A waste ?

[impalass]

When I brought my Fahaka home last Friday I noticed his faeces was black, as I read it should be. Since Monday he's been eating raw shrimp and Sea Food Melody soaked in Vita-Chem, and now his faeces is a solid but off white colour, Is this normal ?

[bertie 83]

It is common for a fishes droppings to be a similar colour to their food, if its stringy you could have an issue

[impalass]

It is common for a fishes droppings to be a similar colour to their food, if its stringy you could have an issue

Thanks again bertie, I figured as much but was'nt 100% sure.

[bertie 83]

No worries. If you have even a 1% doubt it is worth treating him for internal parasites, this can be done by soaking his food in a suitable med. it would not hurt to treat him whilst he is eating so well, it is better to be safe than sorry

[impalass]

Well bertie 83 I was'nt planning to treat for IP but you planted that 1% doubt.

I'm doing my first water change with the Fahaka today and will be adding PraziPro, it's the most popular treatment in Canada and is added to the tank directly.

As you said, "better safe than sorry".

[bertie 83]

Do not add meds to the water, the foods must be treated with a suitable medication to be sure it gets to the gut.

[impalass]

Ok, treatment on hold, what product would you consider suitable bertie, and are you recommending the food be treated because of the more direct contact with the gut or becauce of sensetivities due to the Fahaka being scaleless ?

We really have slim pickings here, and even if I don't treat now I'd really like to be prepared in the future, hence all the newb/noob questions.

Thanks, Mark.

[Pufferpunk]

Prazi's fine, as long as you soak his food in it.

[RTR]

The bit about treating the food rather than the water is because freshwater fish do not drink water. Their blood and body tissues are hypertonic to the water around them, so they constantly absorb water through their gill and skin. To keep their blood and tissues stable, they must excrete water constantly via the kidneys. The absorbed water is just that, water only - the dissolved materials are excluded by the gills/skin. That means that water-dissolved meds are not absorbed. Meds absorbed into foods are eaten and can be absorbed into the body with the foods.

Saltwater fish lose body fluids constantly to the water around them, so do drink the surrounding tank water constantly and must excrete excess dissolved materials also constantly, so they get medications dissolved in their tank water.

It is confusing, but definitely real. FW fish rarely drink, SW fish do so constantly.

HTH

[impalass]

Thanks RTR and PP, very informative.

[Pufferpunk]

Isn't it crazy though that so many manufactures of these meds (ALL of them, actually!), state to treat the water???

[Arny]

Hey rtr, if fw puffers can absorb ammonia, nitrites etc through their scales skin why can they not absorb meds in the water? Thx

[Pufferpunk]

Who says they absorb ammonia? It burns them.

[impalass]

Isn't it crazy though that so many manufactures of these meds (ALL of them, actually!), state to treat the water???

Can't remember where but I've read that fresh water fish absorb the meds/treatments in their water through the gills and solf membranes behind the gills.

Is there any truth to that and if so would enough be absorbed to make a difference ?

[Arny]

Who says they absorb ammonia? It burns them.

Oh sorry my bad. I thought they did