Topic: Older Fish with Dropsy?

[Antha]

Hello,
 I have a long-finned black skirt tetra that is about 9 years old and has dropsy. I have consulted with 2 different fish stores about the problem. The first said to put my fish in the freezer so the disease doesn?t spread to my other fish. The second person said that due to the fish?s old age it?s probably just its kidneys and other organs failing and to do salt baths until its quality of life is gone and then to euthanize it. I like the 2nd opinion better...
So my questions:
1.   I know the general idea behind salt baths but I can?t find anywhere that gives simple directions. How much salt do I use for 1 or 2 gallons of water? How long should the bath be? How often should I give the baths?
2.   How do I humanely euthanize a fish when the time comes? I?ve heard of the ?slush method? and the ?shock method? and of course the good ?ol ?bash it?s head open method?. So far the ?clove oil method? (I think that?s what it is) sounds least traumatic for the fish (and me). What is the best way to euthanize a fish?
3.   What kind of risk am I taking keeping a fish with dropsy in the aquarium with the others?
My aquarium has very good water quality and was tested at both stores and came back fine. I have 5 long-finned black skirt tetras in a 26 gallon aquarium, so it?s not overcrowded either.
*The fish has been sick for 4 days, after 2 the scales went down (no more pinecone look!) but the fish is still bloated and the fins are still tattered looking.
Sorry it was so long but thanks for any help you can give!
Antha

[Guppyguy]

Salt baths simply draw some fluids out, which shouldn't cure it because it is an internal bacterial problem. Dropsy usually isn't very contagious, but your fish should be isolated in a quarantine tank. Items can be bought to treat it, but unfortunately your fish probably won't make it unless it's recent(good news, it is!). This can be caused by kidney damage, but it is caused by many things.Your water quality is great you say though?  . The medicine or remedy you use needs to work internally. Four days ago is good, treat as quickley as possible. If i comes down to it, a hammer and napkin is the quickest way.

[Guppyguy]

Ooooh, I see what the pet store guy was saying. Like Neon Tetra Disease, I recommend clove oil method.

[Antha]

Well, I think the idea for the salt bath is that if it is kidney failure, and only kidney failure, then the kidneys are unable to get excess water out of the fish's body, causing the pineconing or dropsy. The salt bath would pull out the excess water and alleviate the bloating in the fish. I do understand that this is only treating the symptoms and not the disease itself.
My sisters cat has chronic renal (kidney) failure and has been living with it for 2 years now, so I know that animals with kidney failure can live a relatively normal life for a while. I'm not sure how easily that transfers over to fish...

My fish DOES NOT have raised scales right now, they are all flat and have been for about the last 48 hours.
If it is a bacterial infection, how easily do you think the other fish could get it? I know on some websites it says that once the ?pinecone? stage has begun, most antibacterial treatments won?t work?

Right now my water looks like this:
73 degrees F
pH 7.4
Ammonia 0ppm
NitrIte 0ppm
NitrAte 0ppm
I use API Freshwater Master Test Kit to test the water, not strips. I use API Stress Coat Fish and Tap water Conditioner with each water change (weekly 30%).

[Guppyguy]

As far as I know, the fish have the same chance as with any other cause. Here's a site I know of: http://www.fishdeals.com/fish_diseases/dropsy/
            Are there red streaks or sores?

[Guppyguy]

I realize you understand Dropsy, but it provides several places to start on treating it. I feel so helpless!

[Guppyguy]

You can use 2.5 teaspoons for 10 gallons(of epsom salts). Check out http://www.aboutfishonline.com/articles/dropsy.html for more on cures!

[Antha]

My fish looks more the the one in the picture in http://www.aboutfishonline.com/articles/dropsy.html rather than the first one. They eyes are popping out a bit, but no major sores or red streaks anywhere on the body. There is some redness around the lower (pelvic) fins where they join to the body, but not anywhere else. Any ideas on which antibiotic or medicine I should treat with? Is there a specific brand that seems to work well?

Thanks!

[Cholly]

At 9 years, he's a lot older than about 90% of his brethren will ever get. I've never had any of the smaller tetras get older than 10, usually they've been closer to 7 or 8.

Dropsy isn't a disease itself, it's a description of symptoms for the end stages of several diseases when the organs begin to fail. It probably is organ failure from old age in your fish's case.

Clove oil works best for me. A couple of drops with them in a small container will knock them out and then you can give them a few more to finish the job.

[Antha]

Ok, I'll probably give an antibacterail a shot, but if and when he gets really bad, then I'll put him down so that he can go to the big aquarium in the sky...

Thanks for all your help!