paradise fish status

I'm nervous to either take a gill sample or make potassium permanganate dip for Laddie. I reconsidered all his symptoms- pale, mostly clamped fins, lethargic, no appetite, hanging at the surface, sometimes flashing off the filter uplift tube, seeming to gasp for breath. Now I think could be gill flukes?

I looked through my box of fish meds and last night dosed the tank with general cure (praziquantel and metronidazole). I have enough to do one complete round of two doses fortyeight hours apart- and then will have to buy more to repeat in however many weeks this parasite reproduces- or use prazipro to continue treatment (still have a bottle of that, but not sure how much is in it).

I think maybe I'm on the right track- Laddie looks much better this morning. He's alert, looking at me expectantly through the glass, went after flake, even competing with the guppies and minnows for food. He's moving about the tank at normal levels, inspecting stuff with interest, not hanging at the surface, and fins are not so clamped. I'm glad to see him better but have to figure out when to repeat treatment and what to use (get more general cure or just go with prazipro).