Basil update

[bob d]

For those who know her, an update on Basil's condition. Bas is still hanging in there and I'm happy to say doesn't appear to have lost much more if any weight. She is still eating well and hammers the bloodworms through the tube just like the old days, but is not noticeably gaining weight. I have tried to locate flubendazole, as suggested by Emma, but it appears it is not available here in Oz, so I am just hoping she will beat it with willpower. Levamisole and Sterazin hasn't worked unfortunately. The fact that she is still kicking and eating at least shows she has plenty of willpower. (I hope the pic works)

[Jim Powers]

Thanks for the update, Bob.
Hang in there Basil!!!

[Graeme Robson]

Stay with us Basil!!!

Cheers Bob.

[Ardillakilla]

Maybe it's not a parasitic infection.

[Emma Turner]

Hi Bob,

This is the stuff we have been using with much success. I checked e-bay and this British seller will send it out to Oz:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/DISCUS-NEW-WORME ... p1638.m122

It's got to be worth a go.

Emma

[chefkeith]

Thanks for the update. Basil is such a beautiful clown. I hope she gets better.

[shari2]

You probably mentioned this already, but have you tried treating her with antibiotics?

I'm glad she's hanging in there.

[ckk125]

Hopefully Basil will get through this..but do bear in mind that large clowns generally take quite awhile to regain some body mass due to the age of the fish.

[bob d]

Thanks chaps, and thanks to whoever tidied up my clumsy pic posting attempt.
I have had that hope Chen, that she just may take a long time to recover due to age, but of course I don't know if this is it.
I don't know much about antibiotics Shari, or what they are good for in loaches, so haven't tried any. Could the loss of condition be attributable to something which could be treated by antibiotics? I've always thought that wasting was associated with worms or parasites.
Given what you have been saying Emma I will organise some Wormer Plus from your lead asap and hope it is allowed in. As you say, it's got to be worth a go, particularly if it's use isn't risky.
I will try to get some better pics.

[salva]

Hi Bob,

I'm glad that Sybil is getting better. It would be wonderful if we could also see all the other fish.

Thank you very much.

Salva

[ckk125]

Thanks chaps, and thanks to whoever tidied up my clumsy pic posting attempt.
I have had that hope Chen, that she just may take a long time to recover due to age, but of course I don't know if this is it.
I don't know much about antibiotics Shari, or what they are good for in loaches, so haven't tried any. Could the loss of condition be attributable to something which could be treated by antibiotics? I've always thought that wasting was associated with worms or parasites.
Given what you have been saying Emma I will organise some Wormer Plus from your lead asap and hope it is allowed in. As you say, it's got to be worth a go, particularly if it's use isn't risky.
I will try to get some better pics.

If you think Basil isnt getting any better, antibiotics should be used...My 11 inch wild caught clown had lots of problems..worms and the unique vibrating abdomen..like some sort of muscle spasm...dosed antibiotics for a couple of days and the clown just kept on getting better..but only do it if the clown is getting worse(hope not).

Here is the thread about the vibrating problem, only solved using antibiotics.

http://forums.loaches.com/viewtopic.php ... =vibrating

[shari2]

My first assumption for wasting clowns is parasites, too. However, having done some research it seems that part of the time anti-parasite treatments alone will not cure the problem, only slow it down.

In cases like that, when antibiotics have been used after de-worming, there is frequently a marked improvement. I had a little clown that I did 3 Levamisole treatments on because initially, he'd improve, then 2 months later would regress again and start getting thin. Finally, I used a Kanacyn treatment on him in a qtank since clearly, it wasn't just worms. Did the trick. He's a chubby little dude now.

I don't normally suggest antibiotics 'just because', but especially in the case of wasting syndrome, if the de-worming doesn't work, i begin to suspect there's more going on and think that a course of a broad spectrum antibiotic in a qtank environment is appropriate. It has worked in a number of cases I've read about and think it may be worth a try for poor Basil.

I don't know what antibiotics are available in OZ, but something that will work on both gram positive and gram negative bacteria would be your best bet, I think.

[Ardillakilla]

http://aac.asm.org/cgi/content/full/44/11/3133

http://www.google.com/search?q=mycobact ... =firefox-a