My Experience Using Seachem ParaGuard in a Community Tank

[LoachNLoaded]

I wanted to share my personal experience with using Seachem ParaGuard to help others who might be facing a similar situation.

Tank setup:

• 20-gallon planted community tank

• Stocked with Kuhli loaches, Harlequin rasboras, Amano shrimp, Albino Corydoras, and a Betta

• Only plant in the tank is Anubias

• Airstone installed, regular maintenance with partial water changes

What happened:

I spotted what I thought was Ich on one rasbora (turned out later it could have been a fungal or bacterial infection). I promptly removed the fish and started ParaGuard treatment as a precaution to protect the rest of the tank.

My approach:

• Dosed ParaGuard at 50% of the recommended dose (1 capful for 20 gallons) to be cautious due to the shrimp and sensitive fish.

• Paired treatment with daily water changes (15-25%) and substrate vacuuming.

• Kept the temperature at around 78-79°F and used Indian almond leaves to naturally support fish immunity.

• Introduced an airstone for additional oxygenation, especially important when using meds.

Results:

• No additional signs of Ich appeared after removing the affected fish.

• One rasbora developed a red spot near the gill area sometime during the course of treatment. It remained active, the mark never worsened, and it may have simply been a minor injury or natural variation.

• All other tankmates showed no abnormal behavior, stress, or flashing.

• Even my Amano shrimp molted normally during treatment, showing that ParaGuard at half-dose was well-tolerated.

Tapering off and conclusion:

• After 7 days at 50%, I reduced to 25% dosing for one additional day. I unintentionally skipped a final dose and cleaning on Day 9.

• At that point, with everything looking stable and healthy, I decided to end the treatment cycle.

Key takeaways:

• ParaGuard at a reduced dosage can be safely used in mixed community tanks that include shrimp and scaleless fish, but I’d still advise close observation.

• Combining meds with good husbandry (frequent water changes, oxygenation, and stress reduction) helped prevent any outbreak from spreading.

• This experience taught me that early action and gentle intervention can prevent more aggressive treatments.

• Monitoring behavior and being conservative with meds really paid off—my tank remained stable, and no secondary issues emerged.

I hope this helps others weighing their options when treating delicate tanks!

 

[Andy Sager]

While you had a good outcome with this method, there is an up side and a down side to it. The up side is that your shrimp(s) survived and the issue seems to have been eradicated.
The downside to treating any medication in half dosage is that some parasites can develop an immunity or stronger tolerance to the medication making it less effective in future treatments. This is why treating parasites is always best done in a separate hospital tank. Most ectoparasites ( which paraguard treats) have multiple life stages and only one of those stages is actually on the fish. So when you see a fish or multiple fish with a visual parasite on them, removing the fish immediately will prevent that/those parasite(s) from going into the substrate to reproduce. Then there is this, especially with ICK, Ick is only subject to medications when they are free swimming in the tank looking for a new host. They encapsulate themselves when they are on the fish so medications don't really work then. Many people have had success with treating parasites like Ick just by removing the fish from the hospital tank when the parasite leaves the fish and placing the fish in a second hospital tank then sterilizing the first tank to get rid of the parasite(s) that are in there. If more parasites show up on the fish, again, when the parasite(s) leave the fish, the fish is removed to the sterilized hospital tank. So all this can be done without ever using any medication at all to " cure" the fish. With paraguard, Seachem recommends for scaleless fish to start with a lower dose and gradually up the dosage to the full recommended dose. They also say they do not claim that Paraguard is safe for invertebrates but gradually increasing dosages may work on some inverts. This is why using meds in a separate hospital tank is what's recommended.
Hope this helps.

 

[LoachNLoaded]

While you had a good outcome with this method, there is an up side and a down side to it. The up side is that your shrimp(s) survived and the issue seems to have been eradicated.
The downside to treating any medication in half dosage is that some parasites can develop an immunity or stronger tolerance to the medication making it less effective in future treatments. This is why treating parasites is always best done in a separate hospital tank. Most ectoparasites ( which paraguard treats) have multiple life stages and only one of those stages is actually on the fish. So when you see a fish or multiple fish with a visual parasite on them, removing the fish immediately will prevent that/those parasite(s) from going into the substrate to reproduce. Then there is this, especially with ICK, Ick is only subject to medications when they are free swimming in the tank looking for a new host. They encapsulate themselves when they are on the fish so medications don't really work then. Many people have had success with treating parasites like Ick just by removing the fish from the hospital tank when the parasite leaves the fish and placing the fish in a second hospital tank then sterilizing the first tank to get rid of the parasite(s) that are in there. If more parasites show up on the fish, again, when the parasite(s) leave the fish, the fish is removed to the sterilized hospital tank. So all this can be done without ever using any medication at all to " cure" the fish. With paraguard, Seachem recommends for scaleless fish to start with a lower dose and gradually up the dosage to the full recommended dose. They also say they do not claim that Paraguard is safe for invertebrates but gradually increasing dosages may work on some inverts. This is why using meds in a separate hospital tank is what's recommended.
Hope this helps.

