# Strange platy wasting away



## seaecho (Jan 31, 2012)

My little Blue Moon platy that I've had for nearly a month now is very strange. I'm stumped. She has always stayed a bit away from the other fish, and often would go off by herself, and then just appear again when ready to come out. Rather eccentric, lol. 

She was in a 55 gallon cycled tank, not overstocked. She's always had an opaque appearance to her, for lack of another word, almost like she has a film over her body. Not like fungus or anything, but sort of milky, and I suspect its her natural color. I noticed when I would go to feed the other fish, they learned quickly to come to my hand to be handfed. She never seemed to learn to do that. She'd stay on the opposite side of the tank, and then it was like it would suddenly dawn on her that the others were being fed, and she'd come over. This was after the others were nearly done eating.

I've never seen her eat much more than a few bites, even though I always made sure to put food as close to her as possible. She almost acts as if she's blind. Just lets the food float on by. She doesn't react when I put my hand up to the glass like the others do (they come to me). Its as if she's in her own little world. However, her fins are never clamped and she doesn't shimmy.

Well, I accepted her for what she was, as she never acted sick. Not overtly anyway. Just quiet and shy, and I thought that was just her personality. 
Well, she's been eating less and less for days, and now she doesn't seem to be eating at all. I viewed her from above, and she is VERY thin, starting to look hollowed in. That is what happened to my milk platy before she died. Never found out what was wrong with her. Other than a Dalmation Molly that I lost, these are the only ones I've had any problems with. 

I took her out of the 55 today and put her in a 10 gallon with 1 tsp. per gallon aquarium salt added. Temp is 80. I tried to feed her a bit of crushed up flakes, as she doesn't even notice thawed brine shrimp, and they float to the bottom. But all she did was gasp for air at the top and ignore the flakes. I have noticed this gasping at the top, off and on, for about a week. No one else does it. Just her. 

Should I medicate her, and if so, with what? Should she stay in the isolation tank with the salt? I hate to see her wasting away like this! Her 55 gallon tank had 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrite and 10 Nitrates, so I can't see it being a water quality problem.


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## seaecho (Jan 31, 2012)

This morning she ate a bloodworm! I'm thrilled. Usually the food just floats around her, and she seems oblivious to it. Then after a while she will pick at the bottom, looking for food, I suppose. Well, I left an inch long bloodworm in there after trying to pass it before her many times, to no avail. Came back a little later, and she'd found the bloodworm, and was in the process of eating it. Took her almost 10 minutes to get it all down, but she did! Gosh, my balloon Mollies will eat a bloodworm in one gulp! So maybe there is hope after all, if I can continue to get her to eat at least one bloodworm a day. If anyone has any suggestions, please post!


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

Try looking closely at the colour of her poop. If it is white and stringy, there is a strong chance of worms. She sounds like a parasitized fish - it's either parasites or a bacterial infection. It's moving slowly, so I suspect worms.
The whole tank would have to be treated. A drug with praziquantel is the best bet - I like a med called prazi-pro. It works when you follow the instructions on the bottle.
If you see a reddish worm hanging from the anus, then post again. 90% of the time, it will be a white tapeworm-like infestation - good news as it's easy to treat.
Bear in mind though - I haven't seen your fish so I'm taking a shot in the dark based on percentages - it's not an uncommon problem for livebearers.


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## seaecho (Jan 31, 2012)

Will it hurt any of my other fish? I have betta, other platies, balloon Mollies and cories in that tank. I'll check on her poop, but to be honest with you, she hasn't been eating enough to even see any poop. I'll keep an eye out for it now that she ate the bloodworm though. If I see white poop, I'll get the Prazi-Pro. Thank you so much! Someone on another board told me she probably had worms and was pretty much a goner. That was rather startling!


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## seaecho (Jan 31, 2012)

I did a 30% water change a little while ago. She just passed a small amount of poop. Its dark. Where do I need to go from here?


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

I wish I knew. She could have a whole range of problems, and there may be nothing you can do for her. Sometimes, things go wrong with fish.
Watch for a dusty off white sheen on her back (velvet), and other than that, with her symptoms, it becomes a matter of luck whether she rallies.


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## seaecho (Jan 31, 2012)

Should I try treating her for a bacterial infection? I feel like I'm doing nothing for her, but I realize its best not to treat an animal if you don't know what the problem is. I guess its just a "wait and see" situation? I'll continue the water changes (should it be daily?) and salt, and see how she does.


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