Internal Parasites!

[IFbettas]

Almost all of the fish in my 180 gallon reef have recently gotten internal parasites. Their poo is white and stringy. I'm wondering how do I go about getting rid of the parasites so I can fatten up my fish again? Do the new life spectrum anti parasitic pellets work, and will they harm my corals? Thanks.

 

[DamnPepShrimp]

QT the fish with prazipro, works wonders.

 

[IFbettas]

There is really no way I can get my fish out to quarantine them. I have a few hundred pounds of rock, and corals everywhere, so I can't remove the rock. Are there any cures for parasites inside the reef? Will garlic do anything? I know that in the freshwater world people use garlic to rid sensitive fish like discus of internal parasites.

 

[DamnPepShrimp]

No, garlic won't cure internal parasites. It's supposed to make the fishes immune system stronger and finicky fish to eat, but as far as internal parasites go, I think QT with prazipro is your only option. Prazipro is supposed to be somewhat reef safe, it will kill all worms and such, but shouldn't kill your rock/corals, but honestly, I wouldn't try it. I dose it in my FOWLR, but wouldn't do it in my reef.

 

[Conesus_Kid]

FWIW, I've dosed PraziPro in my 200 gallon reef with no ill effects on SPs, LPS or inverts.

 

[IFbettas]

Dang, now I have no idea what I'm going to do to help my fish out. My anthias are starting to get skinny, and so are my tangs. There is absolutely no way I can get these fish out, so I'm not sure what I'm going to do.

 

[IFbettas]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14757434#post14757434 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Conesus_Kid
FWIW, I've dosed PraziPro in my 200 gallon reef with no ill effects on SPs, LPS or inverts.

Can you please elaborate on how much you dosed, and for how long?

 

[Dooly]

ALL your fish have white stringy poo all of a sudden? it would take parasites a little time to get to every fish..

any drastic changes in water parameters recently? I've heard stress can cause white stringy crap.. otherwise maybe you might try dosing with prazipro, or feeding gut loaded live brine

 

[Conesus_Kid]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14757444#post14757444 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by IFbettas
Can you please elaborate on how much you dosed, and for how long?

I followed the dosing instructions on the bottle. I did a single course of treatment.

Be sure to turn off your skimmer. The Prazipro will make it go berserk!

Good luck.

 

[chrisstie]

You can also get food that is anti-parasitic. Did you change anything about your reef recently? type of food, new specimen, etc?

 

[IFbettas]

The last time I added a new fish was a couple months ago, when I added my anthias. They were also the first ones to have the white poo. There have not been any changes to my tank lately, and it is a very stable SPS reef. I might try the prazipro, but am scared to dose it in my reef.

 

[AuroraDrvr]

First try the Anti-Parasite pellet food. New Life Spectrum & Jungle both make anti-parasite pellet food. I would try them both at the same time. Stop feeding other foods and only feed those pellets.

 

[alprazo]

I've done prazi pro in a tank with clams, sps and lps. Never noticed a change except a yellow color to the water except the clam stayed 1/2 closed for 2 days but then fully opened. I gave a 1/2 dose at first followed by the rest 6 hours later.

Just know that prazi is not a cure all for intestinal worms and you may need albendazole or other antihelminthics. This was the issue with me and a tang that went through two courses of prazi without results.

 

[IFbettas]

I'm going to order some new life spectrum anti parasitic food, and I believe the Petsmart near me carries the Jungle food. Another problem is that my male anthias, who is the skinniest and most affected of all of them, will not touch any prepared foods. I'm hoping he'll like the NLS pellets, because it seems that most fish do. How long do you leave the prazipro in the water before doing any water changes or turning on the skimmer?

 

[alprazo]

I tried the pellets with that tang, and though it ate flake, it wouldn't touch the pellets. I is a good place to start though. It is much better to target treat the affected fish and not the entire tank. I wish there were injectables readily available to treat some of the fishes more severe ailments.

 

[Terra Ferma]

Here is what you need to do:

Go out and buy the Hikari brand Metronidizole. There are instructions on their site for how to add Metro to food. I find the Hikari marine pellets work best, with Spectrum a close second. You will need 190 proof or above alcohol to do it properly.

I have found this method to be far, far more successful than just dumping Metro in the water.

 

[IFbettas]

I got some of those Jungle anti parasitic pellets. I've noticed that they are floating pellets, so my fish didn't notice them the first time I tried to feed them. Only one of my anthias ate the pellets so far. I will try it again later tonight.

Where do you find the Hikari product? I'm doing everything I can to try to make my fish fat again.

 

[Terra Ferma]

My fish won't touch the jungle pellets - bad taste or something. The love the Hikari pellets even with the Metro added.

You can find Hikari online but for some reason not at any of the big names places. Shame as they make great food.

 

[IFbettas]

My fish weren't too fond of the Jungle stuff either, but a couple of them ate them. The biggest problem was that the pellets always float, and my fish don't look at the surface for food.

The petsmart near me has the Hikari Marine pellets. I've been thinking about getting some for the past couple years, but have just continued using Ocean Nutrition stuff.

 

[GSMguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14767345#post14767345 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Terra Ferma
Here is what you need to do:

Go out and buy the Hikari brand Metronidizole. There are instructions on their site for how to add Metro to food. I find the Hikari marine pellets work best, with Spectrum a close second. You will need 190 proof or above alcohol to do it properly.

I have found this method to be far, far more successful than just dumping Metro in the water.

this is a reef safe treatment plan?