Necropsy near Harrisburg?

[DaveK]

I got to say, I never expected to find a fish vet that is comparatively local to me. I've book marked the page.

As to spending the money, $100 to $180 doesn't sound that bad for professional services. Look at what your own doctor charges you if you don't have insurance, typically about $75 for an office visit.

Is it worth it? Well, $180 goes a long way toward gating any high end equipment you may want or some of those expensive fish you just got to have. If you have the spare $180, I'd say that the money may be well spent, just for peace of mind. Go for it. At least then you'll know the limitations of what can be tested for, and you may get some concrete results.

[FreedPenguin]

I just happened to stumble upon this thread and I must say, this is interesting! One of the post mentioned your health... Can a human get sick from fish tb?

I am inclined to agree with davek, if you could spare the money, it may be worth the peace of mind after all of the time you spent researching and contemplating this.
If not, I am sure that money can be utilized in a myriad of other useful ways.

[MochaLatte]

I would say get it done. You never know if what the fish have is contagious to people, or anything else for that matter. What if there is something contagious in the water you pour out during water changes and it affects other animals (depending on what you do with the old water). Peace of mind is always best IMO.

[FlyingShawn]

Thanks for the advice everyone!

$180 is definitely a stretch for me, but for all the reasons you mentioned, I believe that it's a worthwhile expense in this case. I'll be taking the fish to him tomorrow morning and he'll email me the results along with microscope pictures later that day.

I've asked for permission to post those pictures and the diagnosis on the forum for the benefit of any other hobbyists who may have this problem.

[FlyingShawn]

Originally Posted by FreedPenguin

I just happened to stumble upon this thread and I must say, this is interesting! One of the post mentioned your health... Can a human get sick from fish tb?

I am inclined to agree with davek, if you could spare the money, it may be worth the peace of mind after all of the time you spent researching and contemplating this.
If not, I am sure that money can be utilized in a myriad of other useful ways.

Yes, Fish TB is transmittable to humans. You wouldn't get "normal" tuberculosis from it, rather a really bad infection, but my understanding is that it's still treated with the same drug. esteroali, the vet who posted earlier on this thread, actually had a really bad case of it a year or two ago.

I'm not aware of any other fish diseases that we can catch, but it wouldn't surprise me if there are others.

[DaveK]

Yes, there are other fish diseases that humans can catch. Here is a link (offsite) to some of them - http://www.fishlore.com/Articles/Dis...edToHumans.htm

While these can occur and we all should be careful, they are not too commonly gotten from aquarium fish. Still some can really be nasty, so I no longer put my hands and arms in the tank if I have a cut or scrape on them.

Also, don't over look fish or other livestock sold in the aquarium trade that can get you. There are more that you'd think, even in the FW hobby.

[msjinkzd]

I think its phenomenal that you are doing the diagnosis. Should you have to "nuke" and start over, let me know what you had to discard. Perhaps I can help you rebuild more affordably as a thumbs up for your willingness to find answers. I cannot make concrete promises, but often get promotional things sent to me from companies and certainly have livestock.

[FlyingShawn]

Originally Posted by DaveK

Yes, there are other fish diseases that humans can catch. Here is a link (offsite) to some of them - http://www.fishlore.com/Articles/Dis...edToHumans.htm

While these can occur and we all should be careful, they are not too commonly gotten from aquarium fish. Still some can really be nasty, so I no longer put my hands and arms in the tank if I have a cut or scrape on them.

Also, don't over look fish or other livestock sold in the aquarium trade that can get you. There are more that you'd think, even in the FW hobby.

Wow, I'd definitely never heard of most of those! Thanks for sharing that Dave.

For that last paragraph, are you referring mainly to fish that'll bite a nearby hand or something else?

[FlyingShawn]

Originally Posted by msjinkzd

I think its phenomenal that you are doing the diagnosis. Should you have to "nuke" and start over, let me know what you had to discard. Perhaps I can help you rebuild more affordably as a thumbs up for your willingness to find answers. I cannot make concrete promises, but often get promotional things sent to me from companies and certainly have livestock.

Rachel, I'm absolutely floored, thank you! I hope it doesn't have to come to that, but if it does, every little bit helps. Folks, this is what makes Rachel so great to do business with: not that she can do stuff like this all the time (she has a business to run, after all), but that her attitude stems from a passion for the hobby and wanting to see others succeed in it and that's reflected in how she treats her customers.

Now, off to finish my preparations for taking them to the vet and get some sleep. With any luck, I should have results to share sometime tomorrow!

[FlyingShawn]

Bad news folks: the results are in and the vet has a very high certainty that it's mycobacterium (TB). We're going to send the samples off for the histopathology to make sure and get a more detailed analysis what exactly is going on (specifically if there are any parasitical or other bacterial infections that would be more treatable), which should take 1-3 weeks to get back.

So far, he's not recommending nuking the tank, at least not yet. We're doing research and working on some strategy ideas, but I don't have time to go into them at the moment (we're about to start boarding).

I have a lot more information to share, including pictures from the microscope (with explanations!), info about the disease, and more about the gameplan now. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to post all that info before work and it'll be a pretty late night (and busy few days ahead), but I'm going to do my best to get that posted within the next 48 hours or so.

Thanks again everyone! Stay tuned for that more-detailed update...

[ttech]

Thanks for keeping us updated.

[FlyingShawn]

Well, it took all my free time for the last couple evenings, but the update is up! In an effort to try to consolidate back down to one thread about this issue, I've decided to only post it on the original thread.

I'd like to add that my experience with Dr. Palmeiro was very positive and I'd highly recommend him if you're in the Harrisburg/Philly/Allentown area and need a fish vet.

Thanks again to all of you for your advice and insight!

Here's the direct link to the update post:
UPDATE: IT'S FISH TB. ...Help me diagnose this disease that's killing my fish: Post#49