Does this cattleya look like it is infected with Fusarium?
 

Does that look like dehydration due to fusarium?
Thank you for your help.

It is not as secure in the pot as the other two plants I ordered. This could be due to it being a "seeling" as opposed to a "plant in 2.5 inch pot". It does have some rotted roots but also has some healthy roots. I haven't taken it out of the pot to inspect the whole root structure because if is is a diseased plant and I'm able to return it, I can't return it if it's been unpotted. I was really looking forward to this one 😖

Is there anything I can look for to confirm or deny the presence of fusarium without completely unpotting the plant?

Fusarium is a real disease, but unfortunately seems to have turned into a "fad" diagnosis, especially on YouTube.

What I see is a seedling with some older dehydrated leaves and a newer growth that seems healthy, with some red coloration, probably related to growing in higher light.

Trust me here - 36 years growing orchids. Mostly Cattleyas. I had one plant in that time that ever had Fusarium. I would not suspect it with yours. You might get advice for diagnosing Fusarium that involves cutting the plant, this plant is too small for that.

Instead, provide good care, watch it grow, and be patient. I think it will be fine.

It looks to me also anthocyanin pigmentation.
Just like our skin gets tanned with the sun, plants in high light conditions produce a red pigment called anthocyanin (as well others) that serves as a protection (like our sunscreen cream).
In plants requiring high light this is an indication that the light levels are optimal.

I agree with OW.

What I see is a tiny plant (with limited mass to store reserves) that has been underwatered.

Thank you everyone!
This puts my anxieties at ease. You're so right, YouTube had me scared!

That is how clicks and views are made.

The plant will be OK if properly watered. Good luck!

You can get a lot of good information on YouTube if you limit orchid-related viewing to habitat videos, and videos posted by people who have been growing their own orchids to sell for some years (not buy to resell quickly and not grow just for fun, but their lives depend on it.)

People often advise letting Cattleyas dry between waterings. This is for mature plants. Cattleya seedlings shouldn't stay soggy wet, but neither should they dry out for any length of time. (There are a very few exceptions.) When I had some in large bark growing out in the open in my house, not in a terrarium, I had to water them every single day through the year.

estación seca, I noticed that this morning when I checked on them and they were dry. I watered them on Thursday. I put a little bit of sphagnum moss on top of the bark for this one since it's so wiggly, to help anchor it and also to help keep the moisture in the pot longer.
Thank you so much for your advice, I've never had such a small and fragile orchid before.

I contacted the seller and she said her sprinklers malfunctioned a time back and soaked everything so she turned them off and some of the babies Prob a my dried out too much. She's offered to refund my money if it fails to survive. I'm sad it's been set back though. Hopefully that means it'll be all that much more rewarding if I can get it to bloom eventually.

If the plant is at all wobbly in the pot, it might be a good idea to stabilize it a bit more with staking. For the little ones, if you break a barbecue skewer in half, put a piece on two sides of the plant, you can hold it in place without having to tie it.

Roberta,
Do the barbeque skewers do well? Whenever I've tried the bamboo chopsticks, they'd get moldy. Have you ever experienced this with the skewers?

I have never had a mold problem with stakes in general, including skewers. I think that if they get moldy, it is maybe too wet anyway, or air circulation is badly lacking. Certainly for a Catt (even a little one) , it would not like to be so wet that the skewer (or other stake) rotted or got moldy.

Since I'm going to be keeping this one, would you recommend removing it from the pot to cut off the dead roots or should I leave it where it is since it's already started regrowing new roots?

If the bark seems OK (and since it is a baby, it probably hasn't been in that mix very long) I think you can just let it stay where it is, don't disturb it. If it is growing new roots, it is on its way! Usually the dead roots will just dry up, not hurt anything, and the risk of damaging the new ones outweighs any benefit from removing the old ones.

Your plant has an excellent chance of surviving if you don't let it get too dry again. Cattleyas are amazingly tough plants.

They are damaged by insufficient water when pushing new growths. Mature plants will survive this happening every now and then with substantial setback. With seedlings you sometimes only get one mistake, and they die the next time.

I dropped one of the other plants so decided to cut off the dead roots. It smelled really bad and bubbled like crazy when I put H2O2 on it. I'm kinda glad I knocked it over, there was no damage to the plant/healthy roots.

Don't ever put hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on roots. If roots are dead, you can cut them off. If they are alive, but you think they may have a fungus, etc, wash them off, let them dry, but no peroxide. No matter what you hear on Youtube. You can use peroxide on a paper towel to wipe leaves that you think might harbor harmful bacteria or fungus.

Hydrogen peroxide is an oxidizer, putting it on live roots is a good way to make them dead roots.

Also, no cinnamon on roots when you hear that advice.

As a rule, if you hear a harsh chemical recommended for use with orchids, get second (and third, and fourth) opinions before trying.

I've been noticing this "fad" with several Youtube channels now too and seems to have spread to facebook/forums.

Another one is the terrestrial pH vs nutrient absorption chart that seems to be making the rounds.

No H2O2 or cinnamon on the live roots, just the rotted part. But I'll take your advice for my future plants. Thanks.

Rymor, I don't have Facebook, thankfully, otherwise I'd just have more to needlessly worry me! Thank you for the heads up!

I have seen the pH chart modified for hydroponic situations. I have not studied the science behind it enough to say if the modified version is good or bad regarding application to orchids. IMO, if your water is neutral (pH 7) to moderately acid (pH 6 -ish), I think it would be reasonable to think a plant can use nutrients at that pH.

Same as Estacion Seca, I still water my cattleyas every day. Usually a good misting with a true watering about once or twice per week. Anthocyanin pigmentation is naturally occurring in many orchids, but very common in catts. I know your orchid is healthy because you have growing leads. New roots attach to new leads, old leads have old roots. Orchids are always growing. There is always some part of them dying, and some part of them being born. You just have to figure out which is which.

Here's an updated picture of the three I got from the same vendor. It's the shriveled one.

It's a cross of a brassovola hybrid so the leaves are very different from the other two.

The pots are slotted on the sides, 3". Wishing now that I had ordered smaller pots but I think they'll be alright.

Is that bark? If so I think the pot size and medium is good for those plants. If you're using coconut coir chips just pay attention that they don't stay sopping wet all the time.

Thank you, estación. It is mostly bark. I also had some coco chunks and put it in there for more moisture retention since the heater makes the air so dry and sphagnum moss was too moisture retentive.

I use a pump sprayer (all living things brand for reptiles/amphibians) instead of soaking the pot like I do with my succulents.

I purchased the bark mix (perlite, charcoal and medium bark) from here CalWestTropical
Here's the specific stuff I bought 1/4 CF Medium Orchid Mix

It's more bark mix than coconut husks. Do you think it best if it were only the bark mix? The visible roots are white every morning so I don't think the whole pot is retaining too much moisture.

Edited to remove excessive link text and correct mister brand name

I think they're fine in that mixture. Not drying out fast is good for small Cattleyas in a small pot.

leathery looking leaves like that are dessicated....they are not getting water to the leaves...does the plant have roots? what condition are they in? if the roots are not functioning, then you need to get them growing in a hurry!

the sphag and bag method would be handy here, or at least to cover the plant with a plastic bag...the others look fine....

another suggestion would be to fill the tray half full with small gravels, and to keep the gravels moist/wet, not to the touch of the pots however! that will give you a bit more humidity as the water evaporates thru the gravel...I do that whenever I bring in a plant for show...

a large orchid business will be happy to replace that plant, but smaller growers may not have another, or will exchange for something else or a credit.....if you are really unhappy, do that!....they will want to keep your business and make you happy!