Emergency....Sick guppies....please help!

[Trippinbugs]

I'm attaching a video since I'm in panic mode at the moment. I basically need advice about two different situations going on in my tank right now.
My tank is planted, housing amano shrimp and guppies: 2 male, 6 female. This is a "What would you do?" Post......looking for any ideas or advice. So.....what would you do?
Couldn't upload video directly here.....so check this youtube link please:

Thanks guys, I really appreciate it!!

 

[Trippinbugs]

I just fed my tank, and all guppies are eating well.....even the poor momma that was just laying at the bottom head down. As soon as the flakes went in, she shot right up to the surface and fed for a good 5 mins or so, swimming around normally. Once done, she just kinda sunk to the bottom of the tank head down, more sinking on her right side again. She's just laying there, mouth at the floor, body kinda floating up sideways. I'm almost considering a salt bath....anyone think that's a good place to start? I've never medicated my tanks, like I said, I do have some meds on hand....but I'd rather not if it's avoidable. I have regular aquarium salt, and I've heard of using Epsom salts for baths/dips too. Anyone??

 

[tfreema]

Did I see red gills on one in the tank? Are there any other symptoms? How many fish are effected?
Salt bath may help if there is bloat due to constipation and temporarily if bloat is due to disease which can give the fish time to recover.
The best course of action is keeping the water pristine with daily water changes.
Do you have any meds on hand? I have used furan 2 for red gills successfully.
I hope she recovers. Bobbing like that is not a good sign though.

 

[Trippinbugs]

No real red gills noticeable on her or other fish. The two who have gotten really skinny and I tried to get in the video are a darker yellow color which fades to a deep red on the fins....their gills have always looked more red because of their coloring, but are no redder than before. I'm almost thinking they have TB. I got them together 2 months ago and they were healthy with no symptoms until now.

 

[Trippinbugs]

Well, I have some progress to report. The female that was bobbing head down, and laying on her side is doing well I gave her a 30 min bath with aquarium salt and a touch of epsom salt (once yesterday, and once this morning) and she is now floating and swimming correctly. Her feces is normal while eating, but once in a while I notice stringy, transparent, almost white excrement....not solid. But once she eats, its normal. Is this a sign of internal bacteria/parasites? I haven't noticed any worms, or parasites externally....but I know that doesn't mean anything.
I'm almost thinking it might be an internal bacterial issue, because I also have 2 guppies looking very emaciated. One is very skinny, very hollowed out but still eating....she also has a very curved spine. The other guppy is getting skinny, but isn't as bad. Shes not curving yet, but is a bit slower than normal, and hangs around in the plants. I don't know what this "wasting guppy" disease really is, but it's the only thing I can find doing research online.
So if anyone has any ideas, advice or opinions, please let me hear them!
Tank is at 78 degrees
PH 7.4
NH 0
No2 0
No3 ~10-15

No meds used in tank yet. Just separate baths so far for the one guppy that was struggling head-down. Tank currently has amano shrimp and a couple guppy fry that I couldn't catch, but are doing well. If you want any other info, let me know

 

[tfreema]

That is good news that she is doing better.
The one thing you should do no matter what approach you take medicine wise, is to keep the water as pristine as possible. 50% water changes daily or every other day IMO.
If parasites, you will want to determine what kind so you can treat accordingly. There is not one medication that kills all parasites. Praziquantel and levimasole are two of the most effective that do not have to be fed (works systemically in the tank water).

 

[Trippinbugs]

Any idea on how to tell if I'm dealing with a bacterial or internal parasite infection? Thank you for the meds suggestion Right now I'm doing about 25-30% water changes everyday, and every other day I'm also vacuuming the substrate a bit. The only thing I'm positive about is ick. The bobbing female had 2 small, white, salt looking granules on her dorsal fin....and they are gone now. Isn't ick considered a parasite, that if left over time, can become internal? Maybe I should hit my fish up with a good ick treatment. I'm looking for a small enough bin I can turn into a QT to keep all the gupp's in and do a complete treatment. I can leave my shrimp and plants in the main tank with the heat up in the mean time to let it go.....

 

[tfreema]

I have used the heat method successfully to treat ich. Slowly turn heat up to 86-88, 50% water change with substrate vacuum every other day for two full weeks. Just because the spots are gone doesn't mean it is gone out of the tank. They are just at another stage of their growth cycle.

I don't know how to tell difference between internal parasite and bacterial infection. Maybe someone with experience will chime in. Both can have stringy white poop.

 

[Trippinbugs]

I have used the heat method successfully to treat ich. Slowly turn heat up to 86-88, 50% water change with substrate vacuum every other day for two full weeks. Just because the spots are gone doesn't mean it is gone out of the tank. They are just at another stage of their growth cycle.

I don't know how to tell difference between internal parasite and bacterial infection. Maybe someone with experience will chime in. Both can have stringy white poop.

I didn't mean to say the white spots were gone, so therefore I thought the ick was gone.....Because I turned up the heat and 2 days later those spots were gone, I assumed that the fish were suffering from ick. I'm highly aware of the ick life cycle, and know it can last a long while.....but in turning up the heat, it makes it metabolize faster to the phase of the spots falling off. If the spots had not fallen off, or had gotten worse with heat, then I'd be sure it's something else.
I know it's gotta be pretty bad in the fish affected right now.....so I'm going to take a plunge and start medicating. I have NEVER used meds for my tanks before, so I'm very apprehensive about throwing just about anything in there. I want to research and make a good, solid diagnosis (the best I can knowing very little) so I can be confident that I'm doing the best I can. Too many times, I've seen people just medicate tanks out of precaution because they "think" it could be this or that. Or changing the treatment up just because someone told them too.....and ended up killing off everything. Meds aren't anything to take chances on unless you are certain of the situation as a whole.
I appreciate you chiming in and giving me some pointers. I'm starting to get frustrated with the amount of conflicting info out there......