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is that in the 20g or in the 120?
Glad to hear your bala is from a larger tank!
If the ammonia is present in the quarantine tank, do a water change.
What does the red look like:
is it like streaking moving up the fins?
is it just that the fins have turned red?
do you see any other signs of illness? behaviour wise?
marks, bumps, scrapes, spots, dots, fuzzies?

Sounds like Hemmorhagic Septicemia:

"The disease is caused by a bacteria that attacks vascular walls, not unlike the Ebola virus and other hemorrhagic fevers. Once established in the fish's body, it travels very quickly through the circulatory system and attacks the blood vessel and he heart. This debilitates the fish, but take an excruciatingly long time to kill it, for it takes many days to completely destroy the circulatory system. This causes the following symptoms:

Apparently broken blood vessels in fins and extremities
Splotches of red, especially under the gill plates
Steadily increasing lethargy. "
qouted from - http://www.geocities.com/shtinkythefish/diseases/septicemia.htm


The recommended treatment is with Maracyn-2.
I have had some success with Melafix in treating this, but in a larger fish like a bala shark, I would probably want to rely on a tougher med, like the Maracyn-2

Heres a pic from a goldfish with it, is it like this:

-pic from http://www.aquariumpharm.com/disease/images/septicemia.jpg

Last edited by So_Very_Sneaky at 07-Oct-2005 10:39[/font]

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No, you should always follow the full
instructions. Most treatments range from
7 days to 2 weeks. Follow the directions
on the box, and do not return the fish to his
tank until he has recovered fully. This will
prevent a recurrence of the problem.


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Im treating him but its been 3-4 days and the red is disipearing when should i let him back in.

No,
that wont help the fish, and I dont think it will
kill that particular disease.
I dont think its highly contagious or anything,
my 2 experiences with it were isolated to 1 fish only and it never spread.


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Would it help if i used my ultra violet fitrtion system to kill bacteria

No Aquarium Salt is not going to help.
You need a strong antibacterial medication such as
Maracyn-2.
I dont know if there are any other meds out there
successful with Hemmorhagic Septicemia.
The torn fins could be just brought on by the stress
of a harsh bacterial infection.
If you are still unsure of the diagnosis, do a google search for fish diseases, and lots of sites have diagnosers which help you rule out disease and discover whats affecting your fish.
Also, you could treat a broad spectrum, by treating with Maracyn and Maracyn-2 at the same time.


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he is also missing scales. but He dosent have ich. would some aquarium salt help with that.

Last edited by Crazy_Coyote at 08-Oct-2005 02:02

can my other fish catch it?

Last edited by Crazy_Coyote at 08-Oct-2005 02:02

Then you should do a water change to remove the ammonia, number one concern. Start doing 20% water changes on that tank every 2-3 days.
Start treatment with the medication Maracyn-2
Good luck, with clean water and some meds, hopefully you can clear it up before its too late.
Hurry though, Hemorrhagic Septicemia can kill pretty fast.
Best of luck to you.


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The red is moving up the fins and the fin rays are already red

My bala sharks fins are slowly turning red from the base up if this is a bad sign how do i treat it?

I have a larger home that it was in was a 120 gallon so when i saw it turning red i quarintined it to my empty 20 gallon it doesnt seem to be hurt but i will find the nitrates and ammonia cause i just found my sea test cube kit. my nitrate level is 4 and my ammonia level is 2.0

Sounds like a water problem certainly more info. Also get your water tested and post all the results.
As well as a photo might help please

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Ok,
a 4 inch bala shark in a 20g tank.
Bala sharks grow to be 14 inches, and need a tank at least 135G or larger. Your are running the high risk of stunting this fish at this point. Likely his red fins are a result of an injury, such as zooming down the tank and smashing into something.
Could also be a bacterial infection, such as Hemorraghic Septicemia, or it could be ammonia/nitrIte poisoning.
We will really need results on ammonia and nitrIte to help a decision of condition.
The best thing you could do right now for your Bala shark is take it back to the pet store so it can go to a larger home.


Last edited by So_Very_Sneaky at 07-Oct-2005 00:54

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Yes I feed them Blood worms more often then i do flakes or shrimp pellets

Have you changed their diet? i remeber seeing a thread where someones silver dollars turned red...ended up being change of diet

20 gallon 4inch bala 6.5 ph , 11dh , and thats all i know at the moment i will post more info when i can get more nitrate and amonia tests.

We need some more info before we can help you.
What size tank is it?
How big is the bala?
Water condition readings please for Ammonia, NitrItes, and NitrAtes will be needed before anyone can help you.
Get back to us ASAP with that info, and we can begin helping you!


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