# A caution for potential clown loach buyers!!



## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

Just wanted to caution potential clown loach buyers that it seems like many LFS are importing clown loaches in with skinny disease. Its actually a parasite thats in the fish possibly due to transport(?) or some sort of harsh condition.

About two months or so ago i purchased a batch of skinny clown loaches from a LFS. Sizes varied from 2.5"- 4"
At first i thought they were just skinny from not eating. Maybe if i did frequent water changes and feed them with high quality food they would plump back up.

I've never heard of this disease and all of a sudden i started losing anywhere from 1-3 loaches per day despite they were all eating. Till this day i have lost about 9 of them!  
I've literally seen the 3.5" ones waste away to the point bones were showing. These are supposed to be a plump fish!

Next time youre in a LFS looking for clown loaches, pay attention to a bone prominence slightly behind the eye. I call it the "skull bone". If its showing, DONT BUY!
I started paying attention to this bone prominence, and a lot of LFS lately have clown loaches with this issue. Not every loach in the tank will display this, but most will.

Apparently it can be treated with levamisole and melafix.
I tried melafix as i levamisole was hard to find.
I think melafix was keeping them alive, but once i stopped dosing it, thats when they started deteriorating. I was dosing melafix for roughly 5 weeks. 1 bottle per week.

I wasnt sure what this disease was at first as ive been keeping clown loaches for awhile, and some of my bigger 7" ones are in the same tank with the skinnies. My previously bought loaches were not affected, thank GOD, so its not contagious to the best of my knowledge. Only ones dying are the newer purchased ones despite living together in the same tank.

Im just pissed off right now! Im not blaming the LFS for bringing in these clowns as they dont have control over the packaging of the fish and what not. I'm pissed because these are more or less expensive fish and i've lost 9 to date! I still have 3 more thats not looking good. Im guessing another 2 days till they die. If you know clowns, the sizes i paid for them at any LFS range from $18-$35 each!

To iterate again, the juvie clown loaches found in LFS lately with the bone prominence behind the eye will likely die. They have a parasite in them thats literally eating away at them. They are active and will eat, but they will not gain weight. The parasite will keep attacking them until theyre too weak to fight it off. Looking from their underside aswell, the back half of the body is also very skinny.

Not my pic, but this is the bony prominence im talking about. Slightly above and behind the eye: http://www.loaches.com/articles/images/chronic-wasting-syndrome/chefkieth_skinny_01.jpg

Maybe these LFS are all using the same supplier, but i sure hope that they stop coming in with this disease! Good luck!


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## knucklehead (Dec 27, 2013)

I don't have clown loaches but I did previously planned on getting them before. Thanks for sharing this info!


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## cpat83 (Sep 1, 2015)

How long are they living for?

I bought a pair around new years, one died within a week, and it was replaced with 2 more. SO I have 1 about 6 weeks old (to me) and 2 about 4 weeks old (to me).... One of which looks "skinny" compared to the others but I don't know....they always seem to be grazing.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

The only solid info i have is paying attention to that bony prominence, like the one in that picture i posted. That for me has been a good indicator of this disease.
I remember buying tiny clowns in the past that were less than 1". But i've never noticed that bony mark ever before. And they have grown nicely.

Only indicators that i can see from these newer batches with the disease, as i have said, is the bony mark by the eye and really skinny back half of the body. Like anorexic skinny.

They may live a few months, but i think once the water quality changes, they may die. (this is just my observation/guess) I know clowns are sensitive in general and can develop ich. But as far as i know, they can bounce back from those quite easily. This skinny disease may take a quick toll on them once something in the water column goes wrong. 

Like ive said above, i tried Melafix and that seems to work. But it hasnt been a cure for me. More like prolonging their life. And dosing Melafix for me wasnt going to be a full time solution, so once i stopped, they seem to die.
I've also tried salt, but that also didnt seem to work.

Luckily this disease is only in these newer clowns and hadnt spread to any other clowns or fish thats in the same tank.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

If you look at the clown straight on, the head kind of looks like an upside down triangle with a really bony face. The face on a healthy one is still a bit pointy, but not to the point where it looks almost the the skull is showing. Not really sure if that makes any sense.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

other pics i found online indicating this disease. A healthy clown should be perfectly smooth without any bony indentations to the body.
The 2 pic is what mine basically looked like prior to dying. Literally skin and bones.

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c49/chefkeith/levamisole treatment/skinnyclownsnov29th-1.jpg
http://i663.photobucket.com/albums/uu355/aeonz1113/sickloach.jpg
IMG_1174.jpg Photo by garfeild2020 | Photobucket


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic (Apr 22, 2010)

Thanks for sharing. Sorry for your loss but good of you to try to figure what killed them and to post on here for us to learn from your negative experience.


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

fyi I think Pat and charles(a sponser) sell levamisole and maybe even April does.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

Anyone have experience dosing levamisole?
Ive been reading online and its pretty confusing. Plus im not great with math. lol
Dont want to kill every single one of my fish!

Its 125g tank that im treating. Probably with about 100g of water in it.

Plus since clown loaches are sensitive scaleless fish, should i only dose half the recommended dosage?


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## Longimanus (Apr 21, 2010)

Almost bought some myself recently, but decided not too as quite a few of them were extremely skinny with bone protrusion.


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## Dawna (Jul 29, 2013)

hi-revs said:


> Anyone have experience dosing levamisole?
> Ive been reading online and its pretty confusing. Plus im not great with math. lol
> Dont want to kill every single one of my fish!
> 
> ...


Its stated in canadianaquatics site that you mix 5grams of levamisole into 88ml of water (if have gravel substrate) or 100ml of water (bare tank) and for every 1mL of the solution, treats 1 gallon of water. So you need a bit more than 5 grams to treat a 125gal tank.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

Thanks. Now I gotta track down some levamisole


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

s avitrol plus from your above vetproductsdirect link. I get it in 2 ltrs seems to work well with the combination of prazi and Levamisole so covers the spectrum of worms. I use it at 1.5ml per 100ltrs and leave them in it for at least 24 hrs, then a big water change and a follow up treatment after 7 days. Just have to watch it if you have scaless fish I would half the dose. 

Info. Avitrol plus . Pigeon or pig dewormer is levimasole. 


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/archive/index.php/t-118020.html. Dosage. Read brewmaster15 response .

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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

April said:


> s avitrol plus from your above vetproductsdirect link. I get it in 2 ltrs seems to work well with the combination of prazi and Levamisole so covers the spectrum of worms. I use it at 1.5ml per 100ltrs and leave them in it for at least 24 hrs, then a big water change and a follow up treatment after 7 days. Just have to watch it if you have scaless fish I would half the dose.
> 
> Info. Avitrol plus . Pigeon or pig dewormer is levimasole.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


April, can i buy Avitrol plus from a LFS/pet store, or does it have to come from a vet?


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

A
Vet . Or farm supply. I'll see what I can find . 


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## April (Apr 21, 2010)

http://www.loaches.com/Members/shari2/levamisole-hydrochloride-1

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## mikebike (Sep 8, 2010)

Thanks for sharing that site/article April

It looks like a good site to follow.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

Geez, i cant believe Vets dont carry Avitrol plus, and the ones that can order it in wont sell it to me because it needs a prescription and the doctor wont write it unless he's seen my pet.


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## hi-revs (Nov 3, 2010)

Since local vets failed me and my clowns, i ordered from Avitrol Plus Bird Wormer Syrup 
No questions asked. lol. Now i just hope it works.
I'll update here once i receive it and start treating.


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## josephl (Apr 21, 2010)

I was at Aquariums West tonight(Feb 22) to pick up some Garlic Guard and they have some really nice fat 2" - 3" clown loaches. Almost bought a few until I remember what Ich magnets they were


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