Dear Tia:

Yes, Diamox is often more effective when it is combined with a good broad-spectrum antibiotic to help prevent secondary infections. Kanamycin is one of the most effective of these, since it works well in saltwater (unlike many other antibiotics) and is absorbed readily through the skin and gills of the seahorse.

Either an open ended air bubbler or an air diffuser can be used to aerate your treatment tank, Tia.

Let me know if you need instructions regarding the best way to administer the Diamox treatments, and I will be happy to provide you with more information in that regard.

Good luck restoring your Tigertail to good health once again, Tia.

Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support

Dear Muffin:

Yes, temperature fluctuations between 74 F and 75.5 F (23,2°C to 24,2°C) over the course of the day are perfectly acceptable, in my experience.

If you are keeping tropical seahorse is such as Hippocampus kuda, Hippocampus reidi, or Hippocampus comes, or a species with an exceptionally large range which can adapt to an equally large range of temperatures, such as Hippocampus erectus, then a maximum water temperature of 75.5° F should not cause an increase in disease problems.

However, always bear in mind the following information:

In general, as a rule, all seahorses do better at the lower end of their acceptable temperature range then at the upper end of their comfort zone, particularly in the small, closed system aquariums of the home hobbyist.

As you know, heat stress is extremely debilitating for seahorses and, in my experience, it is associated with more disease problems and mortalities in the home aquarium than any other factor. There are number of reasons for this. For one thing, elevated temperatures can have a very detrimental effect on the immune system of fishes. This is because many of the enzymes and proteins involved in their immune response are extremely temperature sensitive (Olin Feuerbacher, pers. com.). Some of these protective enzymes can be denatured and inactivated by an increase of just a few degrees in water temperature (Olin Feuerbacher, pers. com.). So when seahorses are kept at temperatures above their comfort zone, their immune system is compromised and they are unable to fend off diseases they would normally shrug off.

At the same time heat stress is weakening the seahorse’s immune response, the elevated temperatures are increasing the growth rate of microbes and making disease organisms all the more deadly. Research indicates that temperature plays a major role in the regulation of virulence genes (Olin Feuerbacher, pers. com.). As the temperature increases, virulence genes are switched on, so microorganisms that are completely harmless at cooler temperatures suddenly become pathogenic once the water warms up past a certain point. Thus both the population and virulence of the pathogens are dramatically increased at higher temperatures (Olin Feuerbacher, pers. com.).

If you have not already done so, Muffin, there is a simple technique that you can use to drop the water temperature in an aquarium by at least 3°F-5°F without the use of a chiller: either remove the cover or hood altogether, if possible, or at least keep the cover tilted open as far as possible. When the aquarium is tightly sealed, heat is trapped underneath the cover and the water temperature rises as a result. Removing the cover or hood, or at least cracking it open as much as possible, allows the trapped heat to escape and equalize with the ambient air temperature. It also reduces the humidity, which results in more efficient gas exchange at the air/water interface; the dissolved exigent levels are increased and the carbon dioxide levels are reduced as a result, which, in turn, helps to stabilize the aquarium pH in the proper range. If possible, you can simply remove the cover or hood altogether since there is no danger that your seahorses will jump out of the tank. If not, you may have to settle for lifting the lid part way the way you would when accessing the tank to feed the fishes, or by cracking it open.

You will find that the water temperature drops by several degrees if you can remove the cover or aquarium hood altogether, and it should drop at least 2°F-3°F even if you could only cracked the lid open. For example, this is what Ambrose, a seahorse keeper with a JBJ nano tank, reports in that regard:

“… my tank set up is a JBJ nano cube. I believe that it’s 20 in long, by 20 inch wide, and is 18 inches deep. It’s a closed top system that runs a 150 watt metal halide bulb. Heat with this tank has been an issue almost the whole time with this tank. And on the hottest days on the year the tank has seen temp as high as 82-83 degrees. I’ve found that leaving the tank lid cracked open has drastically reduced the tanks temp by 3-4 degrees. So that’s the way I’ve been leaving it lately (open top),the tank now stays at a steady 78-79 degrees constantly. That’s another trick that I only recently discovered…”

Notice that Ambrose was only able to leave the aquarium lid cracked open, but even so was able to lower the water temperature by around 4°F. That’s something that might be worth a try with your seahorse setup, Muffin.

The only drawback to this technique is that it increases the rate of evaporation so that you need to top off the tank with freshwater more frequently, but that’s merely a minor inconvenience.

One simple way to drop the water temp in your aquarium is to position a small fan so it blows across the surface of the water continually. This will lower the water temperature several degrees through the phenomenon of evaporative cooling. Most hobbyists find that small, clip-on fans that are equipped with a cord and all ready to go right off the shelf are the most convenient when they need to cool down one of my tanks, as Leslie Leddo described below:

<open quote>
Fans work great for decreasing tank temps. Small 6 to 8 inch plastic electric clip on fans are available at most home improvement centers and places like Longs or Rite Aide. They can be clipped on to the tank rim and adjusted so that the air from the fan blows across the surface of the water rippling it a bit. This works very well. I would suggest 2, one on either side of the tank.

It does increase evaporation quite a bit so you will need to top off more frequently.

HTH,

Leslie
<close quote>

However, if you try this technique, I must also caution you to observe all the usual precautions to prevent shocks and electrical accident when you are using an electric fan or any other electrical equipment on your aquarium, Muffin.

One such precaution is to install an inexpensive titanium grounding probe in your aquariums. That will protect your seahorses and other wet pets from stray voltage and should also safeguard them from electrocution in the event of a catastrophic heater failure or similar accident..

But the best way to protect you and your loved ones from electrical accidents around the fish room is to make sure all the outlets are equipped with Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters. And it’s a good idea to make sure all your electrical equipment is plugged into a surge protector as well to further protect your expensive pumps, filters, heaters, etc. from damage. Some good surge protectors, such as the Shock Busters, come with a GFCI built right into them so you can kill two birds with one stone. So when you set up your cooling fan(s) on the aquarium, be sure they’re plugged into a grounded outlet with a GFCI or a surge protector with GFCI protection.

