Pearl With Popeye

Since I'm not very good with diseases I googled popeye and found an article by Neale Monks - he is one of the the fish experts around.

To summarise what he says:
If it's both eyes, it's usually due to poor water conditions; if it's one eye it could also be injury.
Popeye is difficult to treat because there are three problems. Damage to the cornea, opportunistic bacterial infection (ie an infection that gets in to somewhere already damaged) and fluid behing the eyeball.
Cure: damage to the cornea - that will heal by itself in time if the water is kept extra clean. Swelling behind the eye - extra clean water, good diet, epsom salt baths in a separate tank (1 to 3 teaspoons per 5 gallons/20 litres). Treatment with medication used to treat finrot.
But if it really gets hold, it would need antibiotics, a problem for those of us in the UK.
Severe damage may never heal and the fish might lose the eye, but one-eyed fish can live quite happily in an aquarium.


Sorry I can't be any more help. I would try Neale's suggestions and see what happens.

It does help knowing who to believe when googling  I know Neale Monks' repuation so if I can find something by him, that's the one I go with.

Do you have a quarantine tank you could use for treating the affected fish? If not, I'd wait a while and see how the fish fares before treating the whole tank. In the meantime, keep up with extra water changes as Neale did stress extra clean water. What do you normally feed? He also mentioned a good diet, so if you usually stick with one kind of flake, maybe get a small tub of another flake or microgranules or something. Not sinking food though as danios feed upper and mid level don't they? Just something for a bit of variety. Of course if you already do this, ignore that last bit 

Hi Sue,

Just a quick update, Pearl's eye has now got really swollen and not looking good.

Doing as advised clean water but there was no improvement with the eye and it was just staying the same but she was swimming and eating as normal and did'nt appear to be causing her too much pain.  Afraid in the last day or so it has become more swollen, now time it's to use medication but I'm dreading it incase it causes her pain to the eye. 

I now you mentioned before to use Fintrot med - can you recommend a good one to use? (I have Interpet Anti Internal Bacteria).

Thank You
Carol

Please can anyone advise of a good website to use to purchase medication for fish?

I have ordered Myxazin twice now from 2 different websites and both have advised they cannot get hold of it due to manufacture no longer making it.  Anyone else heard of this too?

Im still trying to help my fish with Popeye! Not had much success with the other med I have tried. 

If anyone can recommend a med you have used and worked - I would be really grateful.

Thanks Carol

One of my not-quite-local fish shops sells it, and they sell it on-line. You could give them a try and see what they say
http://www.chiltonaquatics.co.uk/index-2.html
the home page gives a phone number and their stock list is on aquarist classifieds for on-line purchasing
http://www.aquarist-classifieds.co.uk/php/detail62_79815.php
Waterlife products are down towards the bottom of the page after the fish, seachem and esha products.

Hi sorry i missed this, cant remeber why but i was reading about this the other day. You probably no but the pop eye is a symptomrather than a ailment, its a build up of fluid behind thw eye and can often be caused by injury or a bacterial infection if obly in one eye. Not sure how easy it is but i read that there are antbiitic fish foods available but they are only by vet prescription. I no tetra have just bought out some new medications and interpet seem to have a treatment for most things including anti internal bacterial no 9 which is what i would try myself.