Another question

How long does it usually take for melafix and pimafix to work together to heal something? Mr. Red still has a little bit of cloud eye and he has pop eye too, plus his tail hasn't really grown back at all and he's been on the melafix for a week and half now and both meds together since Sunday. Natalie

 

I don't know anything about the medications you're asking about, but I know that some medications need to be used for longer than indicated on the label. Oftentimes, the fish need to be treated for twice as long as it says on the label, in order to completely get rid of the disease. When the cycle of the first treatment is completed (as described on the label), a large water change should be done to get rid of the old medication from water, and the cycle should be repeated again. The temperature should be around 82F during the treatment. But it would be best if someone who knows about your medications can confirm whether my advice applies to these medications.

 

I have the water temp up to 82 degrees. Originally I was just using the melafix to heal his tail. Little did I know I should've been using both of them at the same because that's when they work best. The reason he got cloud eye and popeye was because I had to take the carbon filter out so that the medicine wouldn't get wiped out by the carbon. I never replaced it with another filter and the water after a few days started getting really cloudy and so I think that's what caused his popeye and cloud eye. I ended up doing a complete water change on Sunday and started over with the medicine, only this time I used both. His cloud eye doesn't look as bad as it was, so I think it's starting to clear up, but his popeye hasn't changed. I guess I'll just have to keep doing 25% water changes and keep using the medicine until it's all cleared up. Is there anything else I can do to help the process go by a little faster? I know I have to keep the water clean which will be easier now that I finally received my gravel vacuum. Could I do a salt bath him for a few minutes everynight with Epsom salt or something? Would that help at all? Natalie

 

I am glad the fish is starting to look better. I'd suggest for you to continue keeping the water as clean as possible and treating (exactly according to the label of the medication) the fish until it's healthy ... though I am not sure if too many cycles of medicating a fish can exhaust the fish further. Someone who knows about it, would have to answer this question.

As for the salt, use ONLY aquarium-safe salt, for freshwater aquariums - it should be available at any fish store and it's cheap. I am not sure if it's safe to treat scale-less fish with salt, so if your fish is scale-less, make sure that you know whether salt would be safe for it. If your fish has scales, 1 tablespoon of aquarium salt per 5 gallons of water (if I remember correctly) should be OK. BUT ... before you add the salt to your tank, completely dissolve it first in a cup or two of tank water, and then - very slowly - pour the solution into your tank.

 

I only used Melafix on my guppy and it only took 4 days. But again, its tail was still in a pretty good shape.