Help me identify this...

[wowza]

I posted a message in the livebearers forum about my platy that had aborted fry and then became sickly skinny and refused to eat.

I thought it was just bad water (as the tank was only 4 weeks old) but when I went to the LFS to get another, I saw a platy with the same physical characteristics! So now I'm wondering if it is something that was brought back from the store or if it is something particular to platies.

Symptoms:
1. Refuses to eat
2. Hides all the time
3. Listless (either at top or bottom)
4. Clamped fins
5. Skinny to the point of have trouble swimming.

Physical Characteristics:
Looked fine from the LFS. Was the same size as another reg wagtail play. Then a week later, exhibited listlessness, then gave birth to dead fry. Refused to eat since then. When she died, looks as though she had gotten smaller than when she came from the store. The other platy was basically double the size. This was probably due to the fact that she basically had no belly. Looks as though her bottom side was concaved into her body.

THe LFS had a fish with a concaved belly as well. And when I asked the owner about it, he took the fish out right away and didn't say anything.

Is this some kind of genetic problem or is it a disease?

[Iggy]

Test your pH, ammonia and nitrite levels and post them so we can rule that out.

If you have a spare tank, maybe put her in it in case you have to treat her.

[Leopardess]

Hmm...definitely check your water parameters. If those aren't the problem then at least that is ruled out. The symptoms you describe fit tuberculosis pretty well....but that isn't exactly an extrememly common event. You may want to look into it just to make sure...

[wowza]

oops sorry, I forgot to post my water parameters.

Currently, they are:

Ammonia 0
Nitrite < 0.1
Nitrate ~ 10
pH ~ 7.5

However, please note that at the time that particular fish was introduced, the tank was being cycled, so the ammonia and nitrite levels were a fluctuating. At one time, the nitrite levels were at about 0.8. According to the test manual, anything over 0.3 is lethal over a long period of time.

I've read the disease database and I thought it was tuberculosis as well. I certainly hope not since this disease can wipe out an entire aquarium and I'd have to start all over again.

I've been watching my fish like a hawk and so far, everything seems to be fine. So I guess I can presume the death is related to the cycling process.

[wowza]

double posted.

[bobrob]

Platies a very hardy fish. This maybe sounds like the early stages of dropsy. In the early stages were they get thinner it is easier to cure than when they get bloated. I would treat the platy with some form of bacterial infection medicine just to be on the safe side. I just had a platy die from dropsy about a month ago. Its best to get on the case quickly because there is virtually no hope when they swell up and the scales start to protude.