Clown loach with HUGE blisters

[Mac6737]

I'm new here; this is my first post. (The one I tried to post yesterday apparently did not survive, notwithstanding the note that proclaimed success).

I have a 90 gallon planted discus tank, with 3 clown loaches as part of the cleanup crew. My parameters are excellent: no ammonia or nitrites, nitrates 10 ppm; pH about 6.6 (and about 80% RO water).

About a month ago, the biggest of the loaches (he's been here about 7 years) developed enormous sacs of air (or water) on his underside. What are these?

Yesterday I put him in a hospital tank with Maracyn Plus and Epsom salts. He can swim, and he's eaten some bloodworms.

I'd send a pic, but I gather this forum doesn't allow that.

Thanks,

Mac6737
Bethesda, MD, USA

[atmichaels]

It's still there. In the health forum.

[Mac6737]

Austen,

I infer you are responding to my earlier post about a still earlier pic of a ballooning loach.

I despair of using this website: my earlier post, to which you seem to respond, does not appear in the bleeping thread! And my several earlier attempts to log on were greeted by an error message -- until I contacted the powers that be.

Anyway, neither this forum nor another has any helpful advice, even though there are several hits involving similar or identical symptoms.

Perhaps I should resort to prayer. (Naaah!) Anyway, Huey the Loach (brothers (or maybe sisters??) Louie and Dewey) is still hanging in there, and when last I looked, his bubble seemed a little bit smaller.

Mac6737

[Ardillakilla]

Pictures would be helpful. Upload them somewhere. Share the URL here. It doesn't matter if the forum won't host your picture. You can host them elsewhere, likely without the ridiculous restrictions on size that forums have, and share the link here.

I used RO for years and some of my loaches got pretty bloated. The vets thought it was just the loaches being pigs but I wasn't feeding them that much. Changes in diet didn't really have much effect. Switching from RO to tap water seemed to have some effect. The ones affected are no longer ridiculously bloated and have abdomens bloated an amount that could believably be caused by overeating.

Their bloating never appeared superficial though but deep inside them, possibly within the digestive tract.

What is your water's TDS? I assume the 20% is tap water? Does your water have chloramine? How does your RO deal with it? What's your water change schedule?

Yeah, you can take fish to the vet. I've taken mine to UC Davis Veterinary Hospital many times. There's a directory of fish vets online.

[Mac6737]

This is not "bloat." These are enormous blisters, as I said. Subcutaneous bubbles of some sort.

Since my last post here, I isolated him, treated with 2 different courses of antibiotics, and returned him to the main tank after a week in isolation. The largest blister has apparently popped, and it looks like new epidermis is forming. I am pessimistic about his chances, though, since we still don't know what he has (or had), whether the ABs had any effect, etc. etc.