January 2008

21 inch male koi - indoor 3600 tank - winter temp at 10C/50F

Not sure why this doitsu ochiba's tail tube became inflamed,.. we did a scrape and scope but found no parasites.

Chose to treat the affected area with a salt paste - 1 part water to 3 parts salt (table salt). Paste is applied with a soft basting brush.

One week later there was noticable improvement from the first application. The koi was netted again and a second dose of salt paste reapplied.

Updated photo's need to be taken, healing has gone very well even at the low temperature.

January 2008

24 inch female koi - indoor 3600 tank - winter temp at 10C/50F

At the same time the ochiba's tail became inflamed we noticed our ginrin kohaku had a few raised scales along her lateral line and the skin was turning pink around them. Scrape and scope came up with nada...

Again we chose to apply a salt paste.

One week later a noticable difference. A second application was given.

RIGHT: She has scuffed the skin around her eye as well,... this was not topically treated with anything, just left to heal on it's own.

Updated photo's will be added shortly, healing has gone very well, no additional paste treatments were done.

Fish can be susceptible to developing ulcers if their normal defences are compromised by stress. High numbers of opportunistic bacteria, such as would be found in water with a high organic content or other diseased fish, increases the risk of infection. Ulcers can be caused by damage to the skin from parasites and/or exposure to high levels of ammonia or nitrite.
If just one fish is affected it is most likely due to a health problem specific to that individual. If several fish are affected it is quite likely that there is an environmental problem, be it water quality or parasites or both, that needs to be address and rectified.
The importance of tackling bacterial diseases such as ulcers in a systematic, thorough way can not be stressed enough. Simply applying shotgun treatments, in which a range of different medications are tried in succession, is unlikely to work and in all probability will simply make matters worse.

The most common bacterial invader is Aeromonas.
There is no single physical or behavioural sign specific for Aeromonas infections. Infected fish frequently have: small pinpoint hemorrhages at the base of the fins or on the skin, distended abdomens, and protruding eyes. Internal signs include: fluid in the abdomen, swollen liver and spleen, and the intestines are distended and fluid-filled.

April 2003 - Dozer is a Japanese female doitsu Sanke and 4 years old in this picture.

She is quite the character and near and dear to our hearts, Ian affectionately calls her "Pin-Cushion". She was given the name Dozer because she is able to take in a huge amount of food in one furious gulp! At the time of naming her we did not know she was a she... But the name sticks and suits her well.

January 2004 - she is 16inches. I assume because of the crowded conditions she came from previous to us and her initial poor health she will be a slow grower.

Dozer also changes her "spots" seasonally... her sumi comes and goes....

Carp Pox ~ Fish Pox

What do we know about Carp Pox?

It's a viral infection.
Being a virus, carp pox is not "curable". While it is unsightly this condition is not life threatening to adult fish... but may hinder good growth in young fish and could be devastating to fry who are not immuno-competant.

Carp pox is most often first noticed in the spring or fall when water temperature's are quite cool. As the weather improves and temperatures increase, in some instances the immune response of the fish may stop viral production and the wax-like growths shed. The virus is able to survive in the fish from year to year, laying dormant, so repeated outbreaks may or may not occur in the future.

Carp Pox can be highly infectious, especially at high stocking densities; external parasites may also be important in spreading the disease.

Our Experience ...

We obtained this malaysian Koi in early spring 2001. At the time this Koi showed no symptoms of Carp Pox. In late spring we noticed the waxy white droplets covering his fins. It progressively got worse over the course of the season. In the fall of that same year we brought him indoors to spend the winter in a heated quarantine tank.

As far as we know there is no known cure for Carp Pox. It can come on full force then leave - as if it were never there in the first place. It seems this condition is temperature sensitive and requires some stressor to the fish to become active. Heating into the 80*F range seems to make the virus recess while colder temps can cause it to become more severe. Mind you the opposite can also be true as there is more than one strain of Carp Pox virus. The waxy growths are, from what I've come to understand, simply dead or dying skin cells in the upper epidermal layers. We are still learning ourselves how the virus works.

In spring of 2002, after debating on whether to release this particular Koi back into the main pond, and with the heat treatment not doing very much, we decided to try and treat the growths with Tincture of Iodine. The Koi was netted and the iodine was applied onto the effected areas with a cotton swab. While we had him netted we took a sample to view under the microscope, and also to look for possible parasites. There was minimal damage to his fins that were effected and they soon healed. In June 2002 he was released back into outside pond, clear of the waxy growths. How long the virus will stay hidden we do not know, but this year, 2004, he still shows no signs of Carp Pox.

It seems everywhere you look there are Koi and goldfish with carp pox. I don't think we've been to a dealers store where we haven't noticed it on atleast one fish with the tell tail signs of wax droppings. The unfortunate part of this, because the virus can be dormant for a very long period of time, you do not know if you are purchasing a fish with carp pox....

Something that has crossed my mind is that some fish seem "immune" to the virus. I say this because Dusty has been with us for a few years and living with our other koi... most of which have never shown any sign of Carp Pox. Ian and I have discussed removing Dusty from our collection many times ~ I'm sure there are other hobbyists out there that wouldn't have given it a second thought...
Another thought is that if they have been infected with carp pox they may develop an immunity to the virus but still be carriers which can - or could - infect other fish.
Some would argue that they can not be "immune" if they've come into contact with the virus and that the virus has only been recessed into dormancy...

There is a similar virus called LYMPHOCYSTIS. This virus is also contagious and while it may at first look like Carp Pox you must take a close look as lymphocystis appears warty, and rough ~ like tiny "cauliflower" which may have a faint red/pink colour.