wrote:
Thanks for the reply.

The fish with fin rot is one of my (4) discus. One of its pectoral
fins is ragged and slowly seems to be wasting away, and it's a bit
whitish on the edges.

The water quality is very good. 0 Ammonia and Nitrites, of course, and
Nitrates 20 ppm. The temperature is at 86, and the GH is 2-3
degrees. (I do water changes daily).

The fish seems healthy otherwise (is eating, etc). The only thing
which happened recently out of the ordinary was a treatment of internal
parasites in one of the others. (They completely recovered in 2
days). I treated with Jungle "Parasite Clear" tabs, since I couldn't
find any plain metronidazole in my area (I've ordered some to be ready
in the future).

Like I said, right now he seems healthy except for the fin rot, which
he's had for probably 5-6 days. It's claimed perhaps 15% of the fin,
or maybe a bit more. He also seems to avoid using the fin sometimes.

What is mercurichrome and where do I get it?
I've often heard of "dabbing" affected areas. What's the best way to
do something like that?

Thanks very much for your help,
Wes

I wonder whether the Jungle Parasite Clear tabs changed the bacterial
balance in your tank, causing the fin infection. I don't usually like
to put metronidazole in a display tank, although I understand the
challenges inherent in quarantining discus.

I did a quick google search and discovered that the FDA has banned the
sale of mercurochrome across state lines so it's almost impossible to
come by. It WAS a very effective topical antiseptic that kept small
cuts and woulds from scarring, now illegal because it contains small
amounts of mercury.

My second choice would be plain old Neosporin (triple antibiotic)
ointment from the drug store. Frank from alt.aquaria made me aware of
it's usefulness on fish and I've since used it as a preventative on an
injured discus with good success. To "dab" a medicine on a fish, you
net the fish, gently hold him out of the water, and use a cotton swab to
apply medicine to the affected area.

Problem is, you will need to reapply antibiotic for a few days since
there's probably an active infection. This isn't a big deal for most
fish, but if your discus are like mine, they don't like being handled.
I can see the appeal of the food and don't know which I'd choose myself.
Probably the Neosporin and see how the fish does after a two days of
handling him as gently as possible.

NetMax...you reading this?

-
Elaine T __
http://eethomp.com/fish.html '__
rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com