Parasite Attack
Hi crew, <Hi Lorenzo, MacL with you today.>
I'm afraid I have a parasitic infestation in my tank. <Not good Lorenzo, not good at all.> These parasites look like little oval semitransparent lice that become white and tear away from fishes when I dip them in fresh water. <Have you seen the picture here, http://www.wetwebmedia.com/isopodfaqs.htm, is it one of these?> I think they are trematodes or Argulus sp. (crustaceans). The problem is that after one or two week that I've done the freshwater bath they come back again over fishes eyes and in my puffer's gills. <I really think you need to get the fish out of that tank and put them in a quarantine system. Let the tank go fallow and keep the fish out for 4 weeks.> I can't treat my display tank because have live rocks in it. And when I'll pass to a grater tank in November I have to use my live rocks that I afraid infested by these parasites. <You'll move whatever is in the rock into the new tank unless you let the parasites die out by letting the tank go fallow.> I'm trying cleaner wrasse to control the spread.
What can I do to heal my fishes and to disinfest my tank? <I would continue with the freshwater dips and consider putting them in a quarantine system with a low level of copper for the parasites. I would let the tank go fallow for at least four weeks before I put any fish back and let the parasites die out with nothing to feed on.> Thanks for your help!!!! <Hope this helps, MacL>
Best regard
Lorenzo

Gold veil angel rams
I recently purchased 5 gold veil angel rams from my LFS.. they normally get them twice a year and are gone as soon people realize the store has them in stock so I decided to go on ahead and buy them even though they seem to have what looks like as an internal parasite or tumors or something of the sort.  besides.. at this point I'm curious just to know what exactly is wrong with them and how to properly treat them or if it's even at all possible to treat them.
the "tumors" as we'll call them are about 2-3mm in diameter, oval shaped and brown or gray in color.  you can see them through the body of the fish as they are somewhat translucent.  they don't show any signs of struggling.. they are responsive to stimuli, they eat regularly and are all housed currently in a 5 gallon quarantine tank with no substrate and a sponge filter as you would find in a fry tank.  
they are currently being treated with a 1/4 teaspoon of paragon every other day with a 2-3 gallon water change every fourth or sixth day.  I've had them for about a week and they don't seem to be getting any better, but they aren't getting any worse either.  I was wondering if this really could be a parasite or infection and if I'm treating them with the proper medication.  I have also given them a salt bath using freshwater salt but could only do this for around a minute or so before they were beginning to float on their sides.. I thought I was sure to have killed a couple doing this but I quickly moved them back to the 5 gallon tank and to my surprise they all lived and returned back to their normal state.  if you have any suggestions I'd really appreciate it.. even some background information on the fish would be great as I know they are relatively new to the stores, or at least here on Oahu.. in fact.. this is the only LFS on the island that ever gets them.. hence why I thought I may risk buying these ones.  I have called the LFS since to check about the rest of the fish to find that they too aren't getting any better either.
< Many of these parasites that infest the body of the host are difficult to treat because the tissues of the fish prevent the medication from getting to the parasite. The other problem is when the parasite dies then this dead thing starts to decay and rot inside the fish. Sometimes these things are parasites that have numerous hosts. They start out in a snail and then invade a fish. The fish gets eaten by a bird and excretes the eggs of the parasite that then hatches and lives in a snail for a while and starts the cycle all over again. I would quickly try and breed the rams and start a parasite free generation.-Chuck>
thanks again
Jonathan

Getting On the Right Track With Black Spots - 05/31/2004
Someone else has asked about this problem and wanted to know what caused the black spots and the answer was about the quality of the water.  
<Mm....  Might help to have more background on your specific problem.  Not having the other FAQ in front of me, I don't know about the other person's scenario, but it will be difficult to aid you without details of your situation.>
I understand that probably is the cause but the question of that person as well as myself is are the black spots due to a fungus or a bacterial infection because the treatment is different.
<Really, without details, I can only give you a generalized answer, based on assumptions....  I can assume that you mean the "classic" 'black-spot' disease, which is a digenetic fluke - a parasite, passed to the fish from another animal - which appears as small, black spots, like bits of pepper on the fish, almost.  For this, there isn't really a great deal you can do to treat, but it shouldn't be terribly life-threatening.  If the fish is horribly infested, it might be worthwhile to try a praziquantel bath, or try treating orally with Levamisole or piperazine, but I really don't know how effective this would be.  'Course, with this assumption, I might be WAY off track - perhaps you have some other disease in mind....  Ah, I realize now, I don't even know if you're talking about a fresh or saltwater tank....  If you can, please get back to me with more information - fish affected, type & size of aquarium, other inhabitants of the tank (especially presence of snails - the first host of the fluke responsible for 'black spot'), how long the tank's been established, how long you've had the affected fish (newly acquired fish may bring along 'black spot' if they were collected in the wild or raised in a pond), water parameters.... anything else of note.>
Yes, I know to change the water and correct the problem for the future, but I wish to treat specifically with medication but don't know if I should use an antibiotic or an antifungal????  
<Again, without details of your situation, I cannot give you an answer; without details to try to diagnose with, I don't know if your fish has 'black spot' or a common cold.>
Please Help.  
<Would love to, really; please do get back to us; I'd be delighted to give you a better answer, once I have a better understanding of what's happening in the tank.>
Thank you
<Thanks for writing in - wishing you and your fish well,  -Sabrina>

