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A systematic scientific approach to aquatic life keeping
results in reduced costs and increased efficiency and enjoyment. One aspect of
the livestock business that sorely needs improvement and continuous updating is
disease diagnosis and treatment of livestock both on arrival and ongoing for
perceived maladies.
A search of the scientific and popular literature results in
incomplete and conflicting reports of how to deal with any given disease
condition. Relying on experimentation and hearsay in these times of little or no
adequate quarantine is courting expensive disaster.
This article (and others in this series) deals with
developing and installing a system to accumulate and make useful data on how to
acclimate new livestock and diagnose and treat on-going diseases.
Disease/Health_Definition_and_Model
First of all a definition and a very useful model of disease.
Disease is "any condition deviating from a normal or healthy state". As such
there are several ways to classify disease conditions.
Genetic Disease: Concerns inherited disorders.
1) Environmental Disease: Are developmental disorders
resulting from chemical and physical anomalies.
2) Social Disease: Is the manifestation of disorders as the
result of interaction or lack of interaction of
an organism with others of its own or other species.
3) Nutritional Disease: Results from chemical imbalance due
to improper feeding and/or diet.
4) Infectious Disease: Are those unhealthful conditions
attributable to bacteria, fungi, and viruses.
5) Parasitic Disease: Are those unhealthful conditions
attributable to "organisms living in or on another species in which the host is
harmed" including protozoans, "worms", crustaceans and others.
Much has been written regarding the interactions between
water quality, stress and propensity for disease. It is critical to understand
the relationship between your livestock's': 1) Initial State, 2) Suitability of
the Environment you're placing it in and, 3) Pathogenicity, or degree of
infectiousness of disease-causing organisms.
Towards the ends of fostering understanding regarding the
relationships between these sets of factors I'd like to introduce a model
popularized by the late Dr. Stan Sniezsko:
Figure:
The three interlocking circles symbolize the
interrelationship of these factor groups. All conditions of health/disease are
environmentally mediated. Indeed, an organisms "life-state" is the manifestation
of agreement between itself and its indistinguishable environment.
Generally, by optimizing two of these three sets of factors,
you will be able to keep livestock alive. In particular, it is important to pick
out organisms that have an initial state of health and potential (genetic
heritage) for continuing in your set of conditions.
The System: Rational
The advantages to a systems approach to managing livestock
are obvious. In view of the many hours and money that can be lost, the varied
tasks and skills involved, the separation of duties, a working systematic
approach to livestock management is vital. Relying on oral tradition or "hoping"
others will know and will do "what needs to be done" is risky at best. We want
you to know right up front that this part of aquaristics is very
difficult. As businessmen and friends we are willing to help you. However, there
is a lot of mis- and dis-information and outright voodoo in this field. Fish
health is still an art and quasi-science in my opinion. Understand that most
advice is un-substantiated, non-scientific opinion; as with your health,
get a second and third and...
How can we do this? By helping you document, develop and
implement a systematic treatment system.
Whatever Organizational Structure you have, someone will have
to be responsible and accountable for Livestock Management; in particular,
introduction, diagnosis and treatment.
A_Systematic_Approach:
May we suggest that you develop a card-catalog file/reference
system for treating livestock on arrival and for on-going maladies? This
involves a five-sectioned box or boxes with alphabetical indices for keeping
index cards filed.
On_Arrival:
One section/box includes cards for types of fish kept in your
system. These cards how to deal with the livestock on arrival.
Example: Neon Tetras.
Dip: None; sensitive to formaldehyde, copper, KMnO3.
Temperature: Keep warm; use heaters or upper tanks.
Chemistry: Turn flow rate down, two squirts acid mix, no
salt, no metal dyes, if it's necessary to use malachite or Aquarisol, half dose;
use brass pads, shimmy blocks if look fish looks shaky.
Food: Next day, everyday, medicated flake for bacteria,
protozoans for two weeks.
On_Going_Treatment:
Section two involves on-going treatment of livestock.
Example: Plecostomus and other South American Suckermouth Catfishes.
Water flow: Low, turnover once, twice per day.
Food: Banquet blocks, zucchini, medicated flakes.
Quarantine Time: One week.
Treatment instructions: Ich, 1/2 dose malachite, raise temp.
to 80's.
Flukes: Dylox 10ppm.
Mysterious losses: Lower pH with organic acids.
Warnings: Sensitive to malnutrition; have some food available
continuously.
Symptoms,_Treatments:
Section 3 involves diseases, observable symptoms and
treatments. Example: Ich; white spot disease, Ichthyophthiriasis.