Best of luck holding your seahorse system at the optimal temperature as economically as possible, Muffin.

Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support

Dear Red:

I am pleased to hear that you have worked out a successful treatment regimen and that the problem with the transparent slime courting is rapidly improving as a result. Well done!

Yes, I would continue with the 3% hydrogen peroxide dips and medications you mentioned since they appear to be producing good results for you. I do not see any need to experiment with the malachite green, sir, so I suggest that you avoid using it, at least for now.

Otherwise, I think the procedures you have outlined seem sensible, and I have no further recommendations in that regard, so proceed accordingly, Red.

Good luck!

Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support

Dear ebeez88:

The flesh erosion you describe is due to a fast-acting infection, a condition that is commonly known as “marine ulcer disease” but which hobbyists often simply refer to as “flesh-eating bacteria.” I am very sorry to say that the most common form of marine ulcer disease in seahorses is due to a virulent Vibrio infection that is both highly contagious and quite deadly if untreated.

Marine ulcer disease is treatable when it is caught in its early stages and you should concentrate on treating the affected seahorses, if they are not already too far gone and are still eating, with oral antibiotics using live adult brine shrimp that have been gutloaded with tetracycline antibiotics, as explained later in this message, while you keep the severely affected seahorses with open lesions quarantined in isolation well away from the others.

I believe your best hope for saving your ponies is to begin feeding them with tetracycline-gutloaded adult brine shrimp immediately. Hopefully, they are still healthy enough to eat the medicated adult brine shrimp readily.

Here is some additional information regarding marine ulcer disease to give you a better idea of the type of problem I believe you may be dealing with, and why you must begin treating the less severely affected seahorses ASAP, sir:

<Open quote>
MARINE ULCER DISEASE, A.K.A. ULCERATIVE DERMATITIS, A.K.A. HEMORRHAGIC SEPTICEMIA, A.K.A. “FLESH-EATING BACTERIA”

Marine ulcer disease is a particularly nasty type of infection that most hobbyists have come to know as “flesh-eating bacteria,” and indeed it can often be attributed to bacteria, most notably gram-negative Vibrio or Pseudomonas species (Giwojna, Nov. 2003). Vibrio in marine fish is the equivalent of the Aeromonas bacteria that plague freshwater fishes (Dixon 1999; Basleer 2000), causing external hemorrhagic ulcers (bloody lesions). Vibriosis is probably the most common bacterial infection of captive seahorses and one of the most difficult to eradicate from your system. Vibrio bacteria are motile gram-negative rods, which measure about 0.5 X 1.5 micrometers (Prescott, 2001). When grown on suitable media they appear as shiny, creamy colored colonies (Prescott, 2001).

Marine ulcer disease or hemorrhagic septicemia can manifest itself in several forms. The most common of these are the external hemorrhagic (bloody) ulcers, which appear as localized open wounds on the body (Dixon, 1999). It may be helpful to think of this condition as a form of skin rot. The first symptoms are usually small, discolored areas of skin that often become red and inflamed (Giwojna, Nov. 2003). These may become large bloody spots or lesions (the characteristic ulcers) as the disease progresses, leading to sloughing of the skin and localized swelling (Giwojna, Nov. 2003). (I have found that many times hobbyists have a tendency to dismiss these ulcers as “heater burns,” especially when they appear on the flanks or pouch of the seahorse, and to delay appropriate treatment on the basis of this misdiagnosis. Avoid this all-to-common mistake!) In severe cases, the underlying musculature also becomes infected, and the rapid tissue erosion that can result is one of the most alarming aspects of ulcer disease. At this advanced stage, all too often, the infected fish can longer be saved (Giwojna, Nov. 2003).

Badly infected fishes may develop a distended, fluid-filled abdomen due to internal bacterial infection (septicemia) of the kidneys, liver or intestinal tract (Dixon, 1999). This disrupts the normal circulation of the blood and lymph, causing fluids to accumulate in the intestine and abdominal cavity (Dixon, 1999).

The most dangerous form of hemorrhagic septicemia occurs when the bacteria spread internally and become septic, infecting the blood (Dixon, 1999). The bacteria release toxins into the bloodstream, making it the most virulent of these infections (Dixon, 1999). This insidious form of the disease does not produce the telltale external ulcers, and acute infections can kill quickly with little warning due to the lack of outward signs (Dixon, 1999). Affected fish become listless and lethargic (Dixon, 1999), which may be hard to pick up on with seahorses. Respiration is rapid and seahorses usually darken in color and go off their feed. These behavioral indicators are especially difficult to detect in seahorses due to their lazy lifestyle and habit of changing colors frequently. Seahorses may succumb to the acute form of this disease before the aquarist realizes anything is amiss, and hobbyist often ascribe such mysterious losses to Sudden Death Syndrome.

In seahorses, this disease sometimes takes the form of bilateral edema of the periorbital tissue (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p19). The eyes themselves are not affected, as in popeye or Exopthalmia; rather, the tissue around both eyes swells up. The eyes are thus unaffected but are encircled by rings of swollen tissue. Hobbyists have described this condition to me by saying that their seahorse had developed “doughnut eyes.” These characteristic doughnut eyes are often accompanied by swelling of the soft tissue around the tube snout (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p19). Some cases develop this peculiar facial edema as well as the usual skin ulcers and tissue erosion (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p19).

Hemorrhagic septicemia or marine ulcer disease can be a very stubborn and difficult infection to treat, especially when it is due to Vibrio and the disease is acute or advanced. However, if the condition is detected early and treatment is begun when the discolored patches of skin or other symptoms are first noticed, antibacterial agents are often helpful (Giwojna, Nov. 2003). The professional aquarists treat this disease aggressively, using bivalent Vibrio vaccines, immunostimulants such as a beta-glucan, and injections of antibiotics (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p19).

