Tynan Rasmus
New member
eek! thanks for the info.
I learned about Zoanthid toxin the hard way......
- Thread starter steveoutlaw
- Start date
j.prostrata
In Memoriam
I believe last yr something similar happened to me.. I did not inhale it but rather injested it after touching a very similiar green with strips zoo that came in as a hicthhiker. I have many of them now but never try to touch them and when I do I wash my hands very well. I placed my corals in the tank that night and forgot to wash my hands and ate super. At this time I did not even notice the zoos attached to the sps base. Later that night I started getting wierd heart iregularities like skipping beats and things like that. Also I got some cramping in my leggs. We lets just say 1 week later they finally went away.. I did not go to the ER I was to chicken to hear what they would say. I did not even think about the zoos until a few weeks later when I noticed them on the sps base. I then did some reading and I fealt that was what happened to me aswell.. I have told other so fthis but they do not bleive me.. I wrestled in college and have always been in decent shape and never had any heart irregularities in my life and to this day I do not anymore. Hope you do better and come aorund like I have.
Peace
Peace
vessxpress1
Premium Member
Man, here we go again. 
There's no reason to be scared to death of zoanthids. I've handled them with bare hands a lot. I've had one squirt me directly in the eye. Nothing has ever happened to me because of zoanthids.
If you have severe allergy problems, then yes, maybe it is a good idea to take extra precaution. If you're worried about this incident happening to you, just don't boil them and inhale the steam! Whether it was the cause or not.
If you get some zoos on a rock and you don't want them there any more, get a good chisel and a hammer. Break that part of the rock off and discard it.
There's no point in being terrified of zoos. Just wash your hands well after handling them.
There's no reason to be scared to death of zoanthids. I've handled them with bare hands a lot. I've had one squirt me directly in the eye. Nothing has ever happened to me because of zoanthids.
If you have severe allergy problems, then yes, maybe it is a good idea to take extra precaution. If you're worried about this incident happening to you, just don't boil them and inhale the steam! Whether it was the cause or not.
If you get some zoos on a rock and you don't want them there any more, get a good chisel and a hammer. Break that part of the rock off and discard it.
There's no point in being terrified of zoos. Just wash your hands well after handling them.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9600777#post9600777 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vessxpress1
Man, here we go again.
There's no reason to be scared to death of zoanthids. I've handled them with bare hands a lot. I've had one squirt me directly in the eye. Nothing has ever happened to me because of zoanthids.
And there's no reason to be afraid of cars and trucks. I've driven around them a lot, and I'm still alive. I've even had a truck run me off the road once - but nothing really bad has ever happened to me because of traffic. I think all of these people getting killed in car accidents is just 'anecdotal' evidence that cars are dangerous. I'll believe it when I see it first-hand.
(I was over at Steve's house later that day, somewhere between zoanthid tea and the trip to the hospital. Man was getting SICK!)
bob
scunan
New member
I think alot of what will happen to you depends on your genes. I have never had a problem with my zoos but never inhaled them. I have touched them many times with cuts on my hands and it was not intentional but nothing happened. I think it is like poison ivy, I could wash my hands with the stuff and not even get the slightest reaction. If my wife even goes near the stuff it will be all over her.
steveanddanni
New member
As a respiratory therapist the worst thing you can do with a severe asthma attack is to wait. That is a good way to end up with a tube down your throat and on a ventilator for a few days. Well that goes for any type of breathing problems, they usually never get better on their own without medical intervention.
MaryBebo
Premium Member
So sorry to hear this, but thanks for sharing and making others aware. I hope you get better soon
I too have had some issues while just working in my tank. I have this type of zoo that have grown onto my overflow box. When I do a water change it exposes them and the smell is awful. I also have a rock that is covered with them and it to is close to the top. There have been several times that I have the allergy like symptoms after working in my tank. My nose feels VERY stuffy and I cough for a day or two. I haven't read about anyone else doing this and now I know that there is something to it. I guess a mask would help. Our tanks have a lot of smelly corals and not just zoos. I don't know if it is that I am just allergic to them or if it is just the zoos. My xenia smells,toad leathers,zoos. So who knows, but I do know that It does do something with my breathing.
I too have had some issues while just working in my tank. I have this type of zoo that have grown onto my overflow box. When I do a water change it exposes them and the smell is awful. I also have a rock that is covered with them and it to is close to the top. There have been several times that I have the allergy like symptoms after working in my tank. My nose feels VERY stuffy and I cough for a day or two. I haven't read about anyone else doing this and now I know that there is something to it. I guess a mask would help. Our tanks have a lot of smelly corals and not just zoos. I don't know if it is that I am just allergic to them or if it is just the zoos. My xenia smells,toad leathers,zoos. So who knows, but I do know that It does do something with my breathing.
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steveoutlaw
New member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9600777#post9600777 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vessxpress1
Man, here we go again.
There's no reason to be scared to death of zoanthids. I've handled them with bare hands a lot. I've had one squirt me directly in the eye. Nothing has ever happened to me because of zoanthids.
Ok, that it quite possible the stupidest and most illogical rambling thought in this post. Guess what genius......I've handled them hundreds of time with my bear hands and nothing ever happened to me either. I even said in the post "Don't get me wrong.......I'm not telling everyone to go and get rid of their zoos. I just want to make people aware of how dangerous they can be and to be careful when handling them."
j.prostrata
In Memoriam
Guys also in my post I am not saying get ride of them.. Heck I still have the ones that made me ill in my tank also. Not all of them are as toxic either. Its funny though the ones that seemed to make him sick sound alot like the ones I have. They are a lite greeish color with strips on them.. They mutiple like crazy and sprout up all over in wierd places. I have no allergies to anythign I know of so I am not sure if that effects it at all.. All I know is after me touching them and eating because I was not aware they were on the rock got my heart beating wierd and legg cramping for about a week. My wife was ****ed I would not go to the hospital cause my heart seems to litterly skip beats.
Jeff
Jeff
RedSonja
Premium Member
Thanks for the heads-up, I always wear gloves when I'm working with/around zoas and palys but I hadn't thouht about the chance of inhaling stuff. And I need to get better about wearing a face shield when fragging them :/ I haven't ever, and don't intend to, boiled anything with zoas on it, but it's good to have the info out there.
-Sonja
-Sonja
vessxpress1
Premium Member
Stupid and illogical? I'm just stating facts. I didn't say you were telling people to get rid of all their zoanthids. Other people pretty much were. These threads always turn into panic instead of realizing you just have to be careful.
Your info is appreciated and I will certainly keep this story in mind.
The actual toxins that caused this HORRIBLE reaction are irrelevent. What IS relevant is that in the process of handling these zoos something created a toxic steam that has greatly impacted his current quality of life and hopefully no permanent damage has been done and these symptoms will clear in short time. This info is important to create awareness so that this doesn't happen to anyone else.
steveoutlaw, I hope you get some relief soon and make sure to keep up with your doctor's visits to make sure that nothing gets worse. Thank you for sharing your story.
steveoutlaw, I hope you get some relief soon and make sure to keep up with your doctor's visits to make sure that nothing gets worse. Thank you for sharing your story.
Wolverine
Premium Member
I agree with this. There's so much stuff living on LR, much of it potentially toxic if in direct contact with your lungs, I'd hesitate to say for sure that it's from the palytoxin. It may be from that, but it could also be an aerosolized irritant from one of the 1000s of other organisms living in your tank.
Steve, I hope things get better for you.
I partially agree with you. I agree that it's important to realize the potential life impact. However, I disagree that the cause is irrelevant. Let's say the actual cause (hypothetically), came from some widgets on the rock, rather than the zoanthids. Now let's say someone else reads this thread, and they're planning on pouring some boiling water over their rocks. They look and they avoid treating any rocks that have zoanthids, but end up treating some with tons of these toxic widgets. Obviously then what causes the reaction becomes much more relevant.
Dave
flfirefighter13
New member
IM not trying to downplay toxins at all here but think it merits mentioning that inhaleing ANY steam is potentially bad for the lungs...... Steam is hot and burns are bad especially in the lungs and or throat.
Good luck and hope you get better soon, my wife struggles with adult onset asthma, it can be handled but it sure seems to be a hassle.
Good luck and hope you get better soon, my wife struggles with adult onset asthma, it can be handled but it sure seems to be a hassle.
abark
Member
Wow I cannot believe people are trying to downplay this guys case. Regardless of the toxin that caused his problem I don't think any of us has the equipment readily available to find the exact chemical that caused this problem. Sure I have lots of CNC equipment to build my own stuff at work but I won't use it for my hobby and I imagine that people that have chromatograph equipment at work may feel the same way about using it for their hobby. The level of research to isolate the particular toxin that caused this is beyond any hobbyist scope and should be ignored. The lesson should be that zoos and palys can pack a punch and should be treated with care.
That being said I would not get the full arm gloves recommended by so many here. When I started in the saltwater side of fishkeeping I read a similar experience and I also got the same gloves. The problem with them is that they are so thick that it is very hard to get any dexterity when dealing with so many small things in our tanks. What I recommed is thiswww.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=DR-PN11B&Category_Code=coralfrag I use this item for taking macro out of my tank and it works great. I also will not touch my zoos without using that tool. I am a smoker and before I got those I would handle my zoos and maybe an hour later have a cigarette and my lips would numb a bit. Am I being a hypochondriachal? Fact is that there are many compounds in our tank that humans have not adapted to over time since humans and reefs have had very different evolutionary paths. Respect that and get the proper equiment to deal with that. I highly recommend the foreceps as you can have a lot of precision with that tool.
That being said I would not get the full arm gloves recommended by so many here. When I started in the saltwater side of fishkeeping I read a similar experience and I also got the same gloves. The problem with them is that they are so thick that it is very hard to get any dexterity when dealing with so many small things in our tanks. What I recommed is thiswww.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=DR-PN11B&Category_Code=coralfrag I use this item for taking macro out of my tank and it works great. I also will not touch my zoos without using that tool. I am a smoker and before I got those I would handle my zoos and maybe an hour later have a cigarette and my lips would numb a bit. Am I being a hypochondriachal? Fact is that there are many compounds in our tank that humans have not adapted to over time since humans and reefs have had very different evolutionary paths. Respect that and get the proper equiment to deal with that. I highly recommend the foreceps as you can have a lot of precision with that tool.
