Cory sterbai covered in white layer

[KaedeGwen]

Guys, please help as much as u can. Thanks in advance.

Here's a photo of my cory, the symptoms happened a week plus ago after I clean the filter as usual. After seeing such white patches appeared, I changed the filter medium and pour a little BT-9 in to help bacteria growth.

I can't figure out what is this and it happened overnight.
The tank is running more than 6 months and their diet seems to be reduced a lot before the outbreak. Water change is done once a week. No casualty in past 6 months and nothing was added during past 6 months.

[KaedeGwen]

The white flakes seems to come off upon slightly disturb of cory by a little scrapping..

[David]

Looks like a fungus infection. Is this happening to just one individual?

Check your water perimeter for NH and NO. Check your PH level as well.

Did you wash your filter with de-chlorinated water?

Next take a chopstick and use it to poke deep into the substrate. Observe if there are bubbles coming out of it. Does it smell like rotten eggs,

Is your substrate Cory safe? You cannot use rough or sharp sand as Corys are playful and the do her bacteria infection and either lose their barbs or they bodies injured and damages their slime coat.

Do you have aquatic salt? Search the Internet. There is a site for the dosage.

[KaedeGwen]

I wash my filter with old tank water and the sand is very thin layer only, so no bubble is trapped.
It's cory sand, so it's safe I guess and very very fine. As for water parameter, I will test it in a while.

[David]

Still poke the gravel

[KaedeGwen]

It's being stirred already but nothing came out..

[David]

My worry is Hydrogen Sulphide build up. Nevermind how much water have you changed in terms of percentage?

[David]

Check your water anyway for what I have mentioned. Go to LFS near you with the picture you posted. I am quite certain it's fungus infection.

Check if they have anti fungus. If they don't have that get aquarium salt. Check the net for dosage.

Your tank is not a planted tank?

[KaedeGwen]

I change 50% of water for the past 6 Months on weekly basis, currently I am using aquarium salt to treat the whole tank.. No, it's not planted. I have a friend saying its fungus too..

Any idea what medication is safe for cory that is available in our market?

[David]

Sera and Seachem has if my memory serves me right.

[Atham]

Is the tail or fin rotting? Looks like it, but it not clear. Is a red tint at he grill normal? Have your quarantined for treatment. Bacteria infection like white spot or cotton-wool can be contagious.

[KaedeGwen]

The one in the photo didn't survive the night despite lots of white flakes came off after adding salt to the whole tank.. I have another with slightly white patch on the back cleared off and I moved it to another container to quarantine it as the tank is now filled with all the white flakes of the highly infected dead fish. Watch it died by visiting it every half an hour throughout the night.. see the white flakes coming off was a happy sight until it starts to lose energy and lie on sides. I will then use a disposable stick to help it on its belly again.. Until it was not breathing and stiff..

Now hope the one surviving can clear off the infection... they are very dear to me as they were my first fishes I got when I started this hobby 1 and half year ago.. Am really glad I have met them.. Hope they sleep peacefully now.. Total is 2 casualties out of 3 cory sterbai.. One died before I started this thread..

Question, do I discard everything I used in there? Or how do I disinfect the things in there so it won't infect my next batch of livestock? I can't soak my filter in bleach or hot water since its a submersible filter with all the motor all in water already..

[KaedeGwen]

Atham, no, the tail n fins didn't rot at all but coated by the white thing that makes it look different from usual. Upon close inspection, they still look quite complete.

[AQMS]

Hi Gwen, good to hear from you again.
Im sorry for your lost.
How big is your tank?
How many fishes are there left in the tank?
i use this if i have problem with fish diseases like white spot and fungus.
http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...ent-for-popeye

[David]

Continue to run your salt in the tank pass 21 days. Best run it to 31 days. Do you have a heater? Turn it up to 32C. Check if Cory's can take 32C.

[David]

I am sorry for your loss. You tried your best to save it. Fish illness are difficult to treat once it starts....

[KaedeGwen]

It's about 5 litre tank only due to lack if space... I know it's small for them but that's the best I can afford due to space constraint. They were originally from my 2 feet community tank until they get attacked by shrimps and other fishes by constantly picking on their back till it turned white on the back, so I took the 3 of them out and settle them in a small tank since I couldn't find a cause of it back then. It's been 6 months since then and this outbreak took 2 of them to fishy heaven..

The remaining one is currently in a holding area with only air stone and salt added, so far the white patch cleared up totally.. I guess this wasn't very seriously infected therefore could recover.. Hopefully it will be fine on its own for now after it lost 2 of its partner.

The tank they stayed in used to have a cave with moss tied on, but I removed and disinfected it after the outbreak, so the tank is just filter and sand and water now.. I can afford tear down if its the best option and discard the filter if needed, but I not sure is there a need to waste all these equipments..

No, I don't have a heater, my tank is around 29degree on average.

Still, thanks a lot for everyone's help, deeply appreciate.. Hope my last little guy will be fine from now on..

[David]

No need to tear the tank down. Just continue salt dosage pass 21 days.

After that just change the filter wool. And do a large water change. There will be still some amount is salt in the water. Does not matter.

The heater is just to increase metabolic rate for you Cory to help increase appetite and recover quicker.

If you do not have its fine.