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  • Results 1 to 8 of 8

    Thread: Help- neurological symptoms

    1. #1
      Reeves is offline Junior Member
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      Exclamation Help- neurological symptoms

      I found one of my koi bobbing at the top of the pond yesterday afternoon. I brought him inside and set him up in a 10 gallon quarantine tank. I cannot find anything physically wrong other than two tears in his dorsal fin and a tiny bit of fraying on the bottom of his pectoral fins though I can’t be sure he didn’t cause these himself because of his condition. His right eye may be protruding slightly but it’s difficult to determine because his left eye is seemingly stuck in a down position. He will swim in circles before settling at the top for a while, mostly vertical, and bobbing up out of the water. At times he almost seems like he’s trying to jump out.

      I treated with paracleanse (metronidazole and praziquantal) yesterday and added Neoplex today. No improvement so far, seems about the same. I’ve attached two video links, one with the calmer behavior and one where he’s circling around. I have access to other medications if recommended via my vet (he’s not an aquatics vet but works with me to treat my fish when need be).

      The pond has been well established for years and houses several other koi and goldfish, some dojo loaches, and some bullfrogs. No other inhabitants are showing signs of illness, only exception being that I found 1 bullfrog dead yesterday (in a separate small pond that does not connect to the main pond). Apparently the bullfrog had tried to eat a wasp, which was halfway down its throat and the stinger embedded in the roof of its mouth. I only mention this in case it’s relevant since there have been a ton of wasps and daubers around the pond this year due to drought conditions so the koi may also have accessed them and I don’t know whether that could be related. We’ve also had 3 fledgling birds and 1 baby skunk drown in the pond earlier this year, for whatever contamination potential there could be there.

      This fish was the last of any recent additions back in April following quarantine. All fish were routinely dewormed with praziquantal at that time (I do this twice yearly now after having had prior deaths due to flukes going into the fall/winter).

      Current parameters in the pond:

      Ammonia: 0
      Nitrite: 0
      Nitrate: 0
      pH: 8.2 (high range api), 8 (wide range api), and 8.5 (digital Hanna)
      Temp: 70.1

      We’ve had some colder nights and hot days recently but the pond temps haven’t varied in any extremes.

      Pond is about 1200 gallons.

      I appreciate any input. I’m willing to do anything I can to save him.

      https://youtu.be/JfShtSep698

      https://youtu.be/pBfhY6rYJg0

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    2. #2
      fly4koi is offline Senior Member
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      Toxic algae? Did you check the gill area to see if it has problem getting oxygen?
      The fish is small so I'm not sure if I'd call this flashing, but potentially parasites are irritating so it might be helpful to try ProForm-C + Fluke M regimen.
      Last edited by fly4koi; 09-25-2022 at 10:33 PM.

    3. #3
      kdh is offline Senior Member
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      Just a guess. Based on the swollen eye and how young koi dart around. Would say its from hitting something hard. Causing head or spinal injury.

    4. #4
      Reeves is offline Junior Member
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      I don’t think it’s toxic algae- the pond water is clear, I run a UV clarifier and all the other fish are totally fine. From what I can see, the gills appear fine, but I’ll try and get a closer look today. I do have a scope so I can try and get a scrape sample near the gills. I have anesthetic but haven’t used it yet. As a last ditch effort I may try to sedate and take a gill biopsy, but I’d rather exhaust any other options that are less invasive first.

    5. #5
      Reeves is offline Junior Member
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      Unfortunately I think this makes the most sense currently. And we do have some hawks that hang around so I’m wondering if he was spooked by that or another predator. He’s still the same today. I’m going to look into possible anti-inflammatories if there are any options for koi. Not sure what else I can do and I don’t want him to just go on suffering, but I want to give him a chance if there’s something to try.

    6. #6
      coolwon is offline Senior Member
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      I think your fish has a balance problem, created by it's lateral line going out of sync.
      Find more about Weather in Durban, ZA

    7. #7
      Reeves is offline Junior Member
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      Just an update- there was some slow gradual improvement, bobbing near the surface instead of spiraling as often, then more coordinated movements to correct balance. I had to feed with tongs for a couple weeks because he couldn’t coordinate well enough to eat efficiently on his own. I did question repeatedly if we’d topped out on progress, but he continued to make improvements. He’s almost completely back to normal now. Still does some quick ‘twitches’ in place (not flashing, doesn’t seem to affect him at all). He can swim normally with some subtle abnormalities, but no significant balance issues, no circling or swimming upside down, only bobs a bit near the surface when anticipating food. I just moved him yesterday out to my heated 150 gallon Rubbermaid trough which is next to my main pond and under a greenhouse.

    8. #8
      kdh is offline Senior Member
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      great news. But why did you move him?

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