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Hey guys....

So my dojo loach problem has gotten worse. It started as a lesion on their nose, right above the "whiskers". It evolved into a kind of Fungus looking thing and has gone from that into something that looks to be eating its flesh.

I feel very bad for all three of them, interestingly they are at different stages of this sickness so Ive been able to see how the problem has evolved.

We have treated them with several different pills and tablets, the lady at the LFS has tried to help me and has checked several sources to see what else can be done, what the sickness might be but so far, we have come up with nothing.

What can I do for my loaches?

I have gotten the impression that most if not all the medications that come in those damn "alka seltzer" tablets do nothing for fish. I have had very bad experience curing fish with these and consider these next to worthless...

The last thing we have tried is what we call "oxytetraciclina" which Im sure translates to something similar in English.

Unfortantely here in CR medications arent exactly abundant so I seem to be up S**&$ creek with no paddle.

Anything I can do for them?

Sounds like your loaches have a columnaris bacterial infection. The medication you have procured is probably one of the older antibiotics known as oxytetracycline or tetracycline hydrochloride.Doses should be about 250 mg per 10 gallon. It might make an impact, and for your sake I hope it does, but generally mosr strains of columnaris seem to be becoming increasingly resistant to it.If the infection is very far progressed a good antibiotic will be needed since the bacteria will have become invasively internal to the fish, and so regular treatments might not clear it up.

Other options you can try are : triple sulfa, this contains sulfamethazine, sulfacetamide, and sulfathiazole, and should kill a lot of bacteria.

Erythromycin might also work.

Furan might cure the problem too , so try looking for something that contains nitrofurazone, furazolidone, and methylene blue trihydrate .Beyond that , Im stumped!

I know protozin always worked very well for me over here in the uk, myxazin, by the same company (waterlife uk) is also effective.

Ive listed as many active ingredients as I can, and I guess all you can do is try to find cures that contain the same compounds. Beyond that, its just a supply issue, and frankly I have no idea what is available in costa rica.

Good luck though.

The problem seems very progressed, to the point where the first loach that got infected seems to have a piece of his face missing, which is tough to look at.

If I have a chance (if I dont get asked to stay late) I can pass by the LFS on the way home from work. What antibiotic, if I were to find it could I use then?

OK heres the scoop on the more serious treatments.
This are powerful treatments and in some countries only a vet is allowed to prescribe them, but being in costa rica, well, things have a way of making themselves available..


For a little contact aid, you can put neosporin (old reptile keepers trick)on infected areas. It really will help, but you have to sensibly weigh the the benefits of treatment against the severe stress that capture and handling cause.

Personally im big on enrofloxacin (brandname baytril) at a 2mg per litre bath. You dont want it actually in a cycled tank,it will kill all present bacteria guaranteed, but in a seperate container for treatment it should kill all traces of columnaris in about 4 days. Neomycin at 66mg per litre should do the job in a three day bath too.

One tip concerning the oxytetracycline that you may be using - its photosensitive, and it degrades in effectiveness quickly under sunlight and intense aquarium lights. Try turning the lights off for a couple of days and its effectiveness may increase. If it starts to turn the water brown its ceased being effective.When that happens the fish are not cured, and the toxic aspects of the drug are at their highest- so the basic tip is, if tetracycline or oxytetracycline turn the water brown, get the water changes going on really quickly, or run carbon filtration, whatever it takes to get it out of there!.

about the oxytetra....mine was brown from the moment I opened up the pill, could that mine the effectiveness of the pill was diminished or even non existent from the get go???

what color shoudl the powder in the pill be?

by the way i really appreciate your help, thank u.

Yes, it goes out of date very easily if not kept in cool conditions. In my youth, my dad killed a whole pond full of koi with out of date oxytetracycline. Yellowing of the water even orangey hues are normal with oxytet, but when its deep brown its gone over.

that would in theory explain why they havent done anything for my loaches, man this is really frustrating....

I really dont know what else to do/try....

Longhaired, I had a 30 minute lunch break and managed to drive to the LFS and back. Talked to the lady in charge who is of great great help and she seemed a bit surprised as well about the oxytetra...losing strength or even becoming toxic to fish, the turning brown of it, and all that. She gave me some capsules which might be of help, that contain oxytetra... they just came in and are presumably of yellow color. The capsules are half orange half yellow and have something similar to barr written on them as well as "011" on the yellow side..

Ever heard or have any experience with those?

Its probably not her fault, oxytetracycline isnt really intended for fish use, its designed for human consumption, so there will always be some problems with it. Youll just have to muddle on the best you can, and that might include just turning the lights off , or choosing another drug entirely. Oxytetracycline was never really intended to be diluted in water or taken externally.

Is there a brandname on the particular tablets you are using?