Ugh, they're back!

[peckka]

Well, one week after successfully kicking the internal parasites out the door, they seem to be poking their heads back in. If you read my previous post, you'll see that we did a full week of Prazi-Pro, followed by one dose of Jungle's parasite clear.

Now, I went home for lunch today, and noticed that one of my platties is shimmying at the top of the tank. She's looking somewhat skinny, and she had the white cotton-like poop coming out. !!! Man! Everybody else seems to be doing just fine, though, and the one male platty that I didn't think would make it through the first outbreak is still gaining weight and doing fine.

I've only got a little prazipro left, but I just put 7 tabs of parasite clear in there, and will be doing a 25-50% water change on Sunday, then repeating with seven more tabs.

I can't believe it's back! Maybe I just didn't get rid of it completely, and it's starting with one fish to try and make a comeback. Hopefully I can kick it completely this time.

Think I'm doing the right thing?
Kevin

[Osiris]

Internal parsite you want to use ********brain fart****it's a gel u actually feed the fish, force feed if need be. I have it at home will have to look at the name.

[peckka]

Well, things seem to be the same. The majority of the fish are doing fine, but the one is still sitting at the top while passing cotton-white poo. And two other fish seem to be mixing white poo with regular poo.

I've been searching, and has anybody tried using Gel-Tek Ultra Cure PX? It seems to have everything included in one. What do you think?

Thanks!
Kevin

[DavidDoyle]

For parasites, nothing beats Metrodinazole (avail from SeaChem). Medicated food is the best way to administer it and easy to make and keep froze. If the fish is not eating it can be dosed in the water. In extreme cases a dip in a double dose may be tried as a last resort.

[peckka]

Thanks for the reply. That is one of the ingredients listed in Gel-Tek Ultra Cure PX. They've got the ingredients listed on the petsmart site:
Active ingredients: Praziquantel .0057%, Flubenol .03%, and Metronidazole .30%.

Should I give that a try, or just try to find Metronidazole by itself?

[DavidDoyle]

I have found pure metro to be the easiest and most versatile form to work with. It is also way cheaper bought that way.

[peckka]

Thanks.

I ordered a bottle, and it will hopefully be here by the end of the week. Man, what a difference a few days make. I thought for sure they were all cured and fine - now out of nowhere, about five of them are shimmying with fins clamped, with cotton-like poop and everything. I'm praying that the Metro will kill this parasite once and for all.

[peckka]

Well, the pills arrived today, and I've done a quick 25% water change, and put in seven pills per the directions. They didn't really dissolve well in the water, as they are just bloated white spots on the gravel. Hopefully they will dissolve more throughout the night.

My fish aren't doing well at all. They are all back to white poo and skinny and shimmying. I'll watch closely over the next few days, and will be doing another dosage as directed.

[peckka]

Oh, no. I'm on day three of the metro pills. I've done two 25% water changes between doses. The fish aren't improving at all. Most of them are just shimmying, and their fins are tucked tight. A few of the plattys have their tails tucked so tight it looks almost non-existent! They are still eating, but when the food is gone, it's back to either hiding or sitting at the top of the tank. The directions on the metro bottle say that if I don't see improvement within five days, discontinue use.

What should I do? Please help, as I've just lost another platty.
Thank you