What is the best method for treating them? My fish have caught on and it would be appreciated if you could post the exact name of the med. Here's somewhere to browse for a good idea of what's available to me: www.bigalsonline.ca
Treating Internal Parasites
- Thread starter Michael_R
- Start date
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Zagz
Aquarium Advice Addict
What kind of fish do you have that are afflicted? Different types of fish are affected by different meds. Also make sure your parameters are pristine, good water conditions are best. There are also different types of parasitic infections. There is a sticky at the beginning of this forum for diagnosis sites.
Apocalypse_Gold
Aquarium Advice FINatic
I've used jungle anti-parasite medicated fish food and aquarium products gel-tek ultra cure px. They are both available on bigals. The jungle food is small pellets, that may have to be crushed for smaller fish. Gel-tek is, as the name suggests, a gel, but fish still eat it. Both have the most recommended ant-parasite ingredients, and using a food is much more effective than dosing your tank.
Tolak
Aquarium Advice Activist
This is what I do for angels, you may want to look into the maximum temp your fish can handle. Metro was originally designed for humans, the closer you can get the tank to 98.6F the better.
Put the angel in a quar tank, I usually use a 10 gallon. Increase the temp over a day or so to 90-94F. Treat daily with 40 mg/gallon metronidazole, with 50% water changes daily. If the fish isn't eating, don't feed for the first 3 days. After 3 days, get some frozen brine shrimp. Take a portion about the size of a few match heads, and sprinkle on some metro. You have to eyeball this one, make the shrimp look kind of like a tiny powdered donut. Once it thaws, mix it in & feed. Sometimes they still don't eat for a few days, but once they start to mouth the food & spit it out, the meds seem to get in their system real good. Continue medicating the water & food for 7-10 days.
Metronidazole is sold as flagyl, het-a-mit, and a few other names I can't recall offhand, used to treat hexamita & hole in the head. They usually suggest 20mg/gallon, this often isn't enough. Metro deteriorates in 8 hours, so you could do twice daily water changes. I've done this on the weekends when I have time.
I've also added epsom salt while using metro, this helps with any constipation issues, cleans out the digestive tract. I start with 1 teaspoon per 10 gallons of water, increasing by 1 teaspoon daily for 2 more days to bring it up to 3 teaspoons per gallon. You will have to adjust how much you use when doing water changes. You may want to give this a try.
Put the angel in a quar tank, I usually use a 10 gallon. Increase the temp over a day or so to 90-94F. Treat daily with 40 mg/gallon metronidazole, with 50% water changes daily. If the fish isn't eating, don't feed for the first 3 days. After 3 days, get some frozen brine shrimp. Take a portion about the size of a few match heads, and sprinkle on some metro. You have to eyeball this one, make the shrimp look kind of like a tiny powdered donut. Once it thaws, mix it in & feed. Sometimes they still don't eat for a few days, but once they start to mouth the food & spit it out, the meds seem to get in their system real good. Continue medicating the water & food for 7-10 days.
Metronidazole is sold as flagyl, het-a-mit, and a few other names I can't recall offhand, used to treat hexamita & hole in the head. They usually suggest 20mg/gallon, this often isn't enough. Metro deteriorates in 8 hours, so you could do twice daily water changes. I've done this on the weekends when I have time.
I've also added epsom salt while using metro, this helps with any constipation issues, cleans out the digestive tract. I start with 1 teaspoon per 10 gallons of water, increasing by 1 teaspoon daily for 2 more days to bring it up to 3 teaspoons per gallon. You will have to adjust how much you use when doing water changes. You may want to give this a try.
Apocalypse, thank-you, i'll look into the two.
Tolak, looking to Apocalypse's suggestions, and the ingredients, I noticed the Gel-Tek contains the metro. Would you agree with him? Both meds are cheap and seem easy enough to follow.
Tolak, looking to Apocalypse's suggestions, and the ingredients, I noticed the Gel-Tek contains the metro. Would you agree with him? Both meds are cheap and seem easy enough to follow.
Zagz
Aquarium Advice Addict
Your fish are hardy and can easily handle medication. Jungle meds are good. The medicated food is really good because they ingest it and it will work faster, kind of like humans with antibiotics. I am not sure at all that increasing the temp that high is a good idea. With ich for example I treat at 86-87 F. Other members with more experience will be able to advise on temps that are best for parasitic treatment. Good luck and keep us posted.