Cause: Ciliated protozoan, always present, waiting to
super-infest fish in weakened state. Usually brought on by a sudden drop in
temperature. Some species especially prone, some relatively immune.
Appearance: Small white dots, @ 1/16 " diameter spread over
fish.
Warnings: Easily spread with nets, water. On-going, strong
strains harder to treat.
Treatment: Early diagnosis, elevated temperatures (mid 80's),
proper pH. Small, scaleless fish: 1/2 dose malachite or Aquarisol. Large,
scaled, non-sensitive fishes, full dose of malachite green or copper.
Medications:
Section four is an indexed reference to Medications, Food
Preparations, other concoctions, like net dips, for example:
Preparation: About one ounce of stock formaldehyde solution
in one half bucket tap water.
Duty: Made up first thing every day by the Facility Manager.
Use: Specimen containers and nets dunked in between use in
tanks.
Purpose: Reduce spreading of infectious and parasitic
diseases.
Alternative: Permanganate solution.
References:
Section five is your reference file. Example, Nelson Herwig,
Treatment of Fish Diseases; good practical information for specifying
treatments. Get and use a copy for your personal library.
References are listed by name and page number on the back
side of cards in sections one through four.
Summary:
Treatments are necessary on arrival and on-going to ensure
adequate health of livestock. The development and use of a Treatment System as
detailed here, serves to educate, train and with proper application,
systematically reduce losses. The actual treatments must be recorded and
analyzed in a reasonable, consistent, documented process; in a Treatment Book
and/or with a marking system on the tanks.
You may have the savvy and want to computerize this Treatment
System and develop it in your own way. Whatever is decided, do it soon! The last
thing a person dealing with livestock needs is to have problems right off with
sick, weak fish. Please employ a reasonable, consistent practice that is
documented to assist you in developing and repeating practices for proper
acclimation of your livestock per your conditions. These systematic ways of
doing things pay!
Chain Stores 7/21/08
Bob,
<Tom>
Read this, wanted to give some input.
""Re: Alternative treatment for a common marine parasite, Crypt 07/20/2008
Again my hand is forced by my employer's policy, ie p*tco.
<Mmm, do know that I worked at corp..... as a consultant/buyer for this co.
91-94... to bring in/make sense of aquatic livestock... Quite an ordeal>
I don't agree with the policy and have been close to walking out of door, and
have been saddened by the loss of life that could have been prevented through
dedicated quarantine / treatment systems.
<I... empathize>
Either you quit / walk out or try to make the broken toy work for spoiled child.
Have had results on using melafix to clear up bad eyes and slight bacterial
damage, not as a treatment for crypt as some people desire it to be. There was
one post by someone who was using the daily freshwater bath method from your
crew, the individual who received this suggestion responded by saying something
to the effect of "wow, everyday? That's harsh", to which the crew replied <so is
copper>
<Yes>
The fish has to be returned to the same tank it came from, ie the infested tank.
One could give the fish a freshwater bath and put it into a different tank with
healthy fish, but its likely that bath won't sterilize the animal of it and it
will get the others sick. The freshwater bath / gravel vacuum technique is used
by others I have read, usually as a hell-bent way of "I'm definitely not using a
separate treatment tank", "I don't want to treat the main display with any
medication or altering of the salinity", "I can't afford a sterilizer which may
or may not anything", and agreed the cleaner shrimp are manly pretty placebos.
<... I encourage you to make a presentation... ask for some time to meet
with the store, then Regional (Op.s) Manager... to in turn present your input,
ideas to corporate/San Diego... to change whatever policy. Particularly "On
Arrival" acclimation/baths to largely prevent the introduction of these
parasites, their establishment in your systems>
The variables I can control are how often I give the bath and its duration.
How frequent I gravel vacuum the bottom of the tank and how much water I take
out. I do remember another member of WWM crew claiming to have effected a cure
of a flame angel by daily vacuuming of a 10 gallon bare bottom tank 50% premade
saltwater.
<It/this can be done... but does take dedication, time... You seem to understand
the underlying principles>
I can't do that volume with a 60, but I can do its frequency if there is
results. In this limited situation Would freshwater bath every 3rd or 4th or 5th
day with daily vacuuming be more appropriate?
<Yes>
As for freshwater baths upon arrival, I have done those,
<Ah, good... with formalin and aeration I hope/trust>
and continue to do so for tangs and fish that frequently have this problem.
But even in a tank that contains only fish delivered that week, and has had no
previous problem for months, to which all were given proper freshwater baths
crypt still does break out, so while doing proper fresh water baths on arrival
probably reduces the frequency of its occurrence its probably not stone cold
guarantee you won't get it.
