[cozybadger]

Hi,
I have noticed a couple of my fish have, what look like, open wounds. I am assuming they are ulcers that have been further attacked by parasites of some variety. The only thing I have done so far is spray propolis on both fish but am keen to treat the fish and also the pond as a couple more have raised lumps around their undersides near the anal fin and on their flanks near the tail. Normally I would treat the pond with malachite green as a start but in September last year I put salt in the pond and now not sure what treatments I can/cannot use. Water tests suggest that ammonia, nitrites and nitrates levels are ok.
Furthermore, I am not convinced that propolis alone is enough to treat the wounds although I have not found anything on the internet to suggest otherwise.
I would appreciate any advice on the subject please.
Cheers.

[Mik Koi]

Hi CozyB sorry to hear of your troubles

I would suggest getting a scrape done on the fish to find out what the problem is as the ulcer is a secondary infection generally caused by parasites attacking 1st
it is pointless chucking chemicals in willy nilly if you don't know what you are treating

using Propolis on its own I think you will find all you are doing is sealing the bacteria in the wound rather than treating it
personally I would treat something like this as follows:
1 anesthatise the fish
2 clean the wound with Roccal wound cleaner
3 make a paste of Pottasium Permanganate and put that over the wound
4 then either a coating of propolis or Orahesive powder to cover the area and stop further infection

Do you have any form of Quarantine tank that you can isolate the infected fish ?
even better if you can raise the temp of the quarantine water to speed up healing

as a general pond cleaner I would also use VIRKON S tablets at 1 tab per 1000 gallons once a week for 2 - 3 weeks the good thing is they don't knock back your filters

hope this helps

[brettkoi]

malachite green can be used safetly with salt so can many other chemicals.a cheap effective way to clean ulcers is by using vinegar or peroxide ,then put iodine on the wound ,i have saved fish with their whole sides opened up using this method .once you have cleaned all the ulcers add melafix to your pond again safe with salt for rapid healing it is excellent.But there is obviously something causing these ulcers so test your water and get a scrape done you need to stop the cause before you can cure ,keep us all posted and good luck.

[cozybadger]

Thanks guys for the advice.
Are the Virkon S tablets ok to add to the pond with salt in it?
Would it be too much to add Virkon s and Melafix?
I will quarantine the sick fish and treat them using the advice given by both of you. I will try both methods on different fish and see what the results are. I will post which cure seems to be most effective.

[Mik Koi]

Hi again I know Virkon s and salt together are safe not so sure about melafix it should be seeing as its a herbal product but don't take my word for it

[brettkoi]

add melafix when youve finished treating all the fish,it is safe with salt and helps heal fast