Tolak
Aquarium Advice Activist
If the gel-tec is available to you, and contains metro, go for it. I get the powdered metro in bulk, angels are prone to internal protizoans, and can be used in the water as well as with food.
The temperature increase raises metabolism, increasing appetite. I have an angel breeding setup, and many times I don't notice one sick angel out of 50 or more in a tank until they aren't eating. The increase in temp makes the metro work more efficiently when mixed in the water, angels can handle a higher temp than many fish. I've had them up to 100F (crappy heater) and they acted no differently.
I recently treated a small oscar using the same method, but at a lower temp, upper 80's to low 90's. That fish is doing well, growing like crazy.
Bottom line; metro in what ever form is most convenient for you, raise the temp, but only to the point you are sure is safe for your particular fish. Epsom salt helps, it hasn't hurt any fish that I've used it with.
The temperature increase raises metabolism, increasing appetite. I have an angel breeding setup, and many times I don't notice one sick angel out of 50 or more in a tank until they aren't eating. The increase in temp makes the metro work more efficiently when mixed in the water, angels can handle a higher temp than many fish. I've had them up to 100F (crappy heater) and they acted no differently.
I recently treated a small oscar using the same method, but at a lower temp, upper 80's to low 90's. That fish is doing well, growing like crazy.
Bottom line; metro in what ever form is most convenient for you, raise the temp, but only to the point you are sure is safe for your particular fish. Epsom salt helps, it hasn't hurt any fish that I've used it with.
Apocalypse_Gold
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Try drugstores for the epsom salts. Your grocery store might have it too. your fish will handle the heat just fine as long as you have enough surface agitation or aeration to maintain O2 levels.
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
Michael_R said:
Department store.. such as walmart.. Pharmacy section with the headache meds.. usually..
Zezmo
Aquarium Advice Addict
I recently treated some fish for Calumanus worms (little red worms poking out of the fishes butt). I tried the jungle brand internal parasite treatment food, it had no effect. The gel-tek food seemed to have no effect, and it was hard to get the fish to eat it.
After much research I decided that a Levamisol based medication was the right choice. I went to a local farm feed supply store (they sell chickens and such). They had Levasol (Levamisol) in the form of pills for de-worming sheep. If I had to do it again I would look for a Cattle wash with Levamisol in a liquid form for easier mixing.
I ground up the pills and mixed them with a little water. I added this solution to the tank. My target was 12mg/Liter. This took 6 pills on my 55 gallon. I treated waited 3 days, did a 90% PWC. I then added a second dose, and left it in for 4 days.
Then I did 2 consecutive 90% water changes to clean it all out. During the course of this 2 fish died (neither had shown any worms), and all the fish who had visible worms were cured.
After much research I decided that a Levamisol based medication was the right choice. I went to a local farm feed supply store (they sell chickens and such). They had Levasol (Levamisol) in the form of pills for de-worming sheep. If I had to do it again I would look for a Cattle wash with Levamisol in a liquid form for easier mixing.
I ground up the pills and mixed them with a little water. I added this solution to the tank. My target was 12mg/Liter. This took 6 pills on my 55 gallon. I treated waited 3 days, did a 90% PWC. I then added a second dose, and left it in for 4 days.
Then I did 2 consecutive 90% water changes to clean it all out. During the course of this 2 fish died (neither had shown any worms), and all the fish who had visible worms were cured.
I found epsom, however i'm not sure it's callamanus anymore. There are no worms as i have read, but one fish does have a caved-in stomach (not TB), and i remember seeing stringy white feces a week back.
Right now, i have the temp increasing to about 82', and then 84' the next day and finally 86'. I rememberd that i have sweetwater zooplankton (a sort of paste) and will mix in some Metronidazole that i bought. I will feed them this every two days, and hopefully all symptoms will go away.
Zezmo - Levamisole is only available as a prescriptopn here in Canada. Can't really find any farming stores where I live anyways.
Right now, i have the temp increasing to about 82', and then 84' the next day and finally 86'. I rememberd that i have sweetwater zooplankton (a sort of paste) and will mix in some Metronidazole that i bought. I will feed them this every two days, and hopefully all symptoms will go away.
Zezmo - Levamisole is only available as a prescriptopn here in Canada. Can't really find any farming stores where I live anyways.
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