Vet Q&A-Fish

Hi -My 5yr old Sheltie just has his annual exam. The only problem seems to be high cholesterol of 520. He has been eating Honest Kitchen Base mix plus we add 93% fat free protein. Rocky is appears to be healthy other than panting a lot which we think is because he is a very anxious dog and he urinates about average. We plan on upping his protein to 97% fat free and adding Viva Fish Oil and retest in 2 months. Do you think a Thyroid and/or Adrenal test is necessary first?

Hello, In dogs, unlike humans, we generally don't worry about their diets with high cholesterol. High cholesterol can be associated with both hypothyroidism and adrenal disease, as well as a genetic predisposition to high cholesterol. I would recommend talking to your vet about the rest of the of blood panel and seeing if there are any other abnormalities that might point to an endocrine disorder or a genetic predisposition before changing his diet. However, some boutique, "fancier" diets are not actually balanced for canine nutrition. In particular, grain free diets have been associated with heart disease over time. I would talk to your vet about his diet and make sure it's meeting his nutritional needs before making any new changes. If you do decide to change his diet, please do so over a course of seven days so the rapid change of food does not cause stomach upset. Other signs of hypothyroidism include: increased appetite, weight gain, lesser activity levels, hair loss, and changes of the skin Other signs of adrenal disease, either Hyperadrenocorticism (Cushing's disease) or Hypoadrenocorticism (Addison's disease), can include: vomiting, diarrhea, panting, weight gain, increased thirst and urination, hair loss, and skin changes If Rocky has any of these other changes occurring, this is likely why your vet is recommending further testing to examine his endocrine health. Luckily, most endocrine diseases can be well managed over time once they are diagnosed. I hope this has been helpful! I know it's a lot of information, but I wanted to try to answer everything. Thanks for using Boop by Petco!

My fish have white fuzz all over their bodies. I have been treating them since Monday and it keeps spreading am I treating them the wrong way? Is there more I should be doing.

Maintain pristine water quality. This is the foundation of treatment. It will require partial water changes every few days and a complete cleaning of the substrate (if any) and any tank furniture. I see you have frogs, which can make treatment trickier. In tanks without amphibians or scaleless fish, plain aquarium salt (NOT table or Epsom salt) can be used at 1 tablespoon per 5 gallons of water for 14 days. You can remove the frog(s) and treat them separately if you want to use salt. The Pimafix, or Melafix also, can be used in conjunction with salt.

i travel to my village with 4 month old kitten we travel by road around 12 hours then we reached . first day kitten eat fish and all, but now from then the kitten not eat any thing and continuously vomiting and going to sit wet place so what the reason of it please help me because of there in village no veterinary doctor so what to do please help me ?

It sounds as Kitty is suffering from a gastrointestinal condition, possibly an infection. it could also be due to ingestion of a foreign body material. i would recommend taking her to the vet the first chance you get, she will need to be checked first, if the vet thinks it's a simple gastrointestinal infection she will need an anti vomiting injection, antibiotics and a special food for a few days in order to get better. if the vet thinks it is more serious she will need a blood test and possibly an ultrasound in order to find out what is wrong.

Hi, I bought 6 platy fish and a black corydora catfish about 2 weeks ago, all seem in good health bright colours and swimming round as normal they are in a 48l tank which the pet store said was a big enough tank for them all, but one of them seems to be loosing his scales or I’m afraid he may have itch but it dosent look like it I hope you can help,thanks.

It doesn't look like Ich in the images provided. Ich will appear as multiple white dots the size of salt grains on the fish. The fish will "flash" or dart about the tank and rub on objects due to itching. The fish may have an infection or the loss of scales may be due to trauma from other fish. Consider separating the affected fish into a separate tank to recover. If this is not possible, maintain pristine water quality in the main tank and consider a broad spectrum antibiotic. You can find one in the aquarium section of the local Petco. Follow label directions carefully and remove the carbon filter insert during treatment if indicated. You are likely at the maximum number of fish in the tank. As they grow, they shouldn't get bigger than 2 - 2.5 inches, and reach adulthood you may need a larger tank or you may need to separate them.

Can you give me tips on how to add fish to my arowana.

