how to treat sick cory?

[lilcavy2]

Hi, I'm new to tropical fish care and I have a sick Cory that I'd like to cure if possible; it's a very personable lil fish! From what I've been reading it's probably fin rot - the fins underneath the cory are almost nubs, tail looks smaller too but the fish also is going to the surface for air from time to time and has slightly faster gill movements than the other fish. It's appetite is normal, swims normal but rests a lot. No spots of any kind or fuzz. (It was in a 20 gallon tank at about 75 degrees, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10ppm nitrate, 150GH, 120KH, pH 7.0-7.2.) I've had it a few months, the tank has a biowheel type filter for a 30 gallon tank. (I use two charcoal filters in it so that when I change one out the other is still covered with good bacteria.) The tank has extra aeration from an active clam ornament, and undergravel filtration set up. I do a 20-25% water change once a month when I vacuum the gravel as well as a small (1-2 gallon) biweekly water change. It's tank mates are 3 white cloud tetras, 3 pristella tetras, 3 cardinal tetras, and 2 otos. Everybody gets along just grand and everyone else is looking quite healthy. I just added 3 more corys very temporarily (because I'm going to start a 30 gallon tank with dwarf gouramis) which is how I noticed that this one's tail is smaller and those nubs were fins. I have isolated my lil sick cory in a 10 gallon hospital tank (with some Java moss 'cause they really seem to like that plant) and it's happily munching on a sinking wafer/exploring the tank/playing in the current. I was going to get some Melafix tomorrow as I've read great things about that, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as well as thoughts on what may have caused the problem. Thanks!

[Atlantis Child]

What kind of catfish is it? Are the other cats going up for air too, or just the sick one?

I wouldn't worry about the cat resting alot, unless that's a change in behavior. Some species aren't as active as others. Young catfish seem to be very hyper, but they slow down as they reach adulthood too.

Melafix really is a good med for bacterial infections. I swear by it. It helps them regrow their fins too. Your charcol will remove the meds though, so don't forget to take it out first.


- Atlantis

[Plecofanatic1989]

Hi,
Sorry to hear about your cory. Are you sure it's a disease and not the other fish picking on him every now and then? A treatment course of Melafix and Pimafix should fix his fins up nicely. Make sure you do a 25-30% water change when you're done treating him because Melafix and Pimafix tend to cut the total amount of available dissolved oxygen.
And BTW swimming to the surface to take a breath of air is completely normal. Cory's as well as a lot of other fish use atmospheric oxygen complementary to that which is absorbed through the gills. Air also helps Corydoras species with buoyancy.
Good luck,
Josh

[Atlantis Child]

I'd be nervous putting 2 medications together. Pimafix is for fungal problems anyways, and if there isn't any it's probably better not to. 25% water change before you do each treatment to take out some from the day before and add O2. Keep normal filtration running (without the carbon) as well.

I agree that going up for air is normal, but if it's too often it might indicate not enough oxygen in the water either to murky water or just not enough filtration/aeration. I've had that before.
Mine hardly ever go up since I have a good filter and a bubbler in the tank now.


- Atlantis

[OldMan]

Welcome to the forums Lilcavy2. Reading through your thread I noticed a few things that may or may not be related to your cory's problem.
A cory tends to stay close to the substrate so if you just finished a gravel cleaning and then noticed a problem, you might have stirred something up with the gravel vac. An undergravel filter requires a rather coarse gravel to ensure good water flow down through the filter plate so if the gravel is also sharp, not rounded, the short fins could be the result of a gradual erosion from rubbing against the gravel. You are only doing a monthly water change and some cories are very sensitive about water quality compared to other fish.
If the problem is physical damage from rough gravel, the cory needs either rounded gravel or sand to recover. If any of these are the problem with your fish, the real cure is lots of nice clean water from frequent water changes while it recovers. In general cories are stronger than we give them credit and just need the right conditions to cure themselves unless there is a specific disease involved.

[Atlantis Child]

Good point about the gravel. Are your cory's whiskers ok, or are they being worn down or totally missing?

I'd think they'd be the first to have troubles if it's the gravel. Them being what he roots for food with and being so delicate and all.


