Probable Cotton Wool Disease

kiaya611 · 11-03-2009, 07:03 PM

Hi I am new to your group and I have a 45g community tank that is moderately planted and I have recently had 6 fish and 2 Dwarf African Frogs die from what appears to be Cotton Wool Disease. In every case except 1 I have found the fish already dead surrounded by a "cottony" mass. I have only found 1 that was still alive and it had this cottony stuff mostly around the head area. Since it happened to the frogs too, I have to rule out Ick since they don't get that. I wanted to treat the whole tank since I have several other fish in there, but was worried that the treatment would kill the plants. Also, If I caught all of the fish and frogs to put them into a hospital tank, I would still have the problem of the main tank having the disease "floating around" in it waiting to take another fish.

I was hoping that you all might have some ideas on treating this situation.

The water specs are nitrates at 40 and nitrites at 0 and the pH is higher than I like it at at 8.2. The water is also very hard at gh 150 and kh 300 (well water).

this tank has been set up for about 2 months now and when I started, I added an "instant starter" product to seed the tank and reduce cycling time.

I have added Tetra Nitraban and also Kent True-pH Minus.

Other than that just water and filter changes. all of the other fish look and act healthy. In fact the fish that died, looked and acted healthy until I discovered them dead.

I would appreciate you help with this.

Thank you,

Steven

SearunSimpson · 11-03-2009, 11:49 PM

http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/di...columnaris.htm
try that?

**lauraleellbp** · 11-04-2009, 03:38 AM

Welcome to TPT!

Do you know how long the animals may have been dead before you noticed the "cottony growth"?

Have you ever noticed it on any of the live fish or frogs?

It's pretty common for decomposing dead fish to look like that, it doesn't take long for bacteria to grow around them to start breaking them down.

Your nitrates are on the high side; what's your water change regimen? I would strongly recommend that you do regular water changes rather than using products like Nitraban. I also recommend that you leave your pH alone rather than using pH changing products.

Had you started using any of those products before the animals died?

kiaya611 · 11-04-2009, 06:32 AM

Hi,

They were dead no longer than a day in most cases. There were a couple that might have been longer. I do bi-weekly water changes of about 30%. Some died before I had started using the products...that's why I got them. Then the rest died after. It is possible that the products created some of the problem. All of the other fish and frogs that are in the tank look and act fine right now. It has been suggested to use Furan II to catch any bacterial problem that may exist. I am also replacing my gravel vacuum because it has not been working well. I am hoping to get that tomorrow. That should help with the Nitrates and decomposing matter. I was also told to get them no more food that they can eat in 20 seconds and feed them more often. I was using the "2 minute rule" before.

Hopefully by doing these things, it will remedy the problem.

11-03-2009, 07:03 PM	#1 (permalink)
kiaya611 Newbie (View User Tanks) PTrader: (0/0%) Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Lebanon, OR Posts: 2	Probable Cotton Wool Disease Hi I am new to your group and I have a 45g community tank that is moderately planted and I have recently had 6 fish and 2 Dwarf African Frogs die from what appears to be Cotton Wool Disease. In every case except 1 I have found the fish already dead surrounded by a "cottony" mass. I have only found 1 that was still alive and it had this cottony stuff mostly around the head area. Since it happened to the frogs too, I have to rule out Ick since they don't get that. I wanted to treat the whole tank since I have several other fish in there, but was worried that the treatment would kill the plants. Also, If I caught all of the fish and frogs to put them into a hospital tank, I would still have the problem of the main tank having the disease "floating around" in it waiting to take another fish. I was hoping that you all might have some ideas on treating this situation. The water specs are nitrates at 40 and nitrites at 0 and the pH is higher than I like it at at 8.2. The water is also very hard at gh 150 and kh 300 (well water). this tank has been set up for about 2 months now and when I started, I added an "instant starter" product to seed the tank and reduce cycling time. I have added Tetra Nitraban and also Kent True-pH Minus. Other than that just water and filter changes. all of the other fish look and act healthy. In fact the fish that died, looked and acted healthy until I discovered them dead. I would appreciate you help with this. Thank you, Steven

11-03-2009, 11:49 PM	#2 (permalink)
SearunSimpson Planted Tank Enthusiast (View User Tanks) PTrader: (0/0%) Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Tsawwassen, BC, Canada Posts: 960	http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/di...columnaris.htm try that? __________________ "You think you have tomorrow, but when tomorrow comes it's not tomorrow; it's now- and that's all you have" - Marc Johnson Ehei-Pimpfen 276 yo!

11-04-2009, 03:38 AM	#3 (permalink)
lauraleellbp Fresh Fish Freak (View User Tanks) PTrader: (53/100%) Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Naples, Florida Posts: 11,728	Welcome to TPT! Do you know how long the animals may have been dead before you noticed the "cottony growth"? Have you ever noticed it on any of the live fish or frogs? It's pretty common for decomposing dead fish to look like that, it doesn't take long for bacteria to grow around them to start breaking them down. Your nitrates are on the high side; what's your water change regimen? I would strongly recommend that you do regular water changes rather than using products like Nitraban. I also recommend that you leave your pH alone rather than using pH changing products. Had you started using any of those products before the animals died? __________________ Laura Lee's tank Journals: At Work-10 gal Shrimpy Crypt Jungle, 29 gal Planted Tetra Tank (in progress), At Home- 46 gal Low Tech Planted (in progress), 90 gal New World Community August 2009 Fishing trip in the Amazon; my Journal of 10 days in Bolivia along the Rio San Martin (in progress)

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11-04-2009, 06:32 AM	#4 (permalink)
kiaya611 Newbie (View User Tanks) PTrader: (0/0%) Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Lebanon, OR Posts: 2	Hi, They were dead no longer than a day in most cases. There were a couple that might have been longer. I do bi-weekly water changes of about 30%. Some died before I had started using the products...that's why I got them. Then the rest died after. It is possible that the products created some of the problem. All of the other fish and frogs that are in the tank look and act fine right now. It has been suggested to use Furan II to catch any bacterial problem that may exist. I am also replacing my gravel vacuum because it has not been working well. I am hoping to get that tomorrow. That should help with the Nitrates and decomposing matter. I was also told to get them no more food that they can eat in 20 seconds and feed them more often. I was using the "2 minute rule" before. Hopefully by doing these things, it will remedy the problem.

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