For the most part, such measures are beyond the grasp of we home hobbyists. We must make do by treating the affected specimens in isolation using wide spectrum antibiotics such as chloramphenicol, enrofloxin (brand name Baytril), tetracycline antibiotics (i.e., tetracycline or oxytetracycline) if and only if they can be a minister orally, gentamicin sulfate, doxycycline, kanamycin, neomycin sulfate, sulfonamide or streptomycin. In mild cases that are detected early, Furan2 or Nitrofuracin Green can sometimes also be helpful. As with other bacterial infections, lowering the water temperature during the course of treatment can help a great deal. This is your best course of action when you are confident that the problem is due to a bacterial infection, such as Pseudomonas or Vibriosis (Giwojna, Nov. 2003).

Chloramphenicol is the treatment of choice. It can be given orally or used as a bath (Prescott, 2001c). Therapeutic baths lasting 10-20 hours are administered in a chloramphenicol solution consisting of 40 mg per liter of water (Prescott, 2001c). If the seahorse is still eating, the chloramphenicol can also be bioencapsulated by gut loading feeder shrimp or ghost shrimp with flake food soaked in the antibiotic solution. Even if the affected seahorses does not eat, feeding medicated shrimp to its tankmates is a good way to help prevent this contagious disease from spreading to the healthy seahorses (Prescott, 2001c).
<Close quote>

All things considered, I would say that chloramphenicol (i.e. Chloromycetin) is the treatment of choice for marine ulcer disease (i.e., flesh-eating bacteria) and most Vibrio infections, in general. It is effective both as a bath for prolonged immersion or when administered orally. If the affected seahorse is no longer eating, then administering the chloramphenicol to the treatment tank would be a good option for you if your other seahorses develop any symptoms of this disease.

The treatment protocol for Chloramphenicol or Chloromycetin is as follows:

Chloramphenicol can be used to treat Vibriosis at 40 mg/ litre of water (which comes out to about 150 milligrams per gallon) in a bath for 10-20 hours. It is important to watch the quality of the water, and if it starts to become turbid, the water must be changed. It is best to treat in a separate tank. In stubborn cases, a series of such baths may be necessary to resolve the problem, in which case a complete water change should be performed before the medication is redosed.

Chloramphenicol can also be used as an additive to the feed, if the fish are still eating (all too often in a major infection they will refuse to eat, but this treatment may be most useful in preventing the horizontal spread of the infection). When used as an addition to the feed use 500 mg per 100 gram of feed. (In the case of seahorses, the flake food medicated with chloramphenicol in this way would first be bio-encapsulated in live feeder shrimp, which would then in turn be fed to the seahorses.)

If you do obtain the chloramphenicol, be sure to be very careful when handling it. Remember, in a few rare individuals exposure to chloramphenicol can cause a potentially fatal side effect (aplastic anemia). These are rare cases and almost always involve patients who were being treated with the medication, but I would use gloves when handling it as a precaution and if you crush up tablets of chloramphenicol, be very careful not to inhale any of the power.

Because of this side effect, which affects one in 100,000 humans, chloramphenicol is no longer available as a medication for fishes and can therefore be all but impossible for the home hobbyist to obtain.

It used to be available from National Fish Pharmaceuticals (see the following link) but no longer is, although that is still a good source for many medications that are useful in treating fish diseases:

https://store.nationalfishpharm.com/items/search/category:298

Baytril is another good antibiotic for treating ulcerative dermatitis and tail rot, but it is a prescription medication that you would need to obtain from your family Vet. It would be your next best option if you cannot obtain the chloramphenicol.

Baytril (Enrofloxacin) is a powerful new broad-spectrum antibiotic that increasingly used to treat infections of the urinary tract, skin, prostate, gastrointestinal system, liver, ears, and lungs in humans. It is affective against both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria and is widely used in aquaculture to treat marine fish. It belongs to a relatively new class of antibiotics called fluoroquinolones, which are effective against a wide variety of bacteria, and is now being used in the aquaculture industry to treat bacterial infections in valuable fish. In liquid form, enrofloxin (Baytril) can be administered either by injection at around 10mg/kg bodyweight e.o.d. or as a bath at 30ppm for 1 hour daily for 5 days.

The Baytril can also be administered orally by tube feeding it to the seahorse, which is helpful when the seahorse is not eating, but it is a stressful procedure for the seahorse. Here are the instructions for administering the Baytril orally, again courtesy of Ann at the org:

ENROFLOXACIN Oral Dosage and Preparation Instructions
Active Ingredient: Enrofloxacin
Indication: bacterial infection
Brandnames: Baytril
The following information is based on the most commonly available tablet sizes for Enrofloxacin/Baytril
available in the US and abroad and an average sized seahorse of approximately 10 grams.
Tube feed the seahorse 0.1mg of Enrofloxacin once a day for 10 days.
Day 1 – 10 of Treatment
• Crush 1/4 of a 68mg or 50mg tablet into a fine powder.
• Use a mini-blender or small hand-blender to thoroughly mix the powder with marine water. Mix 1/4 of a
68mg tablet with 85mL of marine water. Mix 1/4 of a 50mg tablet with 62.5mL of marine water.
• Fill a small syringe with 0.5mL of the solution.
• Tube feed the seahorse just as if you were force-feeding the pony to provide nutritional support.
• Throw out the unused Enrofloxacin and marine water solution. You will need to make new solution daily
because Enrofloxacin breaks down quickly in saltwater causing it to become completely ineffective by the
next day.
Important Notes:
Enrofloxacin is available only by prescription from a veterinarian.
Enrofloxacin International Version – Tablets are produced in 15mg, 50gm, 150mg, & a 2.5% injectable solution
Enrofloxacin US Version – Tablets are produced in 22.7mg, 68mg, 136mg, & a 2.27% injectable solution
If you are able to ascertain the exact weight of your seahorse you may want to adjust the dosage as
necessary to get the most benefit from the medication. In such an instance you would dose Enrofloxacin
at 0.01mg of the medication per gram of body weight.
A veterinarian who works regularly with small exotics will be familiar with the proper way to dilute
injectable Enrofloxacin solution to fit your needs.