Point well taken. In my case I have no resources / ability to set up a hospital tank. The second point is, in a pinch, I only had access to Seachem Paraguard. I could not buy anything locally and online orders were 4 to 5 days out. So I had to go with what I had and between the substrate vacuum, water changes, and the dosing, looks like something worked. Thankfully, I did not lose any fish or shrimp or the plants. Ideally, what you’re suggesting is the absolute right way to do it. But if someone finds themselves in my similar situation, hopefully they’ll benefit from reading this post.

 

[Andy Sager]

Point well taken. In my case I have no resources / ability to set up a hospital tank. The second point is, in a pinch, I only had access to Seachem Paraguard. I could not buy anything locally and online orders were 4 to 5 days out. So I had to go with what I had and between the substrate vacuum, water changes, and the dosing, looks like something worked. Thankfully, I did not lose any fish or shrimp or the plants. Ideally, what you’re suggesting is the absolute right way to do it. But if someone finds themselves in my similar situation, hopefully they’ll benefit from reading this post.

This is why it's recommended to have a " medicine box" so that you have meds on hand to treat parasites, bacterial & Fungal infections as well as water issues. This is so you don't have to wait for a delivery or mailing of the right med to treat whatever the issue you have as waiting can sometimes cause enough damage that it's too late to fix.
I'm a bit familiar with the Houston area as I used to go yearly to visit family there so I know there are a number of shops in or around the city. I'd make a concerted effort to visit some to get a good collection of meds for the "Medicine Box" vs ordering them online so that you can get ones that have the furthest effective dates on them so they don't need to be replaced that often. That's a better way than being in a " pinch" and hoping what you have is the right med. It's a good thing you had the success you did but as a responsible community, we shouldn't promote improper husbandry. Just sayin'

 

[LoachNLoaded]

Thanks Andy. What would you say are the absolute requirements in a medicine box without breaking the bank?

 

[Andy Sager]

Thanks Andy. What would you say are the absolute requirements in a medicine box without breaking the bank?

Medication for parasites and antibiotic for Bacteria. Which antibiotic will depend on your water's pH and General Hardness. And if you don't have one, a spare tank or container to use as a hospital tank and a tank or container to use for quarantine. If you don't know why they are different, here's a thread I did explaining them: Quarantine tanks and Hospital tanks, are they really different?

 

[Airborne 82nd]

I think I read all of this but. What caused all this to begin with?

 

[Andy Sager]

I think I read all of this but. What caused all this to begin with?

External bacterial or fungal infections are usually caused by a wound that got infected usually from poorer water quality or in the case of new arrivals, poor handling at the source where the slime coat is removed. Internal infections can have multiple causes from diet, water quality and genetic issues to parasites, constipation and so on.

 

[LoachNLoaded]

My tank has always been pristine, except for one time when I traveled for more than a month and the neighbor’s kid over fed the fish. This time whatever started was from new fish from the LFS. I’ve always purchased fish from them and never had an issue. I don’t have a quarantine tank set up. While I understand the importance of one, I’m still not sure if I have the space or the resources to set one up. I need a plan for any future new fish though.

 

[Andy Sager]

My tank has always been pristine, except for one time when I traveled for more than a month and the neighbor’s kid over fed the fish. This time whatever started was from new fish from the LFS. I’ve always purchased fish from them and never had an issue. I don’t have a quarantine tank set up. While I understand the importance of one, I’m still not sure if I have the space or the resources to set one up. I need a plan for any future new fish though.

Sadly, a pristine tank does not guarantee a new fish doesn't bring something in with it to spread in the tank. Over my 60 years of fish keeping, there has been times when quarantine was necessary and there were times when it wasn't. I started with a number of wild caught and one or two generations from wild and they were easy enough to medicate to eradicate whatever they had on or in them. With today's fish, most are farmed and that has created a whole other problem. Farm created viruses, medication resistant parasite strains, over medicated fish... all have come from fish farms that were less than pristine so quarantining these new fish are a necessity if you want to have a clean display tank. When you don't quarantine, you are playing Russian Roulette. It's just that simple.

 

[LoachNLoaded]

Sadly, a pristine tank does not guarantee a new fish doesn't bring something in with it to spread in the tank. Over my 60 years of fish keeping, there has been times when quarantine was necessary and there were times when it wasn't. I started with a number of wild caught and one or two generations from wild and they were easy enough to medicate to eradicate whatever they had on or in them. With today's fish, most are farmed and that has created a whole other problem. Farm created viruses, medication resistant parasite strains, over medicated fish... all have come from fish farms that were less than pristine so quarantining these new fish are a necessity if you want to have a clean display tank. When you don't quarantine, you are playing Russian Roulette. It's just that simple.

Never happened before, but then it did this time and a hard lesson has been learnt. Always something new! Will now have to figure out a quarantine tank setup, not to mention a sick tank.

 

[Andy Sager]

Never happened before,

This is why my favorite question these days is this : How many chances to get to make a fatal mistake?

but then it did this time and a hard lesson has been learnt. Always something new! Will now have to figure out a quarantine tank setup, not to mention a sick tank.

Good idea.