MONOGENETIC Gill Flukes Infect Snails and Fish? - 05/31/2004
I am told by a moderator on an aquaria message board that my Pomacea bridgesii snails have given my guppies gill flukes.  
<Mm, no....  May have brought other things, like digenetic trematodes responsible for 'black spot', but not gill flukes.  As you note in the title of your question, gill flukes are monogenetic....  need no other host than the fish.>
I have searched the net for weeks and can find no evidence that this is possible.  The snails are captive bred/raised,
<Can still be captive bred/raised in outdoor ponds with access for visiting birds (or just visiting bird poo), which would allow for transmission of some parasites, like 'black spot', as above - I'm not at all saying this has happened, and probably does not at all relate to your situation - just another reason to quarantine *all* animals, *especially* snails.>
and as far as I know, gill flukes are monogenetic.  This would mean the fluke would have to be non-host-specific and infect both snail and fish alike.  
<Mm, no, found only in fish.  Another fun tidbit - gill flukes are usually of the genus Dactylogyrus, but skin flukes are of the genus Gyrodactylus  - I'm too easily amused....>
This seems like a big stretch, and I have no real evidence that the fish have/had gill fluke.  Some did/do appear to have some gill irritation which began with 48 hours of being introduced to a completely disinfected new setup that had cycled without fish for over a month, and to which I then added the P. bridgesii about 1 week before the fish.  
<I'd test ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, also consider if the fish have had any major changes in pH (either from the store to home, or from QT to main tank); I would think this far likelier than flukes.>
Is it really possible that the snails gave the fish flukes or is some other cause more likely?
<I would hedge my bets on 'some other cause'.>
I would appreciate any information, documentation or verification of this possibility.
<Can give you documentation *against* it, but not for it, I'm afraid.>
Thank you,  Karin Wiechert
<Any time.  Wishing you, your fish and inverts well,  -Sabrina>

MONOGENETIC Gill Flukes Infect Snails and Fish? - II - 05/31/2004
Thank you very much, Sabrina.  
<You betcha, Karin.>
In all my research I could find no evidence that a gill fluke could live on both the gills of apple snails (quarantined for over a month, I might add) and then infect the gills of aquarium fish, but hearing it from you increases my confidence 10 fold.  Thank you so much.
<Any time.  That's what we're here for.>
I kept notes of all the parameters of the new tank, including even O2 and CO2 levels, but I neglected to keep track of the parameters in the quarantine tanks since I was replacing the water with fresh tap water every couple of days.  There almost certainly would have been a pH change of as much as 1 degree,
<Zowie.  That in and of itself might be/might have been the issue.>
and certainly more dissolved solids.  In addition, I had an entire mail order of plants die and foul the new tank,
<So a bundle of decaying organic material, too, then - do check that this hasn't given you a bit of a pH swing, as well.>
so I used an enzyme cleaner
<I, personally, feel that such potions are bunk.  If you can't reach it to siphon it out, you might want to look into a longer siphon tube, perhaps?  A little elbow grease will go a lot farther than a magic cure-all-in-a-bottle.>
to help break it down what I couldn't reach with the siphon so it could be removed by the bio- and mechanical filters.  
<If there's not a whole lot of debris, it can be confidently left without worry.  If there is a whole lot of debris, again, maybe a longer siphon tube....>
It seems possible that some of that enzyme may have also remained in the tank, possibly causing some irritation.  
<I don't doubt that it's possible that this concoction may have caused some discomfort in your critters; I really don't put much stock in them.>
I'm so glad to be reasonably assured that gill flukes are not the problem, and will be more careful to acclimate new fish in the future.  
<If you're feeling daring, and have a microscope (or high school/college laboratory to make use of), you might take a skin scrape just behind the operculum to look at; this would be sufficient to reassure you, one way or the other.  Dactylogyrus, after hatching, make their way along the body of the fish to the gills, so you need not take a scrape of the gills to see if they're present.>
Maybe I'll start by replacing the quarantine water slowly with water from the main tank so that they become accustomed to the dissolved solids, pH, and other things before introduction.
<A perfect plan, indeed!>
If you have some documentation AGAINST the fluke hypothesis, I would be interested in reading it (one can never learn TOO much).
<Oh, my....  crackin' out the books....  We'll start with "Tropical Fishlopaedia", by Bailey and Burgess, p. 274 & 275, "Gill Flukes - Strictly, any fluke that parasitizes the gills, but in aquarium usage applied to the monogenetic flukes of the genus Dactylogyrus.  Some 50 species are known, with a size range of 0.15 to 2mm in length.  All are gill parasites, found only in fish, and occasionally also occurring on other parts of the body."  Next, "Handbook of Fish Diseases", by Untergasser, page 100: "Dactylogyridea - Monogenetic flukes or trematodes of the order Dactylogyridea live mainly on gills."  Next, "Aquariology: The Science of Fish Health Management, Master Volume" by Gratzek et. al., page 241, under "Monogenetic trematodes": "Dactylogyrids are usually associated with the gills, and for that reason are called gill flukes."  Lastly (and not leastly), "Fish Diseases: Diagnosis and Treatment" by Noga, p. 88-93, aside from having Dactylogyrus listed as Monogeneans, even has a diagram (page 90) of the life cycle, with the fish as the only host (er, since they are, after all, monogenetic).  And from page 89, "The oviparous Dactylogyrids are primarily gill parasites of freshwater fish (Yamaguti, 1968)."  There is far, far too much information in these books to even begin to type it all out for ya, but I hope these excerpts have settled your mind a bit; as it is, "You don't have to take my word for it".  Also, now you have a list of books to go diggin' for, should you choose to see the info firsthand :) >
Thank you again.  Your helps is greatly appreciated.
<Any time.  I live to research.  Wishing you and your fish well,  -Sabrina>
Sincerely,  Karin Wiechert

