# Panda Corys might have Columnaris need advice.



## Mikiel1984 (Oct 17, 2011)

I think a few of my Panda Cory Cats have Columnaris. It looks like there is a cotton type buildup around their dorsal and tail fins. How do I cure it and and what is something safe to use in a tank with scaleless fish. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,

- Mike


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

If it is columnaris [and I am no good at diagnosing disease, so not saying it is] Maracyn is one of the best treatments. I had something similar which others suggested was columnaris and Maracyn 2 worked. It is made by Mardell.


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## Nubster (Aug 1, 2011)

Wish you good luck. My 75g tank got infected with it and wiped out 20+ fish despite treatment.


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## Mikiel1984 (Oct 17, 2011)

Hey Nubster,

Thanks for the best wishes. Unfortunately since the post I lost 4 panda's, a glass ghost, a siamese algae eater and a dwarf gourami but the remaining panda's, other Cory's and rest of the community seem to be doing great. I treated it with Maracyn (not maracyn-2) and turned the heat down to about 78 degrees. I am still continuing the treatments but things seem to be going on an upward path. I am not seeing any other signs.

Thanks again for all your kind words and as soon as everything gets cleared up I will add photos of my tank.

Best,

- Mike


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## Nubster (Aug 1, 2011)

Sorry for your loss but hopefully things are getting better. I treated with Furan-2 which was another suggested med and it did nothing. One of my issues was I was treating a 75g tank. Plus I may have caught it too late. It was so fast acting that fish started dying within a couple hours of the first signs. Over the next few days I lost all but 3 fish out of 27 in the tank.


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## MinaMinaMina (Aug 28, 2011)

I'm sorry you're having problems, very stressful for you and the fish. But we'll help in any way we can!

So some questions... You turned the heat _down_ to 78 degrees? What was it before? If it was higher than 78 degrees, this may have been the problem that caused the infection, or part of the problem. Many of the fish you have can't take a temp that high for long.
What else has been going on that might have precipitated the infection? What were the numbers of your ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, hardness, temp, etc? How big is the tank? What was your cleaning technique/schedule? What were the numbers of your Panda Corydoras, Glass Catfish, Siamese Algae Eater, Dwarf Gourami? What were the kinds and numbers of other inhabitants? These questions are covered in a form to fill out here http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/tropical-fish-diseases/diagnosis-form-read-before-you-post-61135/ that can help us find out what may have caused the illness so that we can prevent future problems.

Good luck, I hope they get better soon!


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## Mikiel1984 (Oct 17, 2011)

Hey Mina,

Thanks for the comment. Here are the answers to the diagnosis form post.

1. Size of tank?
55g

2. Water parameters
a. Ammonia? 0
b. Nitrite? 0
c. Nitrate? 0
d. pH, KH and GH? around 6.5
e. Test kit? Strips

3. Temperature? Currently 78 at the time was 82

4. FW (fresh water) or BW (brackish)? FW

5. How long the aquarium has been set up? 6 weeks

6. What fish do you have? How many are in your tank? How big are they? How long have you had them?
See signature for types and numbers all numbers are close to what I had when I lost the few listed above. Most I had in a smaller tank. The newer fish are the corydoras. Most of the fish are under 2 inches.

7. Were the fish placed under quarantine period (minus the first batch from the point wherein the tank is ready to accommodate the inhabitants)? No

8. a. Any live plants? Fake plants? Live Plants
b. Sand, gravel, barebottom? Sand 
c. Rocks, woods, fancy decors? Any hollow decors? Drift wood, fake hollow rock and ghost tube.

9. a. Filtration? Heavy filtration
b. Heater? Yes

10. a. Lighting schedule? What lights are used? 7am to 6-7pm depending on the time I get home
b. Any sunlight exposure? How long? None

11. a. Water change schedule? Once a month
b. Volume of water changed? 20-30%
c. Well water, tap water, RO water? tap water
d. Water conditioner used? yes
e. Frequency of gravel/sand (if any) vacuumed?

12. Foods? Omega One Tropical Flakes, Frozen Blood Worms, Hikari Sinking Wafers
How often are they fed? 2 times daily

13. a. Any abnormal signs/symptoms? At the time a white cotton like substance on the dorsal fin and tail fin
b. Appearance of poop? N/A
c. Appearance of gills? Fine

14. a. Have you treated your fish ahead of diagnosis? Yes
b. What meds were used? Maracyn

15. Insert photos of fish in question and full tank shot if necessary.

I hope this helps as I mention they all seem fine now but I want to make sure that this does not happen again so any advice you have please feel free to let me know.

Thanks again all and thanks for the link to the diagnosis form!

- Mike


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

I agree on keeping the temperature lower, 77/78F is sufficient for the fish listed. While that may not have caused the issues, it may have weakened the fish and contributed. The higher the temperature, the harder any fish has to work to "live" and a successful community aquarium is one where the temperature is in the middle or low range for the various species.

Water changes. Once a month is not sufficient. Weekly is the minimum, unless the tank is very lightly stocked and heavily planted. Don't know about plants, but your fish stocking is not "light." So weekly water changes are important. For volume, I would recommend 1/3 to 1/2 the tank. If the tap water parameters are close to the tank water, this will be fine.

Byron.


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## MinaMinaMina (Aug 28, 2011)

Yep, what Byron said. Plus,, I loaded your stock into AqAdisor because it would be the easiest way to give you a list of species required temperatures, so please see that in the link below. But I noticed how over stocked you are. It says that you are at 168% of your stocking. While I do believe AqAdvisor is just a rough guide, certain problems can be mitigated by certain factors, and that your stock is probably still juveniles... still, its pretty pronounced overstocking. You may want to address this. Also note the recommended maintenance schedule- because you're overstocked, the recommend a water change of 59% per week, or 35% twice a week.

AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor

(Also, you may want to consider a liquid test kit, like the Master Kit by API. Liquid tests are generally more accurate than strips.)

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but maybe this illness will have the good outcome of some positive changes! You have some great fish, and I'm totally jealous of your pH! Good luck!


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## Mikiel1984 (Oct 17, 2011)

Thanks Byron! You are always a great source of information.

As far as the plants go I would say the tank is a medium to heavy planted tank. I have about 20 different plants ranging from small to 5-6 inches tall plants. I do know my stock is a little on the heavy side and I will probably lighten as some of my guys grow but it is such a peaceful tank at this point and they all shoal together which is absolutely gorgeous. Even the Siamese Algae Eaters get involved! As for the water changes I will definitely step up my game on water changes from here on out. I just thought doing changes that often caused a lot of stress on my tank. If not I would be happy to make that happen more often.

Thanks again for all your help and I will be starting a new thread shortly about filtration so keep an eye on that and let me know your advice.

-Mike


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