greatful that he is looking better. My husband shooed me out of the house to go grocery shopping. He said there's no point of sitting around here worrying. When I got home I was afraid to look in the QT tank.

But I finally went over and Valiant was swimming around!!!! :joy: :happyfish
I am about to pass out after my 12 hour adrenaline rush.....nothing like family and pets to keep you on your toes

 

[monalisa]

Whew...that reminds me, I really need to get a list of meds to keep on hand for that just in case moment after I have my ponies.
Again, I'm really glad Valiant's doing better. Here's hoping that's it for the adrenaline rushes for a while, hey?
Lisa :happyfish

 

[rykna]

Originally Posted by MonaLisa
Whew...that reminds me, I really need to get a list of meds to keep on hand for that just in case moment after I have my ponies.
Again, I'm really glad Valiant's doing better. Here's hoping that's it for the adrenaline rushes for a while, hey?
Lisa :happyfish
yea...no kidding. There's a big list, I can email you the link. But so far Poniegirl and the few other horse keepers have said Meth Blue and Furanase.
The 2 thing I have learned so far with horses is always have a QT tank ready to set up, and don't wait until tomorrow if you suspect something is wrong with your horse. I think that was part of the reason I lost Romeo. It really stunned me how quickly Valiant's health changed. Last night he was swimming...no sign of any problems....this morning....flat on the sand bed

....
I am going to put together a emergency med kit box for seahorse stuff. Meds..quick test strips...ect....this really would have helped my anxiety level this morning. I had to dig through 2 18 gallon containers of fish stuff to find everything. :happyfish