MONOGENETIC Gill Flukes Infect Snails and Fish? - III - 05/31/2004
Thank you again, Sabrina!
<Sure thing.>
Now, I not only have reassurance that the fish aren't infected with gill flukes, but I have a way to check without trying to scrape gill filament from tiny little GUPPIES!  Eeek!  
<And even still, I think the likelihood of gill flukes in your case does not even warrant checking; just if you feel so inclined, less trauma for you (and the fish).>
I also have learned a lesson -- no enzyme cleaners (although I'd have had to dismantle and drain my heavily planted and decorated tank to get rid of the muck --
<...?...  Uhm, do you really have portions of the tank that are *that* inaccessible?  Zowie.>
looked okay until I stuck my hand in and everything disintegrated into goo).  Maybe should have siphoned out all the water and
replaced it a couple of times.  
<Aaaaah.  I see.  Just, *poof*, eh?  Yeah, water changes will give you much better results than a fix in a bottle.>
Thanks also for the titles/authors.  I need some good reference books, and you've given me a place to start with my next visit to Borders or Barnes and Noble.
<Well, to point you in the right direction, then, I'd strongly recommend "Tropical Fishlopaedia" by Bailey and Burgess.  This is a very useful little book, though I wouldn't recommend it to a first beginner or a youngster, in most cases.  For someone a little more advanced, it's a great all-in-one, and has very easy-to-understand information on disease and medication.  It's a little more up-to-date than Untergasser (which is still a favorite of mine, and probably my second recommendation), and much simpler than Gratzek and Noga (cheaper, too!).  Though, be sure to bookmark pages 189, 213 and 317, or you'll have a heck of a time with it.... much as I like this book, it has a major shortcoming of having no complete index.>
Thank you so much for your help.
<Any time.  -Sabrina>
Sincerely, Karin Wiechert

Characid Parasitology help sought
Dear Sir,
I feel most enthused in your marvelous efforts in elucidating parasites of Fish to the students all over the world.
I have in my attachment an appeal onto where my research work lies.
School of postgraduate Studies 
Faculty of Biological Sciences
Department of Zoology 
University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
14- 05- 04. 
Dear Sir,
I praise your academic prowess, especially, in the area of fisheries parasitology. May your efforts and strength never waver in your imbued march towards bettering nature.
I am a postgraduate research student in the above department and University, working on the parasites of Characidae in the Anambra River Basin, Nigeria. 
The following are the objectives of this research work: 
Ø There is scanty relevant parasitological information on fisheries development and management in Nigeria. An informed reason to fill the gap.
Ø Fish are the most readily available animal protein both in the hinterland areas and cosmopolitan areas of Nigeria. Our over 120 Million population is the largest consumer of fish in Africa. So, there is burning desire to ensure availability of fish in our meals thereby ridding them of these parasites. 
Sir, I am in great need of your assistance, which is inevitable to the accomplishment of this Research work. Such assistance is needed in the following areas: 
ü The latest scientific methods, materials on the parasitic investigations on Characidae. 
ü The parasites of the Characidae. 
The aforementioned are fulcrums that will pilot the research to a logical success. 
I would be grateful if my request is delivered. 
Thank you. 
Your sincerely, 
ECHI, PAUL CHINEDU 
paul_echi@yahoo.com
Thank you.
<Paul, will post your request for others response. We don't "do" research per se (but relate others experiences), but am hopeful your message will be found. Have you contacted the Smithsonian asking for reference help? I would. Bob Fenner>

Hydra, discus
Hello, I really need to know something bad i have had from time to time in my discus tank which is a 125 gallon with a 350 magnum and two double bio wheels on back, tank has been up for 2and 1 half years do water changes ones a week
on it 35 gallons at a time. my fish have darted around and had to dip one in salt before i noticed today one was darting again, last week i saw some things on glass quite a few look like hydra (octopuses) trying to buy Flubendazole? do
you have some or no ? do you think this is my problem? have had a lot of my fish for as long as the tank but have lost some too,, Hexamita?????? you have a great site this is my first time on looked for information on this could not see sorry to bother but looks like your the man????? thanks Kathy
< First of all I would do some water quality tests to start. Check the ammonia, should read zero. Second check the nitrites, should also read zero. Then the nitrates, should be less than 25 ppm. With the BioWheels the ammonia and nitrite should not be a problem. If the nitrates are a problem then they need to reduced with either larger or more frequent water changes. Service the filters. I know that servicing these canister filters can be a hassle but a filter only collects waste so it can removed by you and taken out of the system. I would vacuum the gravel too. This gets rid of all kinds of waste that can contribute to a nitrate problem. Now that we know the water is clean the fish should be looking better and have more resistance to disease. Watch your feeding so all the food is getting eaten in a couple minutes each time. If the problem persists then I would start looking at the pH. A high pH can be irritating to a fish use to soft acidic water from the Amazon. An RO unit may be needed to soften and acidify the water. The water temp should be around 80 degrees. Clean ,warm, soft acidic water should have your discus looking and acting like true champs. But if there is still a problem and they are not getting better then I would isolate the fish in a quarantine tank and treat with Kanamycin. The hydra by themselves are no danger to your discus unless you have small babies in the tank. Once you take care of all the environmental factors then I think your hydra will go away with the other problems.-Chuck> 

Callamanus
Hi there. I have done tons of researching on the web and still have been
unable to find any suitable answers for my questions. I'm hoping you can
help! :-) I have been keeping fish for awhile now, and have over 15
tanks. One that I have is a 6 gallon planted tropical tank with the
following inhabitants - 3 platies, 1 female dwarf Gourami, 2 croaking
gouramis, and 2 cherry barbs. This is where I'm having problems. A month
or 2 ago, I was noticing that my cherry barbs were not up to par, and
upon closer examination, noticed red wormlike things protruding from
their vents. I removed them to a quarantine tank and treated them with
first Jungle Parasite Clear, and then, after further research, Pipzine by
Aquatronics. (I am unable to find Discomed, I do not think it is being
manufactured anymore.) There wasn't much improvement, and I needed the
tank they were in for breeding, so I had to move them back to the 6
gallon. I then treated the whole tank with another dose of Pipzine. The
female cherry barb is still eating, though she is very bloated and has
been for some time. The male is definitely on the way out. In the last
few days, I have now noticed that 2 of my platies are displaying the same
worms. I am very upset by this, as I do not want the entire tank to die
out, especially the croaking gouramis as they are very rare around here
and I love them. None of the 3 Gouramis in that tank are displaying any
sign of sickness, though the croaking have been in there the shortest
period of time (month or so). I cannot quite pinpoint what kind of worms
these are - they are constantly hanging out of the fish, they do not
retreat with movement, and are a reddish brown color. The most severe
cases are in the cherry barbs, who have 5-10+ worm tails(?) showing. I am
afraid that the gouramis are all affected too, but not yet showing signs.
I could move them to another tank, but I don't want to spread this
parasite. It has shown up in one of my bettas also. If you have any
suggestions of what to do, what to treat with, etc, I would be extremely
grateful. I'm at my wits end and almost ready to quit the hobby, this is
so hard and I just can't seem to be able to do anything about it. Thank
you!!! Julie Waite
<<Dear Julie, do not quit!! You are on the right track. Your fish have Callamanus. You can treat with DiscoMed, made by Aquatronics. If you do a google search, you will find lots of info on this disease. I would recommend you try to find DiscoMed online, and order it from a reputable website. Since I am Canadian, I can only recommend their website, http://www.aquatronicsonline.com/contact.htm ,I also found this link for you: http://www.epetpals.com/cgi-bin/commerce.exe?preadd=action&key=031399111510  Hope this helps. -Gwen>>

Unknown fish with whirling disease
My fish started swimming around like crazy, really fast.  He bumped into the sides of the aquarium a lot.
<It would be very helpful if you tell me what type of fish you have.  If it is in a freshwater, brackish, marine tank.  Knowing what other tankmates and it's living conditions are often sheds better light on what could be causing problems.>
Then, one of his fins stopped moving.  He then started swimming in circles and upside down and then on his side.  He started swimming crazy again and actually jumped out of the aquarium.  
<Since I'm not sure what type of fish this is it's really difficult to know if this is something that is due to infection or possibly environmental.  This sounds like a fish could be infected with Myxospora, which is commonly called the whirling disease.  It's actually a Protozoan that effects the fish.  Symptoms of Myxospora are •Loss of equilibrium
•Swims in a whirling motion
•Bodily deformations
•Nodules and boils appear on body
•Dark coloration on posterior third of fish
The disease progresses very slowly over a period of months. Affected fish slowly lose their ability to maintain a normal position in the water and will whirl and/or swim with their head down. In some cases respiration increases.  Sadly if the fish is infected with this it is incurable.  The standard thing to do is euthanize the fish.  There are medicines on the market that is suppose to help fight this protozoan but, I have not heard of any cases were the fish survived more than a few weeks to a month after treatment.>
We put him back in and then he was motionless at the bottom of the tank.  He was upside down.  We took him out and placed him in a separate container with tank water. What's going on??? I hope he doesn't die.  Any information will help.  Thank you. Theresa
<We had some a pair of our Koi in a breeding aquarium contract this.  Sadly the fish never recovered from it.  The problem is that the condition stresses the fish, and a stressed fish doesn't eat.  The fish usually wastes away if it can't right itself.  For questions in the future please be sure to give all the info you can so we can help you more.  Type of fish, tank size, tank mates, filtration, water parameters, tank temp.  All of these can offer info for us to help you. -Magnus>

Ich on glass
Hey WWC, My customer has an ich infestation that wiped out his tank.
<Ouchie... that isn't good.>
I set him up with some quick cure which he used but didn't pull the carbon from his system.  He lost everything over a few days and was down to just a Bala shark by the time he pulled the carbon and redosed with quick cure.  The Bala shark died as well.  So far nothing surprising.  But then he tells me that the ich is also and the glass of the aquarium!
<I have never heard of anyone having ich on the glass of their aquarium before.  The parasite lives off of hosts, hence the reason you see them on fish.>
He claims they look like salt grains (they are white) but they also have small trailing tentacles.  What do you think?
<I do not feel that this is a ich.  It probably is some form of worm or pest.  They might have been the reason for the loss of fish.  I had someone email me noticing white objects "walking" on the glass surface after a fish had recently died of gill flukes.  Their might be some correlation between the things.  But in most instances the tank conditions were right for pests to grow as well as the parasites that killed the fish, for instance Planaria (white little worms).  The Planaria won't hurt the fish, but they are a symptom of too much gravel containing too much uneaten food, and that is not good for fish. >
This is a freshwater tank, he patiently cycled it and had a stable population for several weeks before this event.
<He also needs to quarantine new arrivals before adding them to the tank.  Bala Sharks can be a bit sensitive in my opinion, and need to be kept in tanks that have been established for a month or two.  If to many are introduced to a new tank quickly medical and parasite problems have been known to occur.  If he wishes to retry the aquarium, it will be best if medicates the tank with no fish in it, then leaves it fishless for at least 4 weeks so that any surviving parasites die off.  After that he can do the water changes, and get the tank going with fish.  Have him add fish at a rate of one per two weeks, preferably quarantining them during the time.  Which will give the fish a time adjust, and the tank a time to build up the bacteria bed to handle the fish load.>
Any ideas? Thanks in advance,
Neal Isaacs Aquatica
<Good luck -Magnus>

Discus with Hexamita? - 02/02/2004
Please help...I don't want to lose me discus fish. I have been treating with rid-ich for 5 days now. The ich is almost gone, but the fish have developed cloudy eyes, a whitish clear coating on their bodies and ragged fins. 
<This sounds perhaps like "skin slime disease" - caused by protozoan parasites, likely Hexamita, or possibly Ichthyobodo (Costia), Childonella, Trichodina.... All should respond favorably to Metronidazole administered in food. Metronidazole can be found made by Aquatronics (Hex-a-Mit, green or blue box) and by Seachem (simply Metronidazole).>
I have a 55 gallon aquarium. Temp is at 86 degrees. Nitrates, nitrites and ammonia are ok. Ph is at 7. I've been doing a 20 - 25% water change daily, and I added 8 tablespoons of aquarium salt to the water. Please let me know what else I should do....
<A good start - and may in and of itself effect improvement or cure. I would still treat with Metronidazole in food.>
Thank you sooooo much, Anna
<Wishing you well, -Sabrina>

Sick guppies
       Hello, I'm having a problem with guppies dying. They are in a community tank (20 gal) with a couple mollies, two white clouds, a SAE, and a 1-inch fw puffer (adult size, no worries, he doesn't even try to eat the baby guppies).
>>Hello :D I think will eventually have a problem with keeping puffers and guppies together. Puffers are notoriously aggressive fin nippers, and will start shredding tails at some point. The mollies can also be quite aggressive. What is the scientific name of the puffer? (Tetraodon travancorius?) These are two species that I would NEVER recommend to put with guppies, as generally, guppies should be only kept with non-aggressive fish.<<
Oh, and there are currently two adult male and two adult female guppies (the number of small guppies varies with time, of course... maybe three tiny guys right now). This problem has been going on for a couple of months, and I'm at the end of my rope trying to figure it out/solve it. The symptoms are rapid breathing and progressive loss of energy, and a decreased interest in food. Some of the fish occasionally flick against the bottom. Only the guppies show
symptoms/die.
>>Normal, since guppies are the least resilient fish you have in the tank.<<
I've treated the tank with Maracyn and Maracyn 2, thinking that this is an infection of the gills, but no success in eradicating it- every few weeks another fish starts having breathing problems. I have added aquarium salts to the tank (tsp/gal), having read that that will help with the breathing and should make an inhospitable environment for the infecting agent... not inhospitable enough, apparently! I have checked my water quality for pH and ammonia-
7.4 and 0 ppm (comes out of the tap at 7.2ish). I change the water regularly (every 1 to 2 weeks).
>>You will need to treat with an anti-parasitic medication, like Super Ich Cure, or Quick Cure. I like Quick Cure because the Formalin in it helps against gill flukes. Remove your carbon, of course. Your pH is a tad low for mollies, and perhaps the puffer, too, depending on the species of puffer you are keeping. You have tested ammonia, but what about nitrite and nitrate? We really need to know this. Nitrite is just as toxic as ammonia, and a nitrite spike can last quite a long time. How much water do you change? What percentage, that is..<<
Part of the reason that this has gone on so long is that only one fish at a time ever shows symptoms then dies, so I've thought that I had cleared up the problem previously, only to go through the same agonizing process a week or so later. Also, a friend who has many years of fish experience told me not to worry, that the guppies that were dying were probably just old... 
>>I doubt this.<<
I won't take advice like that again from anyone who regards my fish as just a food source for bigger fish! It's now affecting fish that I know are only 7 months old. Please help if you can! I feel so awful watching them get sicker and sicker, not knowing what else I can do for them! Thank you! Sarah O PS I think I comb through your site about once a week, learning a bit more about aquaria and fish each time. It's a great resource, thank you for providing it!
>>As I mentioned, go to your local fish store and buy an anti-parasitic medication. Your fish have gill flukes, a parasite. -Gwen

Dwarf Gourami and Camallanus
Hi there,
<Hello!  Sabrina, here.>
Thank you all for keeping such a wonderful and informative website.
<And thank you for the kind words!>
I have had two dwarf Gourami in a 5 gallon QT tank with an established sponge filter for approx 2 months.  I plan on moving them to a much
larger tank when I'm sure that they are disease/parasite free.
<Sounds like an excellent plan.>
About one month ago I noticed two tiny red threads (approx. 2mm long) poking out from the anus of each Gourami.  
<Yikes, that does indeed sound like Camallanus.>
I ordered some Pepsofood and fed it for three days and then once per week as directed with no effect.
<Although Pepso food is very useful stuff, I do not believe it contains medicines effective against Camallanus.>
The fish still have a hearty appetite and do not display any unusual behavior or appearance.  
<Always a good sign!>
Recently I was reading an article that suggested my fish were infected with the Camallanus nematode.  
<Sounds like it.  Though, is it possible what you're seeing is just feces?  Some red-colored foods will give fish red poo, but the "threadlike" appearance you describe is classic of Camallanus.>
Many different medications were suggested on many websites like disco worm,
<Perhaps this was "Discomed"?  Discomed, manufactured by Aquatronics, contains Levamisole, and should be effective against Camallanus.>
Trichlorfon, fluke tabs,
<Fluke tabs are/contain Trichlorfon.  This substance should be avoided unless absolutely *nothing* else works; although it might be effective, it could be very toxic to the fish.>
Fenbendazole,
<Likely would be effective, but will be very hard to find, I imagine.  Try looking for the proprietary name "Panacur".  However, this will be difficult to dose, as it is usually found sold as a goat or horse worming medicine.>
and levacide.  
<Perhaps "Levamisole"?>
Levacide was touted as being the best cure for this problem.  
<If you mean "Levamisole", as above, you can find that in Discomed, made by Aquatronics.>
I did some research on the web and could not find out where to buy this medication and whether or not it would harm the biological filter.  
<Whether you use piperazine or Levamisole (or even Fenbendazole), it should be administered via food, so it should not impact the nitrifying
Ammonia is 0 nitrite 0 nitrate 10ppm temp 78F and 25% WC 2 times a week with dechlorinated water I keep heated and aerated in a bucket.
<Sounds great.>
Has anyone had experience with this kind of infestation?  Which medication would be most effective and where can I get it?  
<Either Levamisole or piperazine should work for you.  Most small, non-chain fish stores do carry Discomed (Levamisole); however, you can also find it available for sale at many online stores.  You can also look for Aquatronics' "Pipzine", which contains piperazine, and should also be very effective against Camallanus.  If you have trouble locating either of these, you might try contacting Aquatronics ( http://www.aquatronicsonline.com/ ).  I believe there is a store locater on their 'site, as well.>
Can snails be a secondary host?
<I don't *think* so; it is usually spread through feces, I believe.  It would certainly be a good idea to prevent moving any life from the sick tank to another.>
Also, Camallanus I read is highly infectious.  
<It can be easily spread if an infected fish dies and is left in the tank to be nibbled on, or also again, through nibbling on feces (mmmm, feces), so it'd be a really good idea to siphon off any poo and gunk very regularly, even daily.>
If it has reached my other planted freshwater community tank (18 gal, 5 neon tetra, 1 SAE, 2 Otto Cats), what medication could I use with the sensitive catfish?  
<Certainly *not* Trichlorfon, that's for sure.  Piperazine or Levamisole should be fine, though.>
Thank you in advance for your help.  Michelle
<Sure thing.  Wishing you and your Gourami well, Sabrina>

