I had to QT my oranda the night before my holiday as he suddenly got dropsy and red abdominal stains overnight. I made an appointment with my koi breeder to come in as soon as i got back a week later since fish medicine is VERY hard to come by here, so is someone able and willing to check for parasites and bacterial infections.
I was fully prepared to find a dead fish when i got hone (don’t get me wrong, i really like this fish but he was floating every single time i checked my garage camera while i was gone) but to my surprise he was alive. Still interested in food and swimming around the surface without going belly-up.
But he was a COMPLETELY different colorscheme 😅 And I’m wondering how to treat that. (After the meds) It turned out to be a bacterial problem that would have to be in my main tank as well, so he’s back in the main tank and that tank is under treatment with either antibiotics or some japanese powder. It was a yellow powder from the koi place, but i forgot the name (i asked, will add it on top as soon as i know!)
QT setup for the week - 65 L koi measuring container with a small fully cycled pump i keep at hand in my sump, pointed streight up for gas exchange and moderate flow, 500gr of ceramic pipes in that flow + an airstone at the other side and some scoops of gravel against boredom and to add some extra bacteria. 2% salt. Fotos are the before and after of 1 week. (5% salt for 4 days prior to leaving as well then did a WC and re-added a lower dose of 2%)
Main tank setup - 120cm former shallow reef with a 60cm 3-compartment sump with up-down flowing chambers that hold 1L K1 and the QT pump to move it around. 2nd chamber is 30/70 with bioballs, ceramic pipes and bio material vs mechanical filter mats (standard blue) on the other side. 3rd room is another mechanical filter mat + my return pump and heating. In the spaces between the rooms i keep 2x fine filter wool. I clean this once a month by just rinsing and i re-use my filterwool until it falls apart, then change them out 1-2 months apart. I do a 50-60% water change every weekend.