sunken belly and long string of poo

[leezard]

hi guys,

i have a goldline and a peru green which i just purchased. they're fine and happy. just that i just noticed both of them have slightly sunken bellys. i've seen bad cases of sunken bellys but this is mild so i thought maybe the 2 plecos are just mal-nourished.

then i noticed an extremely long string of poo from the PG. it was about 7 inches, as long as the PG and it was hanging from it's anus. the poo has become clear looking, almost transparent.

i just dumped a pkt of "BeFURAN" from Aquamedi which is cure for internal/external bacterial, fungal, protozal infections. i suspect it's internal parasites, worms etc.

any medicine on the mkt i can use? just in case the BeFURAN doesn't work...

mai:(

[y_man]

For me i separate the affected fish into a basin with moderate aeration. This will save on medication dosage and more importantly reduce stress on the other fishes in the main tank. I will use ocean free 3rd Generation super anti-internal parasite. Apply slightly less dosage than recommended. Stop feeding the affected fish. After a couple of days, all the white poo will be discharged. When you see dark poo, can slowly introduce back to main tank. Usually 3-5 days will be sufficient in my case.

Main thing is don't panic and start dumping all sorts of medication. And when introducing the fish back into the main tank, do not throw the medicated water into the main tank also. Catch the pleco and gently release it to the main tank.

This is what i usually do in the scenario that you're facing. Remember what works for me may not necessarily work for you. Since you already tried your method, just wait for a few days for the medication to take effect. Just relax and don't stress yourself. Hope this helps......... Do keep us updated on your fishes. That's all.

[leezard]

hi Y-man,

i'll do just that. thanks. just noticed that the eyes gone a bit sunken too :(

fingers crossed...

mai

[leezard]

my fishes have since recovered after a week of intensive TLC and have been introduced into the main tank after they're eating and poo-ing big time. after a week in the main tank, the bellys go sunken again and so did the eyes. now it seems the rest of the plecs have been infected. i just lost my obese L14 which was my 1st plec from C328. i returned to find that rigor mortis has set in and basically he's spread eagle. very depressing.

again, i'm putting the medication recommended by y_man. and this time, into the main tank. the money's not a big problem. but i just hope to get rid of the internal worms/parasites etc altogether. i read on PF that there's a medication called prazipro by hikari which is very effective. i've tried looking around but can never find it. anyone knows of its existence or have any other medication to recommend?

mai

[SoToNgMaN]

my fishes have since recovered after a week of intensive TLC and have been introduced into the main tank after they're eating and poo-ing big time. after a week in the main tank, the bellys go sunken again and so did the eyes. now it seems the rest of the plecs have been infected. i just lost my obese L14 which was my 1st plec from C328. i returned to find that rigor mortis has set in and basically he's spread eagle. very depressing.

again, i'm putting the medication recommended by y_man. and this time, into the main tank. the money's not a big problem. but i just hope to get rid of the internal worms/parasites etc altogether. i read on PF that there's a medication called prazipro by hikari which is very effective. i've tried looking around but can never find it. anyone knows of its existence or have any other medication to recommend?

mai
ever wondered if issue might reside in your current main tank? do note that your plecos have recovered in hospital tank ... but problem recurred back in main tank ...

I've seen many of such problems residing in prolonged unmaintained filters ...

btw, transparent poos may not be internal issues ... plecos that has not consumed food for numerous days do excret transparent poos as well (we see plenty of this in competition grounds where plecos have not ate anything close to a week) ...

and sunken eyes might be due to stress rather than internal issues ... we've stressed pseudus jumping out of tanks with eyes totally sunken ... and eyes recovering back to normal overnite ...

Understanding the cause of the problem rather than trying one's luck with medications works better ...

Cheers

[leezard]

ever wondered if issue might reside in your current main tank? do note that your plecos have recovered in hospital tank ... but problem recurred back in main tank ...

I've seen many of such problems residing in prolonged unmaintained filters ...

btw, transparent poos may not be internal issues ... plecos that has not consumed food for numerous days do excret transparent poos as well (we see plenty of this in competition grounds where plecos have not ate anything close to a week) ...

and sunken eyes might be due to stress rather than internal issues ... we've stressed pseudus jumping out of tanks with eyes totally sunken ... and eyes recovering back to normal overnite ...

Understanding the cause of the problem rather than trying one's luck with medications works better ...

Cheers

i've checked the water parameters and as y_man and you have suggested, there was something wrong with the water. PH level went from 6.5 to 5 after the medicine went in. the fishes weren't eating. added in a small bag of coral chips and brought the PH from 5.5-about 7. now all the fishes are fine. but it's been a hard learning experience nonetheless; losing a sunshine, green phantom and a couple of other fishes along the way. but it's become almost a pure royal plec tank now save for a L134 which seemed impervious to all the PH crashes and deaths, life goes on for this one.

but i gotta thank you guys for the advices. there could have been for deaths for an inexperienced fish hobbyist like me. really appreciate it.

take care
and have a great chinese new year
mai