The last paragraph in your reply is understandable considering the items I
suggested. Its not that I want to do them its that I'm handcuffed to poor
equipment and policy. Have risked my job and changed things and gotten good
results using a 'communal copper treatment tank' for those who developed
problems (ie crypt). And even that is not an answer to all the various and
different problems that can present itself. I just don't have enough dedicated
treatment tanks, allowances to recovery all that can be recovered.
Not that I lack the knowledge to do so.
Sorry to go on,
No one on the crew has any recommendations for this compromised procedure?
Frequency/duration of bath, frequency, percentage of gravel vacuum water change?
<Five-seven minutes... daily, all the gravel vacuumed>
I think 'ridiculous' was what I first thought about doing this as an alternative
to a more proven technique.
<Just... not something I want to encourage carte blanche (on the Net)... as
a likely procedure that will be successful for all... too much work, too
stressful, too likely to not work>
cheers,
hand cuffed employee
<Perhaps a move/stint in an independent shop... Bob Fenner>""
We've got these stores here, in the Houston area.
<Ah, yes... I know. I spent some time there, doing physical inventories...
in the early nineties, for PetCo, when I worked for them as a consultant/buyer.
A very nice town, folks>
In fact, I bought my Passer Angel from them some time ago, in ignorant times,
and as I look back I am pretty sure my crypt issues may have started with this
fish. Thank goodness all is well now and the Passer thrives. This store does
offer a saltwater market at locales where small private stores might not have a
market to survive (small towns, etc), so I think they're a good thing to some
extent. but I find their methods and livestock care techniques quite lacking.
<Too often the case...>
I feel it's their responsibility to their customers and the livestock to provide
a better product. By that I mean service quality and education. I tell people
who are interested in marine fish that its easy. if done correctly and you
follow guidelines. One
example at this store that I find bad is keeping LR and inverts in the same
systems as their fish, making their fish 'untreatable' in reality.
All of this, I would think, is easily remedied if the company would decide to do
it.
<And more pre-eminently, cared and "knew" what to do...>
And I would think it is certainly in the best interest of their customers and
our hobby in the big picture of things. Think of it; surely the large majority
of people who are exposed to marine aquaria begin their adventures in a store
like this. They always carry Nemos and Dorys and yellow tangs. And often, I'm
sure, their intentions are good, asking the clerk about marine tanks, and what
equipment they need, what are the requirements for care, etc. Can you imagine
the responses they get? Just by looking over the accessories carried on the
shelves, I can tell you they are probably providing the wrong answers.
<Happens... so... of course (per moi) the question: "What do we do to make this
better?">
One of the branch stores here, the one I purchased my angel from in fact, has
well intentioned and intelligent employees.
<Ah, good>
All they lack, I would guess, is a bit of education and the resources necessary
to do their job.
Here we have a large number of readers who I'm sure have similar concerns of the
writer of the email below. Perhaps he can provide us with the most effective
contact information necessary to express our concerns. I'm sure that there are
many of us who would take time to send an email, I certainly would.
Just some thoughts.
Thomas
<Thank you Tom. BobF>
Retail (copper) question – 06/26/07
Hello to the crew!
<Michael>
It has been a long time since I have had to bother you (2 years) and now I have
a question regarding copper in fish only tanks.
Since I last wrote I have purchased Aquatic World in Wisconsin and have received
some advise
<advice>
from some of the other LFS regarding marine tanks. We have 78 marine tanks on
stand alone filtration systems and after talking to another LFS they informed me
that they have had great benefits from running copper in their fish only tanks
continuously and recommended we do the same.
<Some stores do... ours used to...>
I can see the benefit of doing so but I also do not agree that any medicine or
chemical should be used if it is not absolutely necessary. I also am curious
what the long term effects of this would be to the fish.
<Some groups of fishes suffer... most celebratedly the Acanthuroids (Tangs and
relatives) from a loss of gut fauna... many others develop (much more readily)
neuromast destruction (HLLE...) syndromes with continuous copper exposure...>
I simply am not comfortable doing this but would love to hear the crews 2 cents
on this. Anything that can cut down on fish illness and livestock loss I am
willing to try.
Thank you in advance for your help.
Michael J. Bukosky
<Mmm, well... Is one means... along with dips/baths prophylactically (on
arrival) good acclimation, set-up, maintenance, feeding... But does have
downsides... along with the above are issues of cost, dangers in
over-application, mis-treatment, poisoning of non-target species (algae,
invert.s...) If you have a pretty steady "good" turnover of fish livestock, it's
worth using a CHELATED variety/product... WITH testing (daily) and
re-administration. Bob Fenner>
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