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One of my bettas has a swollen gill area. To me, it appears that her gills are full of tiny white parasites. It is currently only affecting one side, so I have a bit of time to figure out a treatment.
The parasites are smaller than ich, but more of an oval shape than velvet. They appear to be flattish and are creamy-white.


I am trying protozin, but it seems it is unsuccessful.
Would I have better luck with metronitazole?
Is there going to be gill damage that would cause it to still appear infected even after the parasites are gone?



For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

I doubt that they are gill flukes as that parasite is microscopic. Is it possible that you are viewing the secondary symptoms or follow on symptoms of an infection such as fungus? It may be fish lice but they rarely limit themselves to the gills. Here are treatments from MongaBay: http://fish.mongabay.com/diseases.htm

Gill Flukes (Dactylogyrus, Cichlidogyrus, Tetraonchus)
S: Tiny worm-like flukes infest the gill membranes causing redness and slimy gills, panting at the surface, rapid breathing, and emaciation.
A: Flukes lay eggs that are resistant to medication. Treat the tank with Droncit (Praziquantel) at 2 ppm (2 Mg/L) or a malachite green-formalin combination until all eggs and flukes are gone. Flukes can be eliminated from fish (but not the tank), by short formalin, salt (3 %), or Ammonium Hydroxide baths.

Fish Lice (Argulus)
S: Fish rub against rocks and plants and have clamped fins. Areas may have red, inflamed spots. Small lice are visible to the naked eye.
A: The best treatment is careful, manual removal with a pair of tweezers and siphon the gravel daily to remove eggs. If there is a heavy infestation, raise the temperature to 86°F (30°C), and treat the aquarium with dylox, masoten, or trichlorfon (0,0-dimethyl- 2,2,2-trichloro-1-hydroxyethyl phosphonate). Be sure to remove all invertebrates from the aquarium as they may be harmfully affected by the treatment.

__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright

i don't think its either

definately not secondary, the gill thing was the only problem for approx 5 days, although secondary signs are presenting now. slime coat is sloughing and the fish is very lethargic and clamped slightly, although not as much as i'd expect

I'm stumped. Protozin definately not working. I'd have thought it would at least have a minor effect on any of those parasites

I'll switch treatments tomorrow, go back to pimafix for a day or so to give her a chance to recover. But what to now? There are no other obvious signs other than the receding gill membrane and swollen 'cheek'



For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

I really like large water changes as the primary treatment mixed with a salt bath before I go to medications although I recognize that Pima Fix and Mela Fix should not be classified as "medications". One or two 50% water changes substantially changes the environment for the better while the salt bath will eliminate most external and gill parasites whether visible or not.

This is a tough one to diagnose and therefore to treat...



__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright

Try this link: http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/disease_medications/medicine_cabinet/freshwater_parasites_intro.shtml

I'm very impressed by the thoroughness of the article on parasites and associated treatments.

__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright