Possible Internal Parasites!! Please help!
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.
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helicopter
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:32 pm
Possible Internal Parasites!! Please help!
I have a 24 gallon tank with two puffers and a black molly. The SG right now is around 1.002 on its way to 1.005. I just bought my two figure 8's and the molly about two weeks ago. I monitored them for IP since day one but did not notice any white stringy poo. I think one time I did in one of them but I figured it could just be that I had been feeding them a shrimp every day so it could just be the shrimp meet not fully digested. Well today I noticed it again, while eating (the time when they usually poop) one of them pooped out white stringy "chain of beads" like stuff. It looked like little white balls strung together with white string. It was followed by a normal black poop. Is this a definite ID for IP. My plan is as I have read elsewhere on the Puffer Forum, soak their food (either a cooked clam on the half shell or a shrimp) in Jungle Tabs Internal Parasite medication (I am going to put a half tab in just a tiny bit of water) and let soak over night. I will do this for 7 days, then fast 2, then another 7 days and hopefully everything will be good. The only thing I am worried about is the molly. I feed him micro-pellet food which he loves and every once and a while nothing, just letting him eat the algae or leftover from the two puffers. What should I do to treat him? Do I have to treat him?
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Boxermom
- Former Staff Member
- Posts: 2182
- Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:34 pm
- Location: Wisconsin
- Contact:
Yes, the molly needs to be treatd as well. Gel-Tek works better IME for soaking pellet or dried foods, but if you just feed it the shrimp, it should be fine. The puffer food should not be cooked though, they should be fed raw seafood.
Tina
Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
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helicopter
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:32 pm
Tank
Do I have to do anything to disinfect the tank?
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The Fisherman
- Fahaka Puffer
- Posts: 694
- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 2:46 pm
- Location: West Michigan
- Contact:
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helicopter
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:32 pm
Cancer
The stuff has the warning that it is know to the State of California to cause cancer. Do anyone know how dangerous the stuff actually is. I am taking all precautions as to not get it on my skin but if I did, how bad is it?
I mean, cigerettes are known to cause cancer but I wouldn't go as far as wearing gloves and a ventillator to handle them...
I mean, cigerettes are known to cause cancer but I wouldn't go as far as wearing gloves and a ventillator to handle them...
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The Fisherman
- Fahaka Puffer
- Posts: 694
- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 2:46 pm
- Location: West Michigan
- Contact:
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Boxermom
- Former Staff Member
- Posts: 2182
- Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:34 pm
- Location: Wisconsin
- Contact:
Saccharine can cause cancer, but you'd have to eat several pounds of it a day for several decades for any substantial risk. Still, we require warnings on foods that contain it.
Tina
Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
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helicopter
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:32 pm
Cancer
Yes, I admit there is a possibility that the chemicals in it can be relatively benign in the concentrations present in the product. However, there is a chance that it can be very dangerous in the concentrations present. That is the problem with the policy of labeling every product that contains even the smallest trace of cancer causing substance as "This product is known to cause cancer." It causes people to follow the moto "Hey sugar says it causes cancer and I eat it every day, then it should be equally safe to expose myself to this chemical which also says it can cause cancer." It is bad practice to think, hey if someone puts a product on the market, then it must be safe to expose myself to it. I would really be interested in knowing what amount of the carcinogenic material is present in the product.