# My poor Fish TB???



## O.C.D Fishies (Apr 21, 2010)

Ok so the other day I noticed one of my wild German Blue rams had a bulge on the one side of his body, looks kinda like a pimple. He is also gasping for air and not really eating. Today I noticed that one of the white clouds has an s shaped spine and is severely skinny. He is also not eating right now.
I am not sure what to do I have not medicated anything since I am not sure what it could be and I never seem to get the right meds. I have an empty 33 gallon if need be. Does anyone have any advice??? Could it be TB and how would I treat?? Is fish TB transferable to humans??? 
Thanks In advance


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## BubBleBee (May 7, 2010)

Fish TB (Mycobacterium marinum) FAQ , by Dr. Adrian Lawler

From symptom described....I'm leaning towards TB myself....If I find anything else will let you know....


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## O.C.D Fishies (Apr 21, 2010)

No one????????


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## onefishtwofish (Apr 21, 2010)

sorry to hear this candy. i have a little tetra that i got with a group of fish. i quarantined them and 1 of them is showing curvature and thinness cause he cant control where he swims so lack of food of course. has not spread to other fish so i dont think qt is needed. i keep thinking he is dead and scoop him up in my hand but he is still kicking.


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## Morainy (Apr 21, 2010)

Hi Candy

Fish TB can make humans sick, especially people with weakened immune systems, and it can spread to other fish and other tanks.

I'm so sorry to hear about your fish. The reason I didn't respond when you first posted was that I was hoping someone with actual experience with TB would step forward; I'm no expert. I think that it would be hard to say whether your two fish are affected by the same disease, though. The spinal curvature does sound like it could be TB but it could also be a deformity ... however, the fact that the fish is not eating is not a good sign. The pimple on the side of your ram could be almost anything, including a treatable infection or some kind of parasite.

Here's a website about fish diseases with photos of fish tb: Tropical Fish Disease Identification with pictures and cures.

If these were my fish, I'd put them in a hospital tank and treat them aggressively with a strong antibiotic (unless the ram's pimple looked like it was a parasite). I'd also do a very large water change in the other tank and dose it with a broad spectrum medication like Jungle Lifeguard, just in case there was a contagion in there that wasn't TB. If it is TB, I suspect that it will infect the weaker members of your fish community no matter what you do. But again -- all I know is what I've read, I have no experience with this at all!


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