RE: [RML] Fish TB?

Kevin Sheller (kevmo at aplants.com)
Fri, 6 May 2005 13:24:19 -0500

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Alright,

So I'm starting to do some research on fish TB. It's ridiculous. Out of the
four articles I've read so far, most of them completely contradict each
other in a long list of ways.

1. Does it affect humans?
2. Does it affect most (25% +) of fish in the pet industry?
3. Does it require a complete tear-down and reset?
4. Can it be treated?

Here are some articles and interesting notes on each:

This one says TB is rampant (25% of all the fish in the hobby have it) and
doesn't really spread very easily -- It also says humans are completely
immune.
http://www.4qd.org/Aqua/disease/tb.html

This one says TB can be transferred to humans as a rash. It also says it can
be an outbreak and that particular antibiotics can work
http://groups.msn.com/FishHealth/fishtb.msnw

This one says after you get TB you should tear down your aquarium and start
over. It also has an attached article that describes a guy's experience with
the rash form of the disease and near-amputation of his finger.
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Keefer_FishTB.html

This one says that if you have a fish with TB all you have to do is remove
it so it doesn't spread. It does suggest that if an outbreak occurs then you
need to do a complete tear-down.
http://www.adelaideaquariums.com.au/faqs/disease/showdis.asp?DiseaseID=9

So there are some similarities. There are some inconsistencies. What have
you folks found to be true?

Kevmo
-----Original Message-----
From: r_m_l at yahoogroups.com [r_m_l at yahoogroups.com]On Behalf Of
Scott Davis
Sent: Thursday, May 05, 2005 3:31 PM
To: r_m_l at yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [RML] Fish TB?

Hey Kevin,

Are you quarantining new fish for your tank, maybe
giving them a treatment for external and internal
parasites? That is probably one of those do as I say,
not as I do things until recently. However, I indeed
did quarantine some rainbows I bought at a club
auction a few years ago and they showed evidence of TB
and lived out their lives in isolation. More recently,
quarantined some stuff (not rainbowfish) that followed
me home from a national and had an awful time with
something they brought with them.

I would guess way over 50% of all commercial purchases
are coming in exposed to something, maybe many things.
If they weren't exposed at the farm, those central
flow through systems at some wholesalers do us no
favors. The illnesses you describe are all too common
with pet shop stuff, not a common with rainbows
purchased through club channels.

In some hobbyist circles, it seems that people are
observing maladies with some resistance to
antibiotics. That makes Bruce Hansen's dictum about
leaving them in quarantine to see if they die or not
seem more and more necessary.

All the best!
Scott

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Alright,
 
 So I'm starting to do some research on fish TB. It's ridiculous. Out of the four articles I've read so far, most of them completely contradict each other in a long list of ways.
 
 1. Does it affect humans?
 2. Does it affect most (25% +) of fish in the pet industry?
 3. Does it require a complete tear-down and reset?
 4. Can it be treated?
 
 Here are some articles and interesting notes on each:
 
This one says TB is rampant (25% of all the fish in the hobby have it) and doesn't really spread very easily -- It also says humans are completely immune.
http://www.4qd.org/Aqua/disease/tb.html
 
This one says TB can be transferred to humans as a rash. It also says it can be an outbreak and that particular antibiotics can work
http://groups.msn.com/FishHealth/fishtb.msnw
 
This one says after you get TB you should tear down your aquarium and start over. It also has an attached article that describes a guy's experience with the rash form of the disease and near-amputation of his finger.
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Keefer_FishTB.html
 
This one says that if you have a fish with TB all you have to do is remove it so it doesn't spread. It does suggest that if an outbreak occurs then you need to do a complete tear-down.
http://www.adelaideaquariums.com.au/faqs/disease/showdis.asp?DiseaseID=9
 
So there are some similarities. There are some inconsistencies. What have you folks found to be true?
 
Kevmo
-----Original Message-----
From: r_m_l at yahoogroups.com On Behalf Of Scott Davis
Sent: Thursday, May 05, 2005 3:31 PM
To: r_m_l at yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [RML] Fish TB?

Hey Kevin,

Are you quarantining new fish for your tank, maybe
giving them a treatment for external and internal
parasites? That is probably one of those do as I say,
not as I do things until recently. However, I indeed
did quarantine some rainbows I bought at a club
auction a few years ago and they showed evidence of TB
and lived out their lives in isolation. More recently,
quarantined some stuff (not rainbowfish) that followed
me home from a national and had an awful time with
something they brought with them.

I would guess way over 50% of all commercial purchases
are coming in exposed to something, maybe many things.
If they weren't exposed at the farm, those central
flow through systems at some wholesalers do us no
favors. The illnesses you describe are all too common
with pet shop stuff, not a common with rainbows
purchased through club channels.

In some hobbyist circles, it seems that people are
observing maladies with some resistance to
antibiotics. That makes Bruce Hansen's dictum about
leaving them in quarantine to see if they die or not
seem more and more necessary.

All the best!
Scott
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