IP Treatment Not Working?
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
- ILoveLola
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 246
- Joined: Mon Sep 05, 2011 11:33 pm
- Gender: Female
- Location (country): Virginia, USA
- Location: Virginia, USA
IP Treatment Not Working?
Hey all!
I've been treating my Figure 8 for IPs for four days now by soaking bloodworms in Tetra parasite guard tablets & freshly mashed garlic. She just doesn't seem to be doing any better--still a slightly sunken belly, and I havent seen her pooping anything interesting out (I haven't seen her poop, ever.)
She behaves normally and eats well, plays and follows me when I am near her aquarium. I've had her for about a five weeks now, and I was looking at a picture of her the day after I got her, and she was much rounder then. I'm wondering if I'm missing something, or if it just takes longer to treat IPs and I am stressing out too much?
Thanks!
ps, sorry if this seems short, I will post the water parameters & such tomorrow--I have a test in the AM so I'm heading to bed. thanks again!
I've been treating my Figure 8 for IPs for four days now by soaking bloodworms in Tetra parasite guard tablets & freshly mashed garlic. She just doesn't seem to be doing any better--still a slightly sunken belly, and I havent seen her pooping anything interesting out (I haven't seen her poop, ever.)
She behaves normally and eats well, plays and follows me when I am near her aquarium. I've had her for about a five weeks now, and I was looking at a picture of her the day after I got her, and she was much rounder then. I'm wondering if I'm missing something, or if it just takes longer to treat IPs and I am stressing out too much?
Thanks!
ps, sorry if this seems short, I will post the water parameters & such tomorrow--I have a test in the AM so I'm heading to bed. thanks again!

- sevenyearnight
- Former Staff Member
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Balki Bartokomous - Location (country): USA
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
Kind of a silly question, but is she getting enough to eat? 4 days isn't a super long time to expect her weight to be much different

- J-P
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
after feeding to a nice rounded belly, how soon does it turn to sunken?
if you follow me, you avoid stepping in the crap that I just did...
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- chuckfriedrice
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
Petey took 2 weeks to show major improvements!
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
Is she eating the medicated worms?
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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- ILoveLola
- Figure 8 Puffer
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
SYN, i think I am... I feed her to where she has a decently rounded belly in the evening, six days a week. in the mornings if her belly looks terribly sunken in i will feed her a little something, like a snail or a little bit of thawed food, less than i would in the evening. I have to admit after reading stuff about puffers eating themselves to death I am scared of feeding her too much, I wonder if that's backfiring on me...
JP, this morning i fed her at about 9:50 before I left for school. I am home getting ready for work now, 2:10 my time, and her belly is not sunken, but its not really round either. Flat I guess, sliiiightest bulge.
Chuck, did you treat his food every day for those two weeks?
PP, she is definitely eating the worms, I watch her to make sure of it. She won't eat anything else that I medicate, though. Only bloodworms.
JP, this morning i fed her at about 9:50 before I left for school. I am home getting ready for work now, 2:10 my time, and her belly is not sunken, but its not really round either. Flat I guess, sliiiightest bulge.
Chuck, did you treat his food every day for those two weeks?
PP, she is definitely eating the worms, I watch her to make sure of it. She won't eat anything else that I medicate, though. Only bloodworms.

- chuckfriedrice
- Fahaka Puffer
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
No he was only given treatments a few times. But I was feeding him pretty good for those 2 weeks.I've cut the feedings back now but when I get home later ill show you the picture.
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- ILoveLola
- Figure 8 Puffer
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
So should I stop medicating her food and just feed her normally? That's what I did last night.. does it sound like I'm feeding her correctly? I know as they get older they should be fed less, but she's only about an inch & a half. Should I still make her fast one day if she's so skinny? So many questions! Aha. Thanks guys. 

- sevenyearnight
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
Feed her 6x a week, make sure you give her a balanced varied diet. Don't worry about over feeding her at this point, she needs to gain weight. Of course don't overfeed her, but make sure she is getting enough food. It's obvious when a puffer is over eating.

- xrayjeeper83
- Mbu Puffer
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
When I first got Bloat he had IP's and it was a good month before he would keep any weight on. I would feed him till he had a really round belly, almost overfeeding. I also had an advantage of working in a hospital so I could get a needle and syringe and inject the meds right into the food so it didnt have to soak it up.
RTR wrote:Fahakas do not have tank mates, they may have swimming food reserves.
- sevenyearnight
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
How long did you treat Bloat's food?
Bloat was so pathetically skinny when you got him
Bloat was so pathetically skinny when you got him

- xrayjeeper83
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
I treated it everyday, every meal.
Ya he was with in days of death im pretty sure. The guy I got him from told me fahakas were supposed to be skinny
Ya he was with in days of death im pretty sure. The guy I got him from told me fahakas were supposed to be skinny
RTR wrote:Fahakas do not have tank mates, they may have swimming food reserves.
- bertie 83
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
He sounds like an idiot lol. I wonder how many fish have died because of his crap info?xrayjeeper83 wrote:I treated it everyday, every meal.
Ya he was with in days of death im pretty sure. The guy I got him from told me fahakas were supposed to be skinny
It's amazing how easy maintenance is. If done regularly and thoroughly
- xrayjeeper83
- Mbu Puffer
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
ya scary thought
RTR wrote:Fahakas do not have tank mates, they may have swimming food reserves.
- ILoveLola
- Figure 8 Puffer
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Re: IP Treatment Not Working?
how rediculous. and frightening.xrayjeeper83 wrote:The guy I got him from told me fahakas were supposed to be skinny
I try to feed her a balanced diet, she just won't take anything medicated except bloodworms
