redracer77 Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 Hi, Can anyone help, my blue acara is not well appears to have a swollen vent/anus, not eating as much and hiding a lot. Just had a electric blue ram die looks to be the same thing. Any suggestions of what it is and a treatment? Will se if can get a pic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 What is it being fed? Is it possible it is constipated? If so, a cooked pea may help. Remove the shell before feeding it to the fish though. You can also Google the instructions for a bath in Epsom Salts, another cure for constipation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redracer77 Posted February 14, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 Don't thnk it is constipated, but will try epsom salts, he eats flake, