Stupid, stupid, stupid...

[Madame_X]

I ordered a bunch of plants from azgardens.com this past week. I got a false sense of security and instead of disinfecting the plants in potassium permanganate (which I have in the house, by the way), I rinsed them off in tap water and put them in a bucket overnight.

Well, I was planting them today and my husband happened to look in the bucket and says, "Hey, there's a worm in these plants."

8O

Horrified, I looked in the bucket and there was some sort of freaky nematode about an inch and a half long swimming around in the bucket.

I was so freaked out I tossed the remaining two bunches of glossostigma and the last bunch of hygrophilia tropic sunset.

Now I'm worried that there were more of them (I would guess, most likely, that there were) and that they're now in one of my two planted tanks. I only hope that whatever it is isn't harmful to the fish.

The moral of the story: don't be an idiot--disinfect your plants! I learned my lesson once before by getting a cyano infestation from infected cabomba. You'd think I'd learn, but noooooo...

*sigh*

 

[Mr Burns]

i didn't do that to the plants i just got...they were show quality perfect. about the only thing i've noticed is some tiny snails on the glass, but they go squish pretty easy. i'm still debating about whether or not i should let them go b/c i do feel bad about squishing them if they aren't going to be a problem. :?

 

[mitche8359]

One thing I saw posted here a long while ago was a caution to squishing snails. The posted stated that the something toxic in the snail could get into your system by the shell slicing your skin when you crush it against the glass. Made sense to me though I normally just pluck the fish out of the tank.

 

[malkore]

I think freshwater snails are safe, non-toxic...but saltwater stuff is often toxic, built in defense mechanisms since they have to compete for space and food so much more in a reef than a freshwater environment.

however you smash too many snails, that's a lot of decaying snail flesh which could spike ammonia for a few days.

 

[Mr Burns]

these are tiny tiny tiny snails...i can't even get a halfway decent picture of them. if i had to guess, they're maybe a 1mm in diameter. should i just let them go? the thought of invasive snails getting into my tank worries me a bit...

 

[Guest]

I got a decent sized plant order from AZGardens about six months ago. I didn't have any problems at all, not even a single snail. I did however, soak the plants in a spare tank I had available three or four days, before planting.

Only complaint I had about AZ gardens was thier plants were rather small, healthy, but small. I though I was ordering 12" LARGE swords. Apon arrival, they were 4" with five to six leaves. They all grew into beautiful plants, but I felt a little mislead on thier size at purchase. All the various shrimp I ordered at the same time were excellent.

I know what ya mean about cyano. I ran across some hairgrass at a local "daisy chain" pet store that I just had to have. Needless to say I was pressed for time and just tossed the grass into the tank. What a mistake that was. Talk about a cyano nightmare. This just reinforces why I never purchase anything living from a "daisy chain" pet store. Live and learn

 

[TankGirl]

I would call AZ Gardens (if you can get them to answer the phone - maybe faxing them would be better) and let them know, and ask them to replace the plants - also they might be able to tell you what it was/is. Does it look anything like the ghost shrimp worm you had? They get a big buck for their plants, not to mention shipping, so I would ask them to help you out here.

Most likely this is not anything harmful to the fish, and they might eat it anyway.

You can get mycobacterium infection from FW tanks, though it is slightly different organism than the mycobacterium marinum found in SW setups, or in bodies of water. Same deal, but this is really a rare thing to happen. You would have to have a somewhat impaired immune system to get it from a minor cut on your hand - but you can cut yourself a little from smooshing snails. I am personally an avid snail smoosher *knock tank*

 

[djlen3]

Mr. Burns,
I'm afraid your invasion has already started. They are like Cockroaches.....if you see one, there's bunch more somewhere in the floor boards. :|
As stated above, freshwater snails are eminently squish-able, and the fish generally love them, once squished.
As you have probably surmised, I'm not crazy about snails. I don't introduce any plants into my tanks without first dipping into Alum over night.

Len

 

[Madame_X]

I got a decent sized plant order from AZGardens about six months ago. I didn't have any problems at all, not even a single snail. I did however, soak the plants in a spare tank I had available three or four days, before planting.

I've ordered from them in the past as well, and was very pleased. I think that's why I had that false sense of security this time. However, I disinfected the plants from my previous order because it was shortly after "the cyano incident"!

I know what ya mean about cyano. I ran across some hairgrass at a local "daisy chain" pet store that I just had to have. Needless to say I was pressed for time and just tossed the grass into the tank. What a mistake that was. Talk about a cyano nightmare. This just reinforces why I never purchase anything living from a "daisy chain" pet store. Live and learn

Correct... my cyano problem was from cabomba purchased from PetsMart. I also now avoid purchasing plants or fish from chain stores. Unfortunately, on my recent quest for plants, both of the good fish stores in the neighborhood had a very limited supply of sketchy looking plants, and none of the things I really wanted.

 

[Madame_X]

I would call AZ Gardens (if you can get them to answer the phone - maybe faxing them would be better) and let them know, and ask them to replace the plants - also they might be able to tell you what it was/is. Does it look anything like the ghost shrimp worm you had? They get a big buck for their plants, not to mention shipping, so I would ask them to help you out here.

Not a bad idea, I might shoot them an e-mail and see what happens. Especially since I've ordered from them in the past, maybe they'd hook me up. I threw out about $6 worth of plants because I was grossed out.

This one didn't look anything like the nematode in the ghost shrimp. That one was really long (about 4-5 inches), skinny and white. This one was flat, dark and sorta triangle shaped (for lack of a better shape to describe it, pointy on one end and flat on the other), and about an inch and a half or so.

 

[TankGirl]

A leech! I'll bet you that's what it was. No lie - they do hitch rides on plants. Don't you have a pic for us? You are going to become our "uninvited invert" guru from now on, dont'cha know!

 

[Madame_X]

A leech! I'll bet you that's what it was. No lie - they do hitch rides on plants. Don't you have a pic for us? You are going to become our "uninvited invert" guru from now on, dont'cha know!

8O A leech? 8O

Ew. Gross.

That doesn't sound good, though. What if there's another one? Couldn't it get a hold of my fish? 8O

Honestly, I didn't take a pic. I went out and dumped the bucket (plants and all) in the hot gravel in front of our house. I don't think it would have lived long in the heat.

Ew. A leech? Yucky.

 

[Robert H]

I don't think any sort of planaria, nemotode or whatever is anything to worry about. Many fish will eat them, they make great fish food. The parasitic nemotodes that make fish sick are microscopic. There are all sorts of aquatic worms that are harmless and great fish food. People always bring up leeches, which are actually very rare in aquariums

 

[TankGirl]

I have read threads on this site and others about leeches (or what was assumed to be leeches) coming in on plant shipments, so that's my guess, especially with the triangular shaped body description. I am familiar with leeches somewhat as I work for a hand surgeon who has been known to use them in microvascular cases (replantations, especially) to increase blood flow and prevent clotting, so your description sounds right. You would run into this issue in aquarium plants more than I, Robert H, for sure - so you would have a much better idea of how common this is.

That being said, I will echo earlier comments that whatever it is will not likely be a bit harmful to your fish.

 

[Guest]

There are many types of leeches. Yes, some are parasitical, but others are really harmless. I have leeches in my pond, the type that just lurk around in the bottom muck, consuming little critters they find there. Only like 1/2 inch long. I have never gotten out of the pond and had any clinging to me, nor have I seen them on my fish or frogs.

I did once get leeches on me while wading stagnant water **Shudder** (I was a kid in boy scouts). The memory disgusts me to this day.

 

[Madame_X]

Well, thanks for the reassurance. I was worried!

So far, I haven't seen anything creepy swimming around in either tank. Let's hope it was just a single stray critter.

For what its worth, I sent out an e-mail to azgardens on Monday night asking if they could at least identify what it may have been, if nothing else to set my mind at ease. I didn't even ask for replacement of the plants that I threw out. So far, I haven't gotten a response from them.

I know they pack orders on Tuesday and Wednesday, so I'll give them the benefit of doubt for now, but I sure hope they respond by the end of the week.

If not, I may take my plant purchases elsewhere in the future.

 

[TankGirl]

They have quality stuff usually, but contacting an actual person is quite a trick over there. They are up front about it, though.

I have lately been dealing with Floridadriftwood.com for plants and related supplies, and their shipping is a quarter of the price of azgardens, and I have been very pleased so far. Azgardens has much more variety, though.