De-worming fish in the hospital tank (11/22/03)
<Hi! Ananda at the keyboard tonight...>
Hi, I had some bad luck with internal worms, so I decided to start a nurse tank to minimize my losses.
<Good idea.>
My mother who is also a fish lover advised me to medicate the tank.
<I always try to avoid medicating the display tank -- much easier/cheaper to medicate a hospital tank. Some courses of medications get so expensive with a big tank that you'd actually save money if you bought a small tank and treated the affected fish in the small tank.>
She said not to use the full dosage but wasn't sure what meds to use or how much. What would you recommend in such a situation.
<For internal worms and similar nasties, Discomed is a good one to use. Since you soak food in Discomed + water, you just follow the directions on the box.>
I want to make sure the fish I put in my tanks are disease free. All of the tanks are fresh water community-semi-community. Thanks
<Ah, that brings to mind an image of a town full of fish driving tractor-trailers.... Your desire to keep your fish healthy via a hospital tank is a good one. Do check out our freshwater forums at http://wetwebfotos.com/talk . --Ananda>

Treating velvet
Hi,
<Hello, Sabrina with you today>
We are complete novices at this, we have a 55 gal aquarium, what is the best treatment for ick and velvet, a third of the fish are infected with what appears to be velvet. We are currently treating with Mardel's Coppersafe, but does not seem to be doing any good, we do not have a sick tank.  So far the Bala Sharks have it and a neon tetra.  Hoping you can help us.  Larry and Maggie Fleming
<Well, first off, a proper treatment is going to depend on what fish are in the tank you're treating.  Copper should be effective against velvet, but neon tetras are really quite sensitive, and probably shouldn't be treated with copper, so I'd stop with that immediately.  A better route for you is probably to treat with quinine (I believe Aquatronics offers this as "Quinsulex"), add aquarium salt at 1-2 tablespoons per ten gallons, and (unless the outbreak is very severe) raising the temperature to 82 degrees F or so, provided you have no fish that will be intolerant of that.  It'd also be a good idea to keep the tank lights off until you've completed treatment as the protozoa are photosynthetic.  I will caution you, however, to watch very closely to be sure that none of your fish are overly sensitive to the quinine; I'm not sure how the neons will fare with it, and I also don't know what other fish are in your system; you only mentioned Bala sharks and neon tetras.  Be sure to read all details on the box to see if there are any warnings against use with any of the fish that you keep.  Wishing you and your fish well,  -Sabrina>

- Freshwater Black Spot -
Hi, I wrote you guys/girls a while back asking for some help on the black spots that my angel fish got. You provided a link but the link only took me to the parasite part of your website and plus my angel fish are freshwater and it was the saltwater parasite part. <Doh! Sorry...> Thanks anyways but I was wondering if you could help me again. <I'll try.> Let me describe the parasite it is black "spots" about the size of a pencil tip. As if someone had poked the fish about 10-15 times with a pencil on both sides. It appears to be under the scales. The fish do not rub themselves however and they eat fine. The dots are getting worse however. I have looked all over your site and at almost every parasite article that you offer. My water parameters are perfect and even my local fish store does not know how to solve it.  I've used MelaFix which I now know does not really do anything, <Agreed there...> parasite guard, and some other medicine that is in a white tablet form. I'm all out of ideas as to what to give them to fix the problem. Hopefully you can tell me of a medicine or some remedy to solve the black spot dilemma. <It sounds to me like this might be freshwater velvet... which is treatable. Your best bet is to start by putting this fish into a separate tank for quarantine, and perhaps even considering removing all fish from the main system while you treat this problem. Marine and freshwater velvet are caused by related protozoans and these have life cycles which will continue as long as you have fish-hosts. To treat freshwater velvet, raise the temperature a couple of degrees, and then [in the quarantine tank] treat with a copper solution for a minimum of two weeks. Keep plenty of water around for small, frequent water changes to keep the ammonia from building up. You can also add a little salt to the quarantine tank water to help offset the osmotic balance of the protozoans - much like a freshwater bath for marine fish, a saltwater bath for freshwater fish has shown to be of some use in these cases.>
thanks, Sam
<Cheers, J -- >

Info Not on WWM... Or is it? Like Ragu... - 8/13/03
Hi, this isn't really a question but I didn't know how to contact you guys any other way. My angel fish recently had a parasite and not finding it on your site I went to all the fish stores I could find.  They too didn't know what it was and said they had never seen it before and I have been to these stores numerous times.  Knowing that these people knew what they were doing, some with over 25 years worth of experience I went to one last store.  I brought my fish with me and showed the people there.  They too were stumped because the fish had no eating problems behavior problems and in all respects was perfectly healthy except for small black dots that looked as if someone has poked the fish all over with a pencil.  The fresh water fish expert there said to give it Jungle Parasite Guard.  This cleared the fish of all dots within 4 hours.  I would just like u to post this somewhere for people with angel fish, discus, and cichlids as they expert there said this parasite can probably get in these fish as well.  Melafix will not work as I tried the 7 days and then 3 extra days of medication.  However to achieve the 4 hour fix add the recommended amount of aquarium salt for your aquarium and repeat medication in 6 days with a 25% water change before adding. Hopes this helps you guys and the people who have fish with pencil like black dots.
<FWIW.. Melafix I swear is a marketing joke. But regarding your black spots, are you sure that you are not dealing with Paravortex (AKA Black spot disease) turbellarian worms. Usually seen on tangs, they can afflict other fishes [see more here http://www.wetwebmedia.com/parasiti.htm
and http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fshwrmdisfaqs.htm
(scan archives for black spot FAQs).  best regards, Anthony>

Sick Goldfish with Odd Behavior
>I hope I am addressing my question to the correct place.
>>We hope so, too. ;)  Marina today.
>I think my goldfish has some sort of disease, but the symptoms don't exactly match anything that I've found in my many hours of searching the web.  Ok,  the fish is young--about 1 year old.  It was a fairly pale orange and seemingly healthy and active.   Then I noticed that only his head was turning a milky white color.  The
white color is becoming whiter by the day.  It spends most of it's time down on the bottom corner of the tank pushing itself between the side and the air tube like it's trying to swim right through the glass.  
>>This is very odd...
>It has done this so much, it is wearing the scales off of that side that it is rubbing.  Its respiration is also faster than the other two goldfish that are in the tank with it.  The other two fish are perfectly healthy, active, and hungry.  The sick fish is not eating and it kinda looks like it cannot open its mouth.  About 1 week ago,  I tried separating the sick fish and treating it with salt.  This did not help---I put it back in the main tank.
The sick fish is beginning to look emaciated in the head area.   The rest of it's body and fins look fine.
>>Decidedly strange.
>Do you have any ideas?    Thank you very much for any help you may be able to give me.     Jody Louis
>>This is SO odd that I'm putting my money on a parasitic infection.  I would suggest putting it in a separate system and treating with Hex-a-mit, see if that garners any results.  This sounds like NOTHING I have ever encountered, though, so I am sort of shooting in the dark.  I think we can easily rule out the more common diseases; ich, furunculosis/ulcers, or the usual internal parasites that tend to lodge in the gut.  This is why I'm suggesting the Hexamit first.  If anyone else on the crew has any ideas and reads this, PLEASE chime in!  Sorry to hear of this, Jody, and let's hope this treatment works.  Marina

Freshwater good and bad news
Greetings to all!  The bad news is that I recently bought a number of fish to stock my recently-established 180 gallon freshwater tank and now a couple of the fish have a "light" case of ich.  The good news is that I started them (and have kept them since purchase) in a QUARANTINE tank!!  I have read through your site a number of times, and the importance of using a quarantine tank has been stressed repeatedly.  Although I have been doing this for more than 20 years without quarantining new fish, (dodged a lot of bullets, I guess) I took your advice and I'm happy I did.
<Me too! The general quality of freshwater livestock has vastly disimproved over the last decades>
  The quarantine tank is my old 58 gallon Oceanic with established biofiltration.  The new fish currently residing in the Q tank are clown loaches (small), two small Cory catfish, small pleco and a couple of blue gouramis, several small glass catfish and hatchetfish.  Right now only one Gourami has spots -- just a couple on tail fin and a couple on the body.  I have begun raising the temperature from 79 F to the goal temperature in three days of 84F.  I am hesitant to medicate the tank, because the fish look so good otherwise.  They are swimming, eating, and active.
Is the temperature treatment enough to "cure" the outbreak?  If I use medication, do you recommend the Rid-Ich (malachite and Formalin?)  Should I get the medication and watch and wait and only medicate if the problem worsens?
<Yes. This is what I would do. Wait a good few days to a week... see if the ich "cycles off" and doesn't resurface... another week and you are past a "highly virulent" phase... with little likelihood of a recurrence. Bob Fenner>
thanks for your help!
tom

- New Tank, New Problems -
Hi,
<Hello, JasonC here...>
I am Ferlyn. I reside in coastal Karnataka, South India.
I love aquarium keeping but from day one, I am not successful in it.
The reason is unknown to me. Once the fishes started to die by getting flat bodied (please tell me the remedy), <Are they eating?> now my goldie has got a white lice like parasite attached to its fins. I have kept it in blue solution with salt for the past 2 days, no use. <What is it you are using to make the water blue? What kind of fish is this?> The parasite is stuck to its fins & not dropping .please help. <If you could tell me a bit more about your fish, I would be more than happy to help however I can.>
Ferlyn.
<Cheers, J -- >

Treating Parasites with Scaleless fishes 7/10/03
I just recently e-mailed you guys (and gals) about the feeding of a freshwater moray eel (I found this in fact, it is Gymnothorax tile).  Now, I have another problem.  My tank came down with ICH.  But, I don't want my moray to die or have a reaction to the medication I use, so which of the following would be better for me to use: QUICK Cure, Ingredients: 25% Formaldehyde, 75% Malachite Green or Maracide (ingredients: Tisaninomethane, Dibromohydroxymercurifluorescein, Aniline green)?  Or something else that I don't have?
<Neither are wholly safe for this eel... it would be best to separate the eel from other fishes with a hospital tank and treat accordingly>
On your website, you said that organic dyes were poisonous to morays, so is Malachite Green an organic dye?  What about Aniline green?  Is that an organic dye too?
<yes to both>
Thanx So much for your help, Adam
<use straight Formalin in a bare-bottomed tank if you must treat the eel. Best regards, Anthony>

Help with my Black Moor gold fish - Internal Parasites 7/10/03
My sister just got 2 black moor goldfish, one recently died. But the other has been pooping out this whitish, stringy stuff.
<Often a sign of internal parasites. Do seek and feed medicated fish food to correct>
And tonight we noticed a  orange worm looking thing coming out of (I'm assuming its butt) it is not living or anything, but it was like 2 inches long with that white stringy stuff on the end, then he shook real good and it fell off and floated on the top.  Then a few minutes later he did it again. And meanwhile he ate the first stuff that was at the top. Can you tell me what this is, and if the fish is ok? Thanks Very Much......         
Michelle & Spike (fish)  
<If the fish is eating dry foods (flakes or pellets) then it may very well be suffering from internal parasites... else the feces would be solid and darker in color. Kindly, Anthony>

Re: Leeches
Dear P.F.,
Thanks for responding to my e-mail so promptly.
I'll use your suggestions as a jumping off point for further research.
Your truly,
A. Pearlman
<Sorry I wasn't able to provide more information, and I hope you get them under control soon. Have a good weekend, PF>

Leeches
For the reader that was trying to control leeches, Dimilin or Formalin will work, but care must be used in selecting dosage. Be careful!  Formalin will cause problems in bio-filters if applicable. Also try: http://www.state.me.us/dep/blwq/doclake/leech.htm
Craig>

HELP!! ICH!!
Hi Ronni,
<Hello Ruth>
I just wanted to say thanks for your help and input!  It was good to get reassurance about the flukes.  I have been doing the ammonia/nitrite checks, partial water changes, temperature @ 82Ëš and salt all along, all has been well in that department.  
<OK>
But then a few days ago I noticed MORE white spots on a red zebra, and after doing some more reading on line decided to try Coppersafe.  The lady at my LFS told me that there are getting to be some very resistant strains of diseases out there that don't respond as readily to traditional treatments any more.  In any case, the scratching and head shimmy has all but stopped now, and everyone is behaving much more normally.  
<Very good!>
I was thinking about doing a regime of piperazine flakes as I noticed some stomach bloating on a couple of the fish, even though they look normal now.  (Of course these two are the most enthusiastic feeders!)  Can this hurt even if I'm not sure they've got internal parasites?
,Nope, shouldn’t hurt them at all. I wouldn’t do it for an extended period but short term isn’t going to hurt anything.>
Have a great weekend! Ruth
<Thanks! You too! Ronni>

Velvet??
Hello to all,
<Hello there>
Sorry to be such a bother.  I did the number 1 no no when adding new fish I didn't qt them.  I have a 10g tank that originally had 3 neons.  I added 3 more neons 1 mystery snail and an African dwarf frog.  Also added 2 live plants. Over the past couple of weeks I have lost the new neons and now one of my original has died the only thing I have noticed is rapid breathing. Still eating and otherwise acting normal.  Also the snail has died.  I checked my water ammonia-0 nit-0  ph 7.6 (I know this is high for the neons but it has been in this range since I've had them) temp 78. I just wonder if you have any idea what this might be.  
<Because neons are so small they will often die from a disease before any symptoms become visible. You might take a look at http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfshparasites.htm but it’s probably going to be pretty tough to pinpoint the exact cause.>
And if I have to start over with my tank what is the best way to go about this because I have read that the frog needs and established tank. And also if I do should I treat the tank with anything or just wash it really good with bleach.  I'm getting another tank to make a hospital tank because I feel really bad about what I did.  Thank You so much for your help. Amy
<I would leave the tank with just the frog in it for at least a month before adding anything new. If you do tear the tank down, you can wash it with bleach and make sure to rinse it very well. Ronni>

Re: HELP!! ICH!!
Hi Ronni,
<Good morning Ruth>
Thanks so much, I didn't think about a secondary.  I went to my LFS today, and they recommended "CLOUT" (which I bought).  Will that cover it? Thanks again... Ruth
<Well, I’m sure you’ve already used it and found out for yourself since I’m slow in replying to this one but Clout should work fine. Good luck! Ronni>

Mysterious freshwater parasitic disease?
>Hello Marina -
>>Hello Bill!
>Not so long ago, you helped me with a question, and while I hate to impose and become a nuisance, I have another one I hope you might have some thoughts on.
>>Not to worry, Bill, "nuisance" away my friend.
>Not too long ago, a white angelfish that I have in a 55 gallon tank with several other fish, including a clown loach and a Bala cat, developed what I interpreted to be ich. A white spot that indeed resembled the proverbial grain of salt appeared on each of her front flippers. Because of the presence of the clown and the Bala cat, I treated the tank with only a half-doze of "Ick Away" for about a week.
At the end of that time, I detected nothing similar on any of the other fish, including the clown loach and the Bala cat, but the
salt-grain-like things persisted on the angel. So I moved the clown and the Bala into another tank, and have since been treating the 55 with a full dose - for five days now.
>>Interesting that the Bala and loach haven't expressed any symptoms, especially being scale less.
>The salt grain like things persist on the angel, the other fish remain symptom less. From what I read, I understand that those salt-like things ought to break open and spread their young about every three days, and that is when the ick medicine attacks and kills them, so, as nothing seems to be happening either on removing the grains from the angel (who, in all other respects, seems fine and healthy) and nothing similar has appeared on any of her tank mates, I am wondering if this is ich at all.
>>In my opinion it probably speaks more the efficacy (or lack thereof) of the IckAway.  It seems to me that the prudent course of action would be to add salt, starting the angel off with a saltwater dip (yes, just like seawater).  Purchase a small amount of salt mix, or if your LFS carries it,