# Guppies with Fin Rot:What Treatment?



## froggle1

Hello. I have some guppies and about 5/11 have fin rot. Who knows some good treatments I could use?


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## Pufferfish22

Aquarium salt is a good tonic for them to have in their water anyway (they can survive in brackish water well) If you don't have any in there at the moment start off with a nice water change and 1 teaspoon per gallon of water in the tank, (giving you a concentration of 0.1%) as you don't want to shock them by adding it too quickly, also make sure you add the salt to the bucket of conditioned water as adding it to the tank can burn them inside and out. You can eventually aim for a concentration of 0.9% or 3 tablespoons per gallon over a period of 2 weeks. This will help them. I keep my guppies at a 0.1% concentration and (touch wood) have never had a problem with fin rot, but I haven't had them too long.

As for actual medications I'm going to leave that to a more knowledgable person as I'm not 100% sure and would hate to give you bad advice.


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## DKRST

I am using Maracyn (erythromyocin) at the moment and have used both Maracyn and Maracyn 2 in the past. Just started treating, will keep you posted if you like. If you decide to use this type of treatment, be sure to check the expiration date before purchasing. A local big-box pet store me some yesterday that expired in 2009!

Keeping the water clean also helps. Unfortunately, some of my new fish came with fin rot, no extra charge...
The salt may be very good, but with a planted tank, I'm not trying the salt!


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## 1077

I would first review water parameter's before treating with salt,medications.
Guppies prefer Hard alkaline water with pH between 7.5 and 8.0 and Gh of 12+ degree's temp between 76 and 80 degrees.
Water must test zero for ammonia and nitrites, and nitrAte levels should be not much higher than 20 ppm.Guppies will fair poorly over the long haul in waters with low hardness,low pH or ,cool water. 
Male guppies will nip the fins of other guppies (especially fancies) and damage from this can cause fin rot if water conditions are other than described above. If water condition's are not suitable for species being kept,then salt,meds,will have little effect. (sometimes stepping up water changes,separating fish is all that is needed). 
Am troubled by those who are perhaps sometimes too quick to suggest medications when first one must ask about water the fish are being kept in,How long the tank has been running with fish,what are test result's for afore mentioned ammonia,nitrites,and nitrAtes, water change routines, Foods offered, etc.
We would like to always offer assistance, but need to never forget that most issues with fish health can be Directly associated with water quality, or a lack thereof. 
With all of this said,, Salt at ONE tablespoon per Five gal can bring relief, would not use more than this long term.
Medications (antibiotics) will address some bacterial pathogens and at same time, deplete biological filter of it's bacteria so careful monitoring of the water should be performed .(antibiotics make no distniction between good bacteria and bad bacteria ).

Always follow directions on medications to the letter (more is not better).
Hope some of this helps.

OP has Reportedly been keeping guppies for a year so perhaps water is not the issue but rather aggression ?


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## Amethyst123

I agree that clean water at the proper temp is the best thing to do, so start with a water change. A moderate amount of salt can be helpful, but I wouldn't go more than 1 tsp per gallon. It's interesting that someone said pH of 7.5 to 8.0, because what I've seen says 5.5 to 8.0, with 7.0 ideal. However, changing your pH is probably worse than letting them adjust to the pH in your water normally. Check for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates - the first two should be 0, and nitrates should be relatively low. 

If clean water isn't enough, you might try Melafix. It is not an antibiotic, but it is antibacterial, and from natural sources. I've had good luck with it in my livebearer tank. Use it according to directions, not more. Also, if your tank is big, you might be better off buying the Melafix intended for ponds - it is a lot cheaper per dose, because it is more concentrated - 5ml per 50g, instead of the 5ml per 10g. Of course, if your tank is smaller, it will be easier to dose with the regular Melafix.

Also, fin rot doesn't clear up overnight, even with medications. Keep up with regular water changes, maybe even more often or larger percentage of change than usual until they are better. As long as it's getting better, rather than worse, don't go to stronger measures. 

Good Luck!


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## redchigh

(For the record, I've always kept guppies as close to 7.5 ph as possible.)

I used salt and heat to treat ich once... I added the salt extremely slowly over time, and at one point I had a tablespoon per gallon and the water at 90 degrees farenheit with no damage to plants. Not that I'd reccomend it...

Melafix is actually antifungal. It's claim to being slightly antibacterial is hogwash. True, tea tree oil is antibacterial, but only when applied to an external wound. Not when you add a tsp per gallon (or whatever the dose is.) Finrot is sometimes caused by fungus, so try it though if you like.

Are these colorful show guppies? If so, the water has to be immaculate. (due to generations of inbreeding and mass production.) Treat them like discus, with nitrates under 10. Personally, I crossed my different varieties of guppy together on purpose- they lost a big of color, but are much much more hardy.


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## 1077

I will stand by my suggestion as to water parameter's GH, pH,temp with respect to guppies and livebearer's in general, as does most recent literature on these fishes.
I have kept, and am keeping guppies presently, and they will always fair better over the long haul in hard, alkaline,warm water with ten to twenty dH.and ph between 7.5 and 8.0
kept in soft acidic water with little or no hardness, they are often prone to fin rot, mouth fungus, and what is often called the shimmies.
When treating fishes with medications,assuming one knows what they are treating for,meds slow down progression of pathogens but it is the fishes immune system that actually does the healing.Is why water quality is so important.


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## DKRST

Agree totally with all above comments, meds should not be first knee-jerk reaction. Minor comment on antibiotic mode of action and immune system. Healthy fish immune system is critical, but the proper spectrum of antibiotic can defeat bacterial pathogens without immune system assistance (but unfortunately can destroy beneficial bacteria as mentioned above). Treatment is absolutely more effective if fish's immune system is optimal. Unfortunately, if the fish aren't healthy in terms of immune system and healthy environment, bacterial infections can come back worse, and may be more treatment-resistant, when antibiotics stop!

The original question was what are some good treatments. Maracyn/Maracyn 2 or other brand equivalents are good treatments under certain conditions - may not be the best in your situation if the underlying environmental parameters are out-of-whack! Other treatments, including salt, may be just as good or better in this case.


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## 1077

redchigh said:


> (For the record, I've always kept guppies as close to 7.5 ph as possible.)
> 
> I used salt and heat to treat ich once... I added the salt extremely slowly over time, and at one point I had a tablespoon per gallon and the water at 90 degrees farenheit with no damage to plants. Not that I'd reccomend it...
> 
> Melafix is actually antifungal. It's claim to being slightly antibacterial is hogwash. True, tea tree oil is antibacterial, but only when applied to an external wound. Not when you add a tsp per gallon (or whatever the dose is.) Finrot is sometimes caused by fungus, so try it though if you like.
> 
> Are these colorful show guppies? If so, the water has to be immaculate. (due to generations of inbreeding and mass production.) Treat them like discus, with nitrates under 10. Personally, I crossed my different varieties of guppy together on purpose- they lost a big of color, but are much much more hardy.


You make interesting point with respect to show guppies.
If fish come from breeder that uses salt then this is what I would acclimate fish to after determining what the salt content of dealer's tanks was It is said, that these fish can be acclimated from fresh water to slightly brackish, but seldom do well if trying to acclimate the fish from brackish conditions to freshwater.Food for thought I think.


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## 1077

DKRST said:


> Agree totally with all above comments, meds should not be first knee-jerk reaction. Minor comment on antibiotic mode of action and immune system. Healthy fish immune system is critical, but the proper spectrum of antibiotic can defeat bacterial pathogens without immune system assistance (but unfortunately can destroy beneficial bacteria as mentioned above). Treatment is absolutely more effective if fish's immune system is optimal. Unfortunately, if the fish aren't healthy in terms of immune system and healthy environment, bacterial infections can come back worse, and may be more treatment-resistant, when antibiotics stop!
> 
> The original question was what are some good treatments. Maracyn/Maracyn 2 or other brand equivalents are good treatments under certain conditions - may not be the best in your situation if the underlying environmental parameters are out-of-whack! Other treatments, including salt, may be just as good or better in this case.


Yes,I agree with much of this, the proper spectrum of antibiotic can go a long way with regards to treatment of bacterial patogens assuming one can determine the bacterial nature of pathogen,Gram negative,gram positive,mycobacterium,or Iridovirus, the last two being particularly hard for effective treatment via most meds. This can result in what appears to be successful treatment to suddenly,frequently, re-appear.
I have used Maracyn, Maracyn II with good results and not so good.Sadly,,it is 50/50 crapshoot sometimes.:-(


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## Amethyst123

Well, whether Melafix is antibacterial, antifungal, or both, I have had good luck with it with fin rot when clean warm water and salt weren't enough. By the way, I wasn't disagreeing with the 7.5 - 8.0 pH, I was merely stating that I'd seen a posted range for guppies from 5.5 - 8.0. That wasn't my recommendation. My livebearer tank's pH is around 7.6, as is my tap water.


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## 1077

Amethyst123 said:


> Well, whether Melafix is antibacterial, antifungal, or both, I have had good luck with it with fin rot when clean warm water and salt weren't enough. By the way, I wasn't disagreeing with the 7.5 - 8.0 pH, I was merely stating that I'd seen a posted range for guppies from 5.5 - 8.0. That wasn't my recommendation. My livebearer tank's pH is around 7.6, as is my tap water.


pH is really not nearly as important as the hardness(with livebearer's). pH numbers simply give one an idea as to what the mineral content may be in a sample of water.pH below 7.0 often suggest's softer water than ph of 7.5, to 8.0 which normally indicates moderately hard to hard alkaline water.
It is the latter that livebearer's thrive in.


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