If you do not have access to prescription medications such as chloramphenicol or enrofloxacin (Baytril), then you should consider using tetracycline or oxytetracycline instead, since they are readily available to hobbyists, but ONLY if they are administered orally. (The tetracycline antibiotics are useless in saltwater, because calcium and magnesium bind to the medications and deactivate them when the pH is 7.6 or above.) So, the only way tetracycline antibiotics can be used effectively with seahorses is to gutload feeder shrimp with the medication or, alternatively, to soak frozen Mysis in the proper concentration of the medication, and then feed the medicated Mysis to the seahorses. Obviously, this is only an option if the affected seahorse is still eating, which is often not the case.

If you can obtain live adult brine shrimp, the feeder shrimp can be gut loaded with the tetracycline antibiotics and then fed to the seahorses. In that case, the best way to administer the tetracycline would be to bioencapsulate it in live adult brine shrimp and then to feed the medicated shrimp to the ailing seahorse.

Many times the most effective way to administer antibiotics orally is by bioencapsulating or gutloading them in live shrimp, which are then fed to the seahorses. The easiest way to gutload antibiotics is to bioencapsulate them in live adult brine shrimp (Artemia spp.), as described below. The recommended dosage of antibiotic for this varies between 100-250 mg per liter or about 400-1000 mg per gallon of water. Stay within that range and you should be all right.

In the case of tetracycline, I recommend using 500 mg per gallon of freshwater for bioencapsulating the antibiotic in adult brine shrimp. Tetracycline is a photosensitive drug, so keep the container of freshwater covered to shield it from the light or in a relatively dark area of the room while you are gutloading the brine shrimp.

If the antibiotic you are using comes in tablet form, crush it into a very fine powder (you may have to use a household blender to get it fine enough) and dissolve it in freshwater at the dosage suggested above. Soak the adult shrimp in freshwater treated with the antibiotic for 15-30 minutes and then feed the medicated shrimp to your seahorses immediately. (Don’t let your pumps and filters “eat” all the brine shrimp!)

The brine shrimp are soaked in freshwater, not saltwater, because in theory the increased osmotic pressure of the freshwater helps the antibiotic solution move into their bodies via osmosis. But in fact nobody knows for sure whether the antibiotic is diffusing into the brine shrimp or they are ingesting it in very fine particles (brine shrimp are filter feeders and will take in whatever is suspended in the water with them) or whether the brine shrimp merely become coated with the antibiotic while they are soaking in it. But that’s not important — all that really matters is that gut-loading adult brine shrimp with medications this way is effective.

The antibiotics I would recommend for gutloading in your case are tetracycline or oxytetracycline. Tetracycline is widely available for aquarium use, so you should easily be able to get a product at your LFS in which the primary ingredient is tetracycline, such as Maracyn-TC by Mardel Labs or Tetracycline MS by Fishvet. These products generally include 250 mg capsules or tablets of tetracycline, or packets of 500 mg tetracycline powder, which would make it easy for you to determine the right amount to add to 1 gallon of freshwater in which to soak your brine shrimp to gutload them with the antibiotic. (Just add two of the 250 mg capsules or crushed up tablets — i.e., 500 mg worth — of the tetracycline to a gallon of water.) Or in the case of the Tetracycline MS, use one 500 mg packet per gallon of freshwater.

Although tetracycline and oxytetracycline generally work very well when administered orally, they are all but useless when used as bath treatments for marine fish. This is because the calcium and magnesium in hard water or saltwater bind to tetracycline and oxytetracycline, rendering them inactive (Yanong, US Dept. of Agriculture). In addition, tetracycline and oxytetracycline are photosensitive drugs and will decompose when exposed to light. So these drugs are very useful for seahorses when they are administered via bioencapsulation, but they are utterly ineffective when added to the water in a saltwater aquarium are hospital tank (Yanong, USDA). This is another reason why you must soak the live adult brine shrimp in freshwater when gutloading them with tetracycline or oxytetracycline.

Gutloading the adult brine shrimp in freshwater has several advantages. First of all, it disinfects the brine shrimp (the osmotic shock in going from concentrated saltwater to freshwater will kill off any protozoan parasites the brine shrimp may have been carrying). Secondly, the freshwater increases the effectiveness of the gutloading process by allowing some of the medication to enter the body of the brine shrimp via osmosis. And gutloading the adult brine shrimp in freshwater saves the hobbyist from having to mix up fresh saltwater every day in order to medicate the adult Artemia. Just use dechlorinated/detoxified freshwater as described above, and everything should go smoothly. But the most important reason that you gutload the adult brine shrimp in freshwater when you are using tetracycline or oxytetracycline is that these medications will be deactivated in saltwater and rendered useless if you attempted to bioencapsulate the medication in adult brine shrimp that are in saltwater.

I would feed your seahorses their fill of adult brine shrimp gutloaded with tetracycline once a day for 7-10 days. Gutload a new portion of the adult brine shrimp each day for the seahorses’ first feeding of the day when they are the most hungry. So that would be a total of 7-10 feedings, one per day, using adult brine shrimp gutloaded with the tetracycline. Give the seahorses a second feeding of frozen Mysis enriched with Vibrance later in the day. The Vibrance includes beta glucan as an active ingredient, which is in an immune stimulant that will help the seahorses to fight off any infections.

It is impossible to determine precisely what dosage of medication each individual fish ingests when gutloading, but the tetracycline antibiotics are very safe and you really cannot overdose a seahorse using this method of treatment. Feeding each seahorse its fill of shrimp gut-loaded with tetracycline for 7-10 days assures that they receive an effective dose of the medication. As long as each seahorse is getting its share of the medicated brine shrimp every day during the treatment period, you needn’t be concerned if one of the ponies is eating more than the others.

If the seahorse is not eating, you can therefore not administer the antibiotics orally, consider treating the pony with gentamicin or a combination of doxycycline + kanamycin, as explained below. That is something you could consider, Sam, buttered is an expensive option and you may find it difficult to obtain both the doxycycline on the kanamycin sulfate in pure form at a therapeutic dosage. It is very unlikely that you will be able to obtain any chloramphenicol or Baytril (enrofloxacin), without a prescription. That means that the combination of kanamycin + doxycycline may be the best choice for you:

In short, your next best alternative may be to obtain doxycycline and kanamycin from National Fish Pharmaceuticals and use them together to form a synergistic combination of antibiotics that is often very effective in treating Vibrio infections. (DO NOT attempt to use doxycycline and kanamycin in your main tank, because they will destroy the beneficial nitrifying bacteria that carry out biological filtration, and your display tank will no longer be able to support any life, until it has been completely cycled from scratch again.)

Doxycycline hydrochloride

USE: broad spectrum antibiotic derived from oxytetracycline. Use for both gram-positive and gram-negative bacterial disorders, including fin and tail rot, septicemia, and mouth rot. Unlike tetracycline antibiotics, it will not be deactivated by the high pH levels found in marine aquaria. Works in a similar manner to chloramphenicol.

DOSAGE: add 1/4 teaspoon per 20 gallons, every 24 hours for 10 days. Do a 25% water change before each treatment.

Kanamycin sulfate

This is a potent broad-spectrum, gram+/gram- aminogylcoside antibiotic. It is wonderfully effective for aquarium use because it is one of the few antibiotics that dissolves well in saltwater and that is readily absorbed through the skin of the fish. That makes it the treatment of choice for treating many bacterial infections in seahorses. Kanamycin can be combined safely with certain other antibiotics such as doxycycline or neomycin (as well as metronidazole) to further increase its efficacy. Like other gram-negative antibiotics, it will destroy your biofiltration and should be used in a hospital tank only.

USE: gram-negative bacterial infections and resistant forms of piscine tuberculosis (mycobacteria). Works especially well in saltwater aquariums.

DOSAGE: add 1/4 teaspoon per 20 gallons. Treat every 24 hours and perform a 25% water change before each treatment. Treat for 10 days. (When treating piscine tuberculosis, treat for 30 days.)

Both the doxycycline and kanamycin can be obtained online from National Fish Pharmaceuticals at the following URL:

https://store.nationalfishpharm.com/items/search/category:298

In summation, sir, I would recommend isolating the affected seahorses and treating the rest of the seahorses (that are not already too far-gone) aggressively with antibiotics in a treatment tank. The following antibiotics have proven to be effective in treating such infections when they are detected early (I have listed them in order of preference):

Chloramphenicol (i.e., Chloromycetin)
enrofloxin (i.e., Baytril)
tetracycline or oxytetracycline (but only if they can be administered orally)
gentamicin sulfate
Doxycycline hydrochloride + kanamycin sulfate

I don’t know all fees and avionics are available in Canada or where you may be able to obtain, but perhaps a veterinarian may be able to help you in that regard.

If euthanasia should become necessary, sir, the “clove oil and tank water” technique discussed below is a perfectly painless procedure that can be performed by the home hobbyist:

<open quote>
Humane Euthanization
Article by Aquatic expert, BuddyHolly

http://www.aquariumcorner.com/euthanization.htm

Clove Oil and Tank Water Method

Buy pure clove oil. You can get it at a health food store. For a larger fish such as a goldfish, you’ll want to make sure you have enough on hand. Two ounces minimum. Put the fish in a medium to large sized mixing bowl (depending on the size of the fish) in his own water from his tank. In a small jar or or something with a lid (I use a cleaned out jelly jar – about 6 ounces) mix the clove oil with tank water. Use ? ounce for bettas, an ounce for larger fish, and have more on hand for really large fish such as goldfish, oscars, pacus, etc. Put the lid on and shake it like crazy over and over until the liquid in it is white. Then pour a little into the mixing bowl with the fish. Swirl it with your hand. The fish might fight it just a little bit and then slow down. Then pour a little more in and swirl again. He should just go to sleep and appear dead. If he doesn’t, try a little more of the clove solution, always shaking very well before an addition to the bowl. When he goes to sleep, leave him in the solution for a good 10 minutes and then put him in a small cup or ziplock baggie and put him in the freezer. Pain free death. Very humane. We should all go so easily.
<Close quote>

Good luck treating this dread affliction and saving some of your seahorses, sir. If you contact me via e-mail(petegiwojna@aol .com), I will attach an article that discusses some other possible treatment options you can consider, so that you can download the article, save it on your smart phone or computer, and read through the information as soon as possible.

I am very sorry that this has happened to your seahorses, sir. God be with you and your ailing ponies.

Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support

Dear Seabreeeeeeze:

I suspect the reason that you don’t see much discussion or concern about piscine tuberculosis in the fish community is because the bacteria that can cause it can be found in virtually all bodies of water, not merely fish tanks, and because the risk is so low. It is possible to be exposed to this bacteria by taking a dip in a swimming pool, swimming at your local beach, going fishing at your favorite lake or stream, making a trip to your local fish store or aquarium shop, are even from tap water or well water. But it is very rare to become infected following such exposure, and it even in those exceedingly uncommon cases, the symptoms are typically very mild.

For example, here is an excerpt from my new book (Complete Guide to the Greater Seahorses in the Aquarium, unpublished) that discusses mycobacteriosis in more detail:

MYCOBACTERIOSIS, A.K.A. PISCINE TUBERCULOSIS

Mycobacteriosis is also known by the following synonyms: fish tuberculosis, piscine tuberculosis, granuloma disease, swimming pool granuloma, fish tank granuloma, and acid-fast disease (Aukes, 2004; Leddo, 2002a). Like all fishes, seahorses are susceptible to Mycobacteriosis. It is not uncommon in wild-caught seahorses obtained from pet stores and is the second most commonly seen bacterial infection of syngnathids at large public aquaria after Vibriosis (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p20).

Cause:

Fish tuberculosis is caused by pathogenic Mycobacteria, of which two different species are the primary culprits: Mycobacterium marinum and Mycobacterium fortuitum (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). Unlike most bacteria the plague fish, these Mycobacteria are gram-positive, and take the form of pleomorphic rods that are acid-fast and nonmotile (Aukes, 2004). When cultured on solid media, they form cream-colored to yellowish colonies (Aukes, 2004).

Mycobacteriosis is worldwide in distribution (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). All fish species are considered susceptible to it (Aukes, 2004). Although this disease can in fact infect almost all fish, certain species are more vulnerable than others (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). The most susceptible species are freshwater tropicals such as black mollies, all gouramis, neons and other tetras, all labyrinth air breathers, and most species of the Carp family (goldfish and koi, for example), Aukes, 2004.

Mycobacteria are ubiquitous and waterborne, and the aquatic environment is considered the disease reservoir for fish tuberculosis (Aukes, 2004). Mycobacterium marinum has been cultured throughout the world from swimming pools, beaches, natural streams, estuaries, lakes, tropical fish tanks, city tap water and well water (Aukes, 2004; Leddo, 2002a). Human epidemics of granulomatous skin disease have occurred from swimming in infected water, and in fact, this mode of human infection is far more common than infection from exposure to infected fish tanks (Aukes, 2004; Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

Clinical Signs:

There is a very severe or peracute form of this disease, in which fish can simply be found dead without showing any telltale signs or symptoms (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p20), but that is quite rare. In my experience, Mycobacteriosis is a chronic disease that progresses quite slowly in aquarium fishes (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). It may take years for an infected fish to develop any symptoms of apparent illness and much longer before it becomes fatal (Aukes, 2004). The glacial progression of the disease makes it difficult to diagnose. Some early signs to look out for include lethargy, fin loss, emaciation, skin inflammation and ulceration, edema, popeye, and peritonitis (Aukes, 2004). There may be superficial skin lesions that take the form of small subdermal lumps or pus-filled nodules of granulation tissue (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p21). These are simply the outward manifestations of a systemic infection that may already involve many of the major internal organs (Bull and Mitchell, 2002, p21). In later stages, nodules may develop in muscles or skeletal structure and deform the fish. (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

As difficult as slow-moving TB may be to diagnose while the infected fish is alive, once the victim expires, postmortem examination will reveal clear, unmistakable signs of Mycobacteriosis (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). The telltale granulomas will appear as gray or white nodules in the liver, kidney, heart and/or spleen (Aukes, 2004). There is often black, necrotic tissue eating away at the internal organs, and there may also be skeletal deformities. Diagnosis is then confirmed by the presence of acid-fast bacteria in tissue sections (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

Treatment and Control:

There is no practical method for treating mycobacteriosis or granuloma disease at the hobbyist level. As discussed below, good aquarium management can prevent mycobacteria/Nocardia from becoming problematic. Prevention is the watchword for this condition.

Transmission:

The bacteria can be transmitted through the water from open ulcers, through contaminated food (including live foods such as shrimp or molly fry), via feces of infected fish, or through the consumption of infected, dead or dying fish in the tank (although the latter does not apply to seahorses), Aukes, 2004.

Contributing factors:

This disease is not highly contagious and does not seem to spread from fish to fish readily (Aukes, 2004). However, fish TB it is often associated with poorly kept or dirty tanks with poor water quality (Aukes, 2004). Chronic stress from factors such as overcrowding, malnutrition, or aggressive tankmates often plays a role as well (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

Mycobacterium, the causative organism, is believed to be ubiquitously present, making it very difficult to eliminate it entirely. However, if good aquarium maintenance and management is followed, including vacuuming of the gravel along with good filtration and regular water changes, combined with a nutritious diet and the addition of an enrichment product rich in vitamins, the problem can be minimized and eliminated as a cause of mortality (Aukes, 2004). Any dead fish should quickly be removed and disposed of properly. Diseased live fish should be isolated and treated in a hospital tank (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

Transmission to Man:

The seahorse keeper should be aware that piscine tuberculosis is one of the few forms of fish disease that is communicable to humans (Leddo, 2002a). This transmission usually manifests itself as an unsightly skin rash involving one or more granulomas on the arms of the fish-keeper (Leddo, 2002a). In severe cases, these nodules of inflamed tissue can become large and disfiguring. They can spread and be very difficult to eliminate. The granulomas often take some 2-4 weeks after exposure before manifesting themselves, so the individual is frequently unaware of how he or she contracted them and the condition very often goes undiagnosed (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). The Mycobacteria that cause the disease typically gain entry through a break in the skin such as a cut, scrape, or abrasion on the hand or arm of the aquarist (Leddo, 2002a). Although unsightly, the granulomas themselves are not a serious problem and are almost always localized and most certainly curable in healthy individuals. But for those of us whose immune systems are compromised by AIDS, kidney disease, diabetes, liver dysfunction, chemotherapy or the like, the infection can sometimes become systemic or, on rare occasions, even life threatening (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

Awareness is the appropriate response to the risk posed by fish tuberculosis. The seahorse keeper should be aware of the remote possibility of being exposed to Mycobacteria via his aquarium, and take appropriate precautions, but there is certainly no need to be overly concerned (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

The aquarist should merely remain aware of Mycobacteria and follow the usual sensible precautions. Nets, aquarium accessories and equipment, and any other items that may come in contact with the fish should be sterilized between uses to prevent cross-contamination (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). Avoid mouth-siphoning of the water in a Myco-positive tank (use a hand pump instead). Mycobacterium cannot penetrate intact skin — it only causes infection after entering through open wounds or sores, so make full use of aquarium gloves and don’t place your hands or arms in the aquarium if you have any cuts or scrapes (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). Handle sick fish carefully, dispose of deceased specimens properly, and scrub up afterwards. Do NOT dispose of dead fish by flushing them down the toilet, as this is a prime way to spread disease. Place the fish carcass in a plastic bag or wrap it in some foil and dispose of it with the solid waste of the household. And don’t feed dying fish to larger carnivorous fish, since this an excellent way to spread infection (Giwojna, Sep. 2003).

One thing hobbyists who are worried about fish TB can do to allay their concerns is to get their seahorses and live foods (crustaceans such as shrimp are known vectors for Mycobacteriosis) from a High Health facility such as Ocean Rider rather than from their local fish store (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). Seahorses at OR are routinely screened for pathogens and parasites by independent examiners from an outside agency (DVMs with the Department of Agriculture), and I know for a fact that Mycobacteriosis is one of the diseases they specifically check for (Giwojna, Sep. 2003). Thus far, multi-organ histopathology has found no granulomas and tissue sections have revealed no acid-fast bacteria — conclusive proof that Ocean Riders are free of Mycobacteria. <Close quote>

That’s the rundown on mycobacteriosis or granuloma disease, Seabreeeeeeze. Take all due precautions to protect yourself when you are working in the aquarium and to prevent any spread of the infectious organisms to nearby aquaria. And you may want to consider installing an ultraviolet sterilizer on your seahorse tank as an added precaution.

Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support

Dear Pbohus:

When a seahorse is eating well but seems to be losing weight, despite a healthy appetite, that could be an indication of internal parasites. In many such cases, these prove to be intestinal flagellates, as discussed below:

Intestinal Flagellates

Seahorses that are carrying a heavy load of internal parasites (particularly intestinal flagellates or cestodes) may lose condition and drop weight despite a hearty appetite.

Intestinal flagellates are microscopic organisms that move by propelling themselves with long tail-like flagella (Kaptur, 2004). Such flagellates can be found in both the gastrointestinal and reproductive tracts of their hosts. In low numbers they do not present a problem, but they multiply by binary fission, an efficient means of mass infestation when conditions favor them (such as when a seahorse has been weakened by chronic stress), Kaptur, 2004. When they get out of control, these parasites interfere with the seahorse’s normal digestive processes such as vitamin absorption, and it has difficulty obtaining adequate nourishment even though it may be eating well and feeding heavily (Kaptur, 2004). Suspect intestinal parasites are a work when a good eater gradually wastes away despite its hearty appetite (Giwojna, Dec. 2003). Their presence can be confirmed by examining a fecal sample under a microscope, but they can be easily diagnosed according to the more readily observed signs described below (Kaptur, 2004).

The symptoms to look for are a seahorse that is losing weight or not holding its own weightwise even though it feeds well, or alternatively, a lack of appetite accompanied by white stringy feces (Kaptur, 2004). When a seahorse stops eating aggressively and begins producing white, stringy feces instead of fecal pellets, that is a clear indication that it’s suffering from intestinal flagellates (Kaptur, 2004). Treat the affected seahorse(s) with metronidazole at the first sign of either condition (Giwojna, Dec. 2003).

Metronidazole is an antibiotic with antiprotozoal properties that is very effective in eradicating internal parasites in general and intestinal flagellates in particular (Kaptur, 2004). It is ideal for this because it is rapidly absorbed from the GI tract, has anti-inflammatory effects in the bowel, and was designed specifically to treat protozoal infections and anaerobic bacterial infections by disrupting their DNA (Kaptur, 2004).

If the seahorse is still eating, administering the metronidazole orally via gut-loaded shrimp is often extremely effective (Giwojna, Dec. 2003). Keep the seahorses on a strict diet of gut-loaded brine shrimp for 5-10 days. When administered properly, metronidazole is wonderfully effective at eliminating intestinal parasites, and there should be signs of improvement within 3 days of treatment (Kaptur, 2004). The seahorse’s appetite should pick up, and as it does, those characteristic white stringy feces will return to normal (Giwojna, Dec. 2003).

Intestinal parasites are typically transferred from their host to uninfected fishes by fecal exposure, and good tank management and hygiene can therefore go a long way towards limiting their spread (Giwojna, Dec. 2003). You don’t want seahorses eating frozen Mysis that may have become contaminated from laying on a dirty substrate (Giwojna, Dec. 2003). Using a feeding station can help prevent this as can vacuuming the substrate regularly.

Fortunately, intestinal flagellates have virtually no ability to survive outside their host’s body (Giwojna, Dec. 2003). If you detect the problem early and are diligent about cleaning the substrate while the affected seahorse is undergoing treatment in isolation, the parasites should be easily eliminated from your system and chances are good the rest of your herd will remain unaffected (Giwojna, Dec. 2003).

Gutloading simply means to fill live shrimp up with medication by feeding them food that has been soaked in the desired medication. Once the feeder shrimp are full of the medicated food — that is, their guts are loaded with it — they are immediately fed to the seahorses, which thus consume the medication along with the shrimp. It’s a neat way to trick seahorses into taking their medicine, just as our moms used to do when were little, crushing up pills in a spoonful of jelly or jam. Another term for gutloading is bioencapsulation, since the medication is neatly contained within a living organism rather than a capsule. Gutloading allows the seahorses to be treated in their main tank, where they are completely at home, surrounded by their tankmates and the rest of the herd, and is thus a very stress-free form of treatment.

There are a number of ways to gutload shrimp, but many hobbyists find it easiest to gutload adult brine shrimp with metronidazole as described below. It is impossible to determine precisely what dosage of medication each individual fish ingests when gutloading, but metronidazole is a very, very safe drug and you cannot overdose a seahorse using this method of treatment. Feeding each seahorse its fill of shrimp gut-loaded with metronidazole for 5-10 days assures that they receive an effective dose of the medication.

