# Parasite help



## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

Hi guys,

I think 2 of my platies have some sort of parasite. They are very thin, i mean it looks like they don't have a stomach but i've seen them eating. I haven't seem them pooping so I cannot comment on that. One of the platy now sits at the bottom but if i go near the tank it will come up. I've seen it getting aggressive with my cories/palties

I am thinking of using Terta parasite guard but its says it can cause cancer so I am a bit worried. Should try to find something else that is not a carcinogen?

I have amano shrimps in my tank so how should i medicate the tank? remove the platies with the problem in a bowl (3gallon) and then add the medication? how long should i leave the fish in there with the medication?


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## RevoBuda (Sep 3, 2011)

Take Half a tab of metronidazole, dissolve in water, put as much food as they'll eat in there, leave it in the fridge to absorb the meds - feed them and drop all contents into the tank. Do this for 10 days straight, change water 25% every other day. That should help them. At the same thing nd of the treatment feed with frozen brine to help their intestines recover. Good luck!


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

I went to petsmart but I couldn't find your medication there so I went with the tetra parasite guard. Dosed it as instructed last night, so far I don't see any improvements. The fish still have skinny stomach, closed fins, laying on the substrate, erratic swimming and curved spine. It would just lay down on one side too. 

The 2nd platy with skinny stomach and closed fin is very active but I've seen going down to substrate but it doesn't stay there very often.

Both fish ate today so I hope that is a good sign. 

If I want to remove the medication how long do i need to leave the carbon in the filter?


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

The tetra meds require 3 treatments 2 days apart, with water changes. I have found them to be effective. As far as plecos go, they should be eating massive quantities of food, and crapping proportionally.


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

so its like

Day 0 add the tablet

Day 2 25% water change and then add tablet 

Day 4 25% water change and then add tablet

Day 6 add carbon filter and leave it for 2 days

Day 8 50% water change 

is that okay? or do i need to use carbon every 48hrs?


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

From my experience, once they get a curved spine its all over.

I recommend you just save your money on meds and either wait for them to die or flush them now. I have never had a fish last more than a week after the spine curved.


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

pyrrolin said:


> From my experience, once they get a curved spine its all over.
> 
> I recommend you just save your money on meds and either wait for them to die or flush them now. I have never had a fish last more than a week after the spine curved.


Well I looked at the fish today, it is eating but still rest on the substrate. The spine doesn't look too bad today. I will go ahead with the treatment and add the 2nd tablet.

The fish costs less than the medication but it was a nice and active when it was healthy. I'm going to try and see if I can "restore" it.


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## Y2KGT (Jul 20, 2009)

pyrrolin said:


> From my experience, once they get a curved spine its all over.
> 
> I recommend you just save your money on meds and either wait for them to die or flush them now. I have never had a fish last more than a week after the spine curved.


Never ever flush a live fish. There are humane ways of putting a fish out of its misery. Clove oil being one of them and you can get it from any Shopper's Drug Mart for a few dollars.
--
Paul


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## Fish_Man (Apr 9, 2010)

Y2KGT said:


> Never ever flush a live fish. There are humane ways of putting a fish out of its misery. Clove oil being one of them and you can get it from any Shopper's Drug Mart for a few dollars.
> --
> Paul


+1 on that.


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## Mlevi (Jan 28, 2012)

Y2KGT said:


> Never ever flush a live fish....


Lol...I'm sure he meant it as a dysphemism, and not to be taken literally. I, myself, quite often use it as one..as in "If that fish doesn't recover soon, I'll have to flush it", meaning euthanize it.

I'd like to think that nobody on this forum would be as cruel as to actually flush a fish or say leave it out of the water and suffocate it as a means to getting rid of it. Maybe I'm being naive?

I agree it is a wrong choice of words when giving advice though, coz there is the risk of it being taken literally.

Al.


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## Y2KGT (Jul 20, 2009)

Mlevi said:


> Lol...I'm sure he meant it as a dysphemism, and not to be taken literally. I, myself, quite often use it as one..as in "If that fish doesn't recover soon, I'll have to flush it", meaning euthanize it.
> 
> I'd like to think that nobody on this forum would be as cruel as to actually flush a fish or say leave it out of the water and suffocate it as a means to getting rid of it. Maybe I'm being naive?
> 
> ...


Unfortunately there are a number of people on this forum that do exactly that when they have a sick or unwanted fish.

At least GAT sounds like someone willing to spend a little time and money trying to save his fish.

I once spent a small fortune on meds for a $5 gourami and the guy at the LFS store told me to just give up and buy a new one. In the end I couldn't save him but at least I felt like I tried my best.
--
Paul


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

I didn't mean to flush a live fish down the toilet, I will flush a dead fish but a live one I have been tossing them in the back yard hoping they die fast. If someone has a good method, id love to hear it. I think I have only ever tossed one live fish out. The rest of the time I give them every chance to recover and live


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

Ok I added the 2nd tablet, I am planning go with my original dosing plan. I will then wait for a week or two before even thinking about using clove oil.

but nobody really answered my important question though, is this product safe to touch with hand? It says one of the item is known to cause cancer so i am bit worried.


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## Mlevi (Jan 28, 2012)

GAT said:


> but nobody really answered my important question though, is this product safe to touch with hand? It says one of the item is known to cause cancer so i am bit worried.


I don't think handlin' one metro tab will make a diff one way or another in terms of cancer risk. However, as with all fish keeping tasks, observe the practice of washing hands immediately before and after. That is one rule I discipline myself to follow to the point of being anal about.

Al.


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## Mlevi (Jan 28, 2012)

pyrrolin said:


> ...a live one I have been tossing them in the back yard hoping they die fast...


I use a mixture of 1/2 H2O and 1/2 rubbing alcohol to euthanize fish when absolutely necessary. I have never tried to use clove oil to euthanize fish, but I've seen it used in minute quantities to anesthetize fish in order to remove cancer lumps etc.

Al.


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## Y2KGT (Jul 20, 2009)

GAT said:


> but nobody really answered my important question though, is this product safe to touch with hand? It says one of the item is known to cause cancer so i am bit worried.


They have to put that on there to sell their product in California. I just cut the package and push the tablet out into the water without touching it just to be safe.



Mlevi said:


> I use a mixture of 1/2 H2O and 1/2 rubbing alcohol to euthanize fish when absolutely necessary. I have never tried to use clove oil to euthanize fish, but I've seen it used in minute quantities to anesthetize fish in order to remove cancer lumps etc.
> 
> Al.


Alcohol burns so you should never use it to euthanize your fish. Pick up a bottle of Clove Oil at Shoppers Drug Mart or any other pharmacy.

Follow the instructions below to euthanize a fish:

From http://www.oscarfishlover.com/helpful-articles/euthanize-fish

1. Firstly, move the fish into a smaller tank or container - something that can be thrown away or easily cleaned.

2. Put 3 drops with a half pint/quart of water and shake very well, so the oil and water make a fusion - otherwise the oil will just float on top of the water and for the euthanasia to work the fish has to get the oil into its system.

3. Add the mixture to the water that the fish is in and stir it around slowly with your hand. The fish should become lethargic and sleepy.

4. Add another mixture of 2 to 3 drops of oil in water. When the fish goes "belly up" it is asleep - not dead.

5. Then add 3 more drops of clove oil. The fish feels nothing, it is very peaceful and humane. It seems mad that a few drops of something can have such an effect, but it IS very strong. Don't make the mistake of thinking that if you initially put more in it will act quicker - it will only freak the fish out - it has to be done gradually so the fish doesn't notice the change in the water.

The whole proceedure should take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. You will know when the fish is completely dead because there will be absolutely no movement of the gills. If after an hour the fishes gills are still moving you could add a couple more drops of clove oil. Sometimes it does depend on the size of the fish to how many drops of clove oil are needed.

I then put the dead fish in a plastic ziplock bag and put it into the garbage. Don't flush it down the toilet and don't throw it into the backyard for some animal to find it and perhaps eat a deseased fish.
--
Paul


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## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

+1 for clove oil. It works and is humane. I have used it twice for danios that had uncurable dropsy.

But I would add a step, to be certain the fish dies a painless death. The one thing about clove oil is that it IS an effective anesthetic. It's a standard fish anesthetic, and it can slow their breathing to just a one or two gill movements per minute. So they can look dead and not be dead. Once the fish is asleep, it will sink to the bottom and list to the side. You can watch for gill movement, but it can take a number of hours for a fish to die using only clove oil.

So you can add alcohol once the fish is asleep and ensure it passes on in a painless way that is certain. You add about 25% vodka or some other white alcohol, to the clove oil bath, once the fish is deeply asleep. After about twenty minutes or so, check for gill movement. If there are no movements for at least one minute, you can be sure the fish has died.

This site has complete instructions on how to use both clove oil, the instructions are virtually identical to those already given previously here, and then how to use the alcohol, for both small fish and for larger fish as well.

http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-the-most-humane-way-to-euthanize-a-fish.htm

I prefer to add the alcohol step simply because it can take so long for the clove oil to work completely, and I'd rather be certain the unfortunate fish has passed on before I dispose of it. It would be bad if the poor thing woke up to find itself suffocating, which can also take a painfully long time to cause actual death. So given the choice, if I have alcohol on hand, I use it as well as clove oil to be sure.


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## GAT (Oct 8, 2011)

Alright, the treatment is not working. Original platy is still rests on the substrate, sometime is lays down sideways. However, I noticed that it put back some of the weight so its not that skinny.


Sadly, I see two other platys showing similar behavior. They are not swimming as they used to and tend to stay near the substrate. Other platys are doing fine and swimming. All of them eat food fine. I am planning to change water and see if that will help the fish.


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