What is wrong with my gourami?

[Rocksor]

If one fish is affected, you might as well treat the whole tank.

You need Seachem Metroplex and Seachem focus. The problem with adding on the pellet food is that you lose some to the water column, whereas with gel food, you lose much less of the medication. The fish has to instantly eat the food, and not 30 seconds later. It's not that much harder to make the gel food than it is to make a food pellet slurry. Plus you can use 3% epsom salt solution to deal with even more parasites (1/2 cup of distilled water and 3/4 teaspoon of epsom salt).

The simplest and most expensive way is to treat with New Life Spectrum Hex Shield. Starve the fish for a week and feed the Hex shield pellets exclusively.
Also, Metroplex doesn't treat all parasites. Levamisole HCL takes care of the ones that Metroplex and Praziquental doesn't deal with.

Paraguard is really only effective for external parasites.

[WhistlingBadger]

Hm, I might just get some of that hex shield. It isn't really all that much more expensive than buying Metroplex, Focus, and Garlic Guard...

[Boundava]

Best of luck treating the tank.

[WhistlingBadger]

Thanks, Nat. And thanks for the info, everybody, especially @Rocksor. As always, your expertise with fish diseases, meds, and chemistry is invaluable. You must tell me some time how you learned all of this...do you have a doctorate in aquatic biochemistry, or something?

I went ahead and ordered the Hex Shield .5 mm food. I expressed my reluctance to the Badgerling to spend $25 on medicine to save a $3 fish, just to see what she'd say (might as well get her accustomed to this particular challenge of fish keeping). She immediately offered to kick in half the cost from her allowance money. She really loves her Hannah fish. :)

Question: Hex Shield is invert safe, correct?

T

[Rocksor]

the only additional ingredients in Hex shield is metro, dissolved epsom salt, and garlic.