If live adult brine shrimp is easier for you to obtain, they can be gut-loaded or bio-encapsulated as follows. To medicate the brine shrimp, dissolve approximately 100 mg of metronidazole per liter or about 400 mg per gallon of water and soak the shrimp in the resulting freshwater solution. If the metronidazole you are using comes liquid or capsule form, you can use it as is. But if the metronidazole is in tablet form, be sure to crush it into a very fine powder (you may have to use a household blender to get it fine enough) and dissolve it in freshwater at the dosage suggested above. Soak the adult shrimp in freshwater treated with the antibiotic for 15-30 minutes and then feed the medicated shrimp to your seahorses immediately. (Don’t let your pumps and filters “eat” all the brine shrimp!)

The brine shrimp are soaked in freshwater, not saltwater, because in theory the increased osmotic pressure of the freshwater helps the antibiotic solution move into their bodies via osmosis. But in fact nobody knows for sure whether the antibiotic is diffusing into the brine shrimp or they are ingesting it in very fine particles (brine shrimp are filter feeders and will take in whatever is suspended in the water with them) or whether the brine shrimp merely become coated with the antibiotic while they are soaking in it. But that’s not important — all that really matters is that gut-loading adult brine shrimp with medications this way is effective.

Keep the seahorses on a strict diet of such medicated brine shrimp throughout the treatment period to get as much of the antibiotic into the seahorses as possible, and mix up a new batch of medicated freshwater to soak the brine shrimp in for each feeding.

Aside from fattening your skinny female up with choice live foods, which as you know can be an expensive proposition, one of the other things that you can do to build up her strength and help her to gain back some weight again is to enrich the frozen Mysis you are feeding her with Vibrance 1, which is the original lipid-rich or high-fat formulation. That’s the best way to get extra calories into her quickly, sir. Just enrich the frozen Mysis that you have been feeding to her every day with the Vibrance 1 beforehand, and she will be getting a lot of high-energy fat calories in every mouthful.

In short, switching to the high-fat Vibrance formulation (i.e., Vibrance One) temporarily should really help put some weight on your skinny female. The original Vibrance (Vibrance One) is a lipid-rich formula including beta-glucan, the proper balance of long chain fatty acids (DHA and EPA) derived from natural schizochytrium algae, and color-enhancing carotenoids, all combined with just the right amount of vitamins, minerals and water-soluble stabilized vitamin C in the proper proportions to further enhance the nutritional profile of the protein-rich frozen Mysis. Studies indicate the DHA it includes is essential for high survivability, nerve development, stress management, and proper reproduction. Switching from Vibrance II to Vibrance 1 may be all that’s necessary to build up your underweight female’s strength and get her back in top condition again.

If you want to send me a photo or short video of your female so that I can better assess her condition, I would be very happy to do so. Just send the pictures or video clip as an attachment to an e-mail and send it to the following address:

[email protected]

Best wishes with all your fishes, Pbohus!

Respectfully,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support

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Dear Stacie:

Tropical seahorses such as your Hippocampus kuda typically brighten or lighten in coloration during their various social interactions. So, the basic coloration a seahorse assumes is often a reflection of its emotional state: when excited, seahorses typically brighten in coloration, reflecting a state of high arousal. On the other hand, fear, anxiety and distress are generally accompanied by dark, somber hues.

Seahorses will typically brighten during social interactions, such as their courtship displays, morning greeting rituals, and mating attempts. Likewise, when competing for mates, seahorses may go through characteristic color changes during their confrontations and competitions.

It sounds like that may be what is happening with your male kudas who have turned a bright white and become more aggressive when interacting with one another, Stacie. If one of them is actually a female, the bright coloration they have adopted is associated with courtship and pair formation.

On the other hand, if the trio of survivors are all males, then the change in their coloration and behavior is likely due to the following:

‹open quote›
In a same-sex environment, it is not unusual for eager stallions (or fillies) to play around and practice their courtship moves with one another. That’s just an indication of how strong the mating instinct can be in Hippocampus.

It’s not at all uncommon to see same-sex courting behavior or even homosexual mating attempts in seahorses under certain circumstances. The genetic imperative to reproduce is very strong in seahorses. For example, solitary males often go through the motions of courtship when there are no other seahorses present in their aquarium (Abbott, 2003). They may court their own reflection and sometimes even direct their courtship displays toward their keepers (Abbott, 2003). If no females are present, over-stimulated stallions will sometimes soothe themselves by basking in the air stream from an airstone, content with the tactile stimulation provided by the gentle barrage of bubbles. They may even flirt with inanimate objects. If all else fails, a hitching post may actually suffice as a suitable surrogate when no better alternative is available (Abbott, 2003)!

Same-sex courting displays (both male and female) are also common when no member of the opposite sex is present. Under such circumstances, these passionate ponies are not picky about their partners — males will dance with other stallions and frustrated females will sometimes flirt with other fillies (Abbott, 2003)!

Captive-bred seahorses are far more social and gregarious than their wild conspecifics, so it’s not surprising that cultured seahorses are particularly irrepressible in that regard. They seem to court constantly and the urge to procreate dominates their lives. If given a choice, they are apt to change partners often, and courtship, flirting and dancing are the activities that consume their days. Long before they are sexually mature, juvenile males and females may spend hours dancing with one another, just horsing around, practicing their moves and perfecting their technique for the real thing to come. Likewise, mature males often compete actively and aggressively with one another through harmless pouch displays and tail-wrestling tug-o-wars whether or not there is a female nearby to appreciate their efforts.
‹close quote›

In short, Stacie, what you are witnessing is pretty normal behavior for male seahorses in a same-sex environment, and is generally completely harmless and nothing to be concerned about.

All my condolences on the loss of your female, and best of luck with the rowdy males.

Respectively,
Pete Giwojna, Ocean Rider Tech Support