Dear Nick:
Okay, that’s a positive development that he has settled down and doesn’t seem so irritated right now. But I do think he would still benefit from the methylene blue, especially since your tank parameters are showing a bit of an ammonia spike right now (yes, I would hold off on the freshwater bath for now — that’s a good first aid measure for ich but it’s not helpful for this type of problem).
Nope, methylene blue will devastate your biological filtration so you don’t want to use it in your main tank. In a pinch, a clean 5-gallon plastic bucket (new and unused, NOT an old scrub bucket!) can serve as a makeshift hospital tank. It should be aerated and equipped with hitching posts and perhaps a heater, but nothing else. This makes a useful substitute when the Quarantine Tank is occupied or in use and a seahorse needs treatment.
Stay on top of water quality in the hospital tank/bucket with water changes as often as needed during treatment, and redose with the medication according to directions after each water change.
The methylene blue can be administered as either a very brief (10 second) dip at a concentrated dosage or for prolonged immersion (3-5 days) at a reduced dosage. If you go to the following link, it tells you how to administer it either way using the Kordon brand of methylene blue: http://www.novalek.com/kpd28.htmhttp://www.novalek.com/kpd28.htm
In cases of ammonia poisoning/nitrite toxicity, the prolonged immersion for three to five days is likely to be more helpful.
Judging from the change in your aquarium parameters since your seahorses arrived, it appears that the increased bioload from adding four new seahorses together has caused an ammonia spike, which may be followed by a bigger spike in your nitrite levels shortly. A water change is recommended to get your ammonia back down to zero as soon as possible, and treatment with methylene blue for the ailing SunFire is advisable under these circumstances.
Be sure to observe the following precautions when handling your seahorses for the daily bath, Pam:
Handling Seahorses
I do not like to use an aquarium net to transfer or manipulate seahorses, since their delicate fins and snouts can become entangled in the netting all too easily. I much prefer to transfer the seahorses by hand. Simply wet your hand and fingers (to avoid removing any of the seahorse’s protective slime coat) and scoop the seahorses in your hand. Allow them to curl their tail around your fingers and carefully cup their bodies in your hand to support them while you lift them out of the water. When you gently immerse your hand in the destination tank, the seahorse will release its grip and swim away as though nothing out of the ordinary has happened.
Composed of solid muscle and endowed with extraordinary skeletal support, the prehensile tail is amazingly strong. Indeed, large specimens have a grip like an anaconda, and when a 12-inch ingens or abdominalis wraps its tail around your hand and tightens its hold, its vise-like grip is powerful enough to leave you counting your fingers afterwards!
In fact, it can be quite difficult to remove an attached seahorse from its holdfast without injuring it in the process. Never attempt to forcibly detach a seahorse from its hitching post! When it feels threatened, it’s instinct is to clamp down and hold on all the tighter. When you must dislodge a seahorse from its resting place for any reason, it’s best to use the tickle technique instead. Gently tickling the underside of the tail where it’s wrapped around the object will usually induce the seahorse to release its grip (Abbott, 2003). They don’t seem to like that at all, and will quickly let go to move away to another spot. Once they are swimming, they are easy to handle.
Be sure to observe the following precautions when handling your seahorses for his treatments, Nick:
Handling Seahorses
I do not like to use an aquarium net to transfer or manipulate seahorses, since their delicate fins and snouts can become entangled in the netting all too easily. I much prefer to transfer the seahorses by hand. Simply wet your hand and fingers (to avoid removing any of the seahorse’s protective slime coat) and scoop the seahorses in your hand. Allow them to curl their tail around your fingers and carefully cup their bodies in your hand to support them while you lift them out of the water. When you gently immerse your hand in the destination tank, the seahorse will release its grip and swim away as though nothing out of the ordinary has happened.
Composed of solid muscle and endowed with extraordinary skeletal support, the prehensile tail is amazingly strong. Indeed, large specimens have a grip like an anaconda, and when a 12-inch ingens or abdominalis wraps its tail around your hand and tightens its hold, its vise-like grip is powerful enough to leave you counting your fingers afterwards!
In fact, it can be quite difficult to remove an attached seahorse from its holdfast without injuring it in the process. Never attempt to forcibly detach a seahorse from its hitching post! When it feels threatened, it’s instinct is to clamp down and hold on all the tighter. When you must dislodge a seahorse from its resting place for any reason, it’s best to use the tickle technique instead. Gently tickling the underside of the tail where it’s wrapped around the object will usually induce the seahorse to release its grip (Abbott, 2003). They don’t seem to like that at all, and will quickly let go to move away to another spot. Once they are swimming, they are easy to handle.
Yes, please do e-mail a photograph of the ailing seahorse to me at the following address: [email protected]
A picture will be very helpful in assessing your seahorse’s condition and determining the best course of treatment.
Best of luck with your SunFires, Nick!
Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna
Ocean Rider, Inc. is an Organic Hawaiian-Based Seahorse Aqua-Farm & Aquarium that Follows Strict Good Farming Practices in Raising Seahorses and Other Aquatic Life.