Thanks for reaching out about your arowana. These are tough fish to co-habitat in an aquarium as they tend to eat other fish and can be territorial. Introduced fish must be large enough to not appear as prey and not too timid, or will hide and not compete for food. This readily depend on how large your arowana is at present. Good luck.

I got Layla & started her on Trifexis & Fish Oil. 2 months later she scoot her hiney & I saw tapeworms. The vet gave her a Droncit injection. 1 week later her first heat cycle started & her eyes were swollen shut. I thought she caught pinkeye but it was only her lids so I gave her Benadryl & it cleared up. She started losing hair & scratching worse than before. The vet said it was demodex & gave her Apoquel Cephalexin Ivermectin & Vitamin C. It’s been a month now and she still itches bad. Help!?

Poor girl. She has been through a lot I see. If she is itching badly then she may have a food allergy. I would try her on any of the following prescription diets to start a 2-3 month food trial to see if we can resolve her itchy skin. Royal Canin derm defense, Royal Canini Rabbit and potato*, Royal Canin Ultamino. Prescription diets for skin allergies are much more reliable than over the counters b/c there is low risk of contamination of the food with other foods made in the factory, so we only recommend these when doing a food trial. In the meantime, I would suggest trying something like Cytopoint to better manage her itchy skin, which can also be used in conjunction with Apoquel. Cytopoint is an injection that your vet gives once every 4-8 weeks depending on when the itch returns and is used to treat canine allergies that have an environmental component. The swollen eye incident was likely incidental and was caused by an acute allergic reaction to something she came into contact wth. I would also consider getting her on a different flea preventative, such as SImparica. Simparica also will treat pets that have demodexx, so it is preferred for Layla to stay on this to cover all factors. I would continue the fish oils, since this is a natural skin anti-inflammatory, and also consider getting her on a medicated shampoo from your vet if she still has skin lesions. And finally, if she has an infection still present on her skin, a different antibiotic (i.e. Simplicef) should be used, or you can consider getting her skin cultured to determine exactly what antibiotic will be effective to resolve her current infection. I hope this information is helpful. If you wish to discuss her case more, please feel free to request a consultation with either myself or one of the experts here. Otherwise, best of luck to you and Layla moving forward. Take care!

My Betta fish keeps spitting out its food. I feed it "XL color granules" mixed with "color flakes" its tank mate is a molly. I heard you can get bloodworms and soak them in garlic guard and they will eat it. Is this true? Thank you. -Cristina

Thanks for reaching out about Betty. First, try the blood worms prior to soaking in garlic solution, to monitor ingestion. Garlic can be used to treat some parasitic infestations, and not sure if this is a parasitic problem. Calcium deficiencies can lead to oral boney problems, resulting in inability to swallow food. Iodine deficiencies can lead to thyroid enlargement, also making swallowing difficult. Try the different food first. If swallowing difficulty is monitored, a veterinary visit is recommended for a diagnosis and treatment. Good luck.

Hi. I recently had my nose in/near my dogs butthole and I smelled something very fishy. If I had my eyes closed I'd of thought we were at the Golden corral. There is clearly a STRONG fishy liquid coming out of his butt. Do you know what this is fish liquid is or what causes it? it's starting to stink bad. Help.

Ah! Welcome to the lovely scent of anal glands! He may have expressed them naturally during a bowel movement or if he was suddenly frightened. If he is licking or scooting, take him into the vet to have them expressed as this could be a sign that they are full. In the mean time, clean with a soapy wet wash cloth and feel free to spritz your favorite body spray or air freshener on the area. Best wishes to you and Gus!

What this disease in a upper body of red blood parrot fish between tail and near upper body reddish area shown are ? How to treat them ? This disease duration show are lumpsome 2 weeks ?

Thanks for reaching out about your fish. Dermatitis can be caused by poor water quality, bacterial infections and parasitic infestations. Checking water quality first, is the easiest. Correct any concerns. A skin scrape and microscopic examination is needed to diagnose parasites, as different parasites require different treatments. Antibiotics would be needed to treat a bacterial infection. Seek an examination with an aquatic veterinarian. Good luck.