maggie

Hey everyone,

So my dwarf gourami is being funky, and I don't really know what hes got so I need some help identifying what hes got so I can treat him accordingly.

Parameters are normal btw.

Here is a list of symptoms:

He's extremely shy
Color is fading
Dark spot which may or may not have always been there under his belly (noticed it when I got him but wasn't ever sure it that was normal coloring)
Tiny dark spots on his scales, sort of look like pimples?
Gills look like they might have slime in them


He's eating normally if I move away from the tank but if I'm close he freaks out. I have him separated in a breeder box so I can feed him because otherwise he won't eat. The other fish are too fast for him right now.

Lucy

Hi Maggie
Wow our DG's seem to be having problems. I'm sorry your isn't feeling well.

What size tank is he in? How many and what kind of tank mates?
What are the parameters exactly?

My DG ill but started with a shimmery discolored spots and progressed from there and unfortunatly a member just lost hers with similar symtoms.
If I can find the thread, I'll link it.

I've been reading a lot about about iridovirus.
There hasn't been much talk of it lately, but I'm convinced we're seeing it again
Here's a link that helped me:
Iridovirus in Gouramis

Here's the thread I started:
Something's going very wrong
and here's the other thread I mentioned:
my poor gourami

Can you post a pic?

aquarist48

Sorry to hear about your Gourami Maggie. Lucy has you covered. Best of luck that they all recover!
Ken

maggie

ammonia - 0
nitrite - 0
nitrate - 20
pH - 7


10 gallon with bubble rock, plants, and two caves, very little algae on caves.


tank mates: 2 neon tetras, 2 blue rams, 2 guppies. Slightly over the inch limit but I keep a close eye on water quality so I've had very little issues. The tank itself is 3 years old. Tetras being the only first generation fish left. They've been in there since day one

Lucy

Have you watched for any aggression issues with the rams? Maybe they're injuries?

maggie

No the rams play nice, they were a little aggressive with each other before but I think they are actually afraid of the gourami. They don't really go near him. The gourami usually is the one who swims towards them if ever. I've got a pretty peaceful tank going thankfully.

coffeebean

can you get a photo of the spots?

Lucy, do you think it could have been iridovirus that killed my Sunna?

Lucy

I don't know. I think the only true way to tell is by necropsy and studying the tissue.
When I saw Sunna's pics, it reminded me of my DG. Mine has lesions and a few small lumps but they're not white like Sunna's.
Everything I've read about the symtoms my DG is showing brought me back around to iridovirus.
I treated with Maracyn and Maracyn 2 thinking it was a bacterial infection but it didn't help.
Iridovirus is viral so antibiotics wouldn't have any effect on it.

I can't say for sure that's what's wrong with Maggie's DG either. I mention it because it was so prevalent not too long ago, maybe still is.

maggie

I managed to take a few decent photos. They show the dark pimply/grainy spots, the dark part on the underside, and the color fading. However, I'm having issues uploading. I'll keep trying though. Hopefully I can get it to work soon.

maggie

Here we go.

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Lucy

Thanks for posting the pics.
It doesn't look like what my DG has. When I first brought him home him home he had a dark belly. After a while, he colored up. I remember saying now I know what a stressed gourami looks like.
I wonder if he's feeling the stress of a smaller tank with the fish you have in with him.

maggie

I noticed he was shy and not eating once before and separated him like this for about 5 days. I was thinking maybe the other fish were eating up the food too fast and he wasn't getting any. Just fed him blood worms and flakes, he got much less shy and was eating aggressively again when let back out into the tank with everyone. But now he actually has those little spots and is super shy. So I'm wondering if its something more.

When he is let out and food is put in he just looks at it and swims away to hide. But in the breeding box he eats like a piggy. Well, as long as I'm not near the tank anyway.

maggie

Ok so my gourami has gotten worse. He has lost a lot of weight and is very pale. I think this is causing secondary issues because now he has a big cottony poof on one of his feelers. I'm thinking he has internal parasites because he is still eating normally but has clear poo and isn't gaining weight. So I got some meds for that. My question now is, should I treat for both the internal parasites with the jungle tabs I got AND for the cottony stuff with pimafix? Or treat for the parasites first and then if he still has the cottony poof use the pimafix?

Oh and before it's mentioned I already tried medicated food soaked in garlic juice. He won't touch it. Thats why I'm using the jungle tabs.

Lastly, I've been using the pimafix for 2 days now and his poof is looking like its gonna fall off and hes more active. One plus so far.

Any suggestions?