- Atlantis

[lilcavy2]

Thank you so much for the responses! It gives me hope that my lil fish will recuperate. He/she is a Paleatus Cory; used to be very personable and active, always came to the front of the tank when I came up to watch my fish, that's why I'm really pulling for him. The other catfish were/are not going up for air (they swim up a lot but not all the way to the surface, they seem to enjoy playing in the current created by the filter), they are also extremely active while this one spends most of it's time resting on the gravel. It used to be very active also and almost never went up for air. The more time that goes by, the less he is swimming around. I hope I caught it in time. The charcoal filter is not present in the hospital tank. I'm glad someone else swears by Melafix; he got his first dose this evening, I've got my fingers crossed. I'm not treating any fish but him since he's the only one acting sick. I totally agree that a nice super clean tank will greatly help him heal. I'm so glad to hear that cories are hardy fish! Thank you for the daily 25% water change suggestion, I'll do that! The gravel is rounded and the cory's whiskers are OK. They are not shorter, although one is split into a Y. None of the other fish have ever bothered the cory. The only fish that bothers any fish is one male White Cloud, but he only chases the other White Clouds. If the problem was due to rubbing erosion and fin nipping, then I would expect his energy level to be normal and this is a very sluggish fish.

[lilcavy2]

My poor cory is worse. After two full days of Melafix treatment, he has developed at least one sore - on his side right in back of one gill. I am assuming that his gills are as infected as the rest of him which is why he's been having so much trouble breathing? The pet store recommended tetracycline as the strongest treatment they had so I put a powder package in there this evening. This morning he was eating so I was very surprised when I came home to find him so much worse. *sniff*

[lilcavy2]

When I came home for lunch today he was kinda on his side, so I figured that was it and went to get him out. All I hadda do is move the rock he was near and he went swimming all over and went to the surface several times for air so I guess he's not ready to be counted out yet. As long as he's willing to fight, I'll keep trying. I don't see any bleeding, I just wish he'd be able to breathe easier. It says to treat with tetracycline for 4 days, what do I do after the 4 days?

[loachy_406]

See how he is then. If he's got no better then I would anesthatize him in an overdose of Clove Oil in solution. There's no point in giving him a long and painful death if he's not getting better. Being on his side is a sure sign he is his way out though, so don't get your hopes up. If you keep the tank he's in running all the time, carry on doing water changes and filter with the charcoal for a while to take all the medicine out.

[lilcavy2]

Stuff I've learned about treating my Cory cat and am passing on:
#1 - Melafix does not treat infections, it just prevents them.
#2 - API Tetracycline is twice as strong as Mardel Tetracycline (API is 500mg and Mardel's is 250mg) so despite the instructions on API's to use one packet every 24 hours either use one packet every 48 hours or use half a packet every 24 hours.
#3 - Never give up on a paleatus cory; they are tough fish! My fish despite having fin rot that went to his body and a bacterial gill infection is already showing signs of fin regrowth and his gills are working normally again after 60 hours in tetracycline.
#4 - The package of tetracycline does not mention ANYTHING about how sensitive that medicine is to light. Tetracycline degrades in light to substances that are more toxic than tetracycline. ie. keep the tank covered.
#5 - After 48 hours of treatment, changing out 80% of the water and reinserting the charcoal filter just for 3 hours will give the fish a little rest and allow you to see if there has been improvement in the fish's condition. Treat with 250mg of tetracycline for 5-10 days. Only 4 days may make antibiotic resistant bacteria.
#6 - Maracyn 2 has less side effects than tetracycline.

[Corylover]

I'm glad to hear you baby is getting better. Great tips. I always use marcyln2 when treating my fish with great results especially for bacterial and fungal infections. Hope your baby continues to get better.


Cory

[Atlantis Child]

Glad you found something that works. Sometimes you have to try different meds to till something'll do right for your particular fish. Just like with humans.

Never give up on a paleatus cory; they are tough fish!

So true! My little girl paleatus went through some pretty bad fin rot herself recently. Not as bad as your's did, but is now back to spunky and has almost all but re-grown her fins.

Personally I think paleatus cats are the hardiest corys around.

- Atlantis

[lilcavy2]

My little girl paleatus went through some pretty bad fin rot herself recently. Not as bad as your's did, but is now back to spunky and has almost all but re-grown her fins.

Being a novice fish owner, I'd never heard of fin rot which is why it got so bad. About how long did it take for her fins to regrow? (My cory is finally off meds and getting much stronger. )

[Atlantis Child]

Being a novice fish owner, I'd never heard of fin rot which is why it got so bad. About how long did it take for her fins to regrow? (My cory is finally off meds and getting much stronger.)

About 2 and a half weeks for mine. The fins usually don't grow back to look exactly the same, but can get back to looking 'normal'.

They don't always do though. I have a little albino catfish that had no dorsal fin when I bought him due to past fin rot or nipping. He seems to manage just fine, just isn't quite as handsome as he would be. (not that his "girlfriend" minds)


Awesome your cat's doing better. It's always a good feeling to sucessfully nurse them through sickness back to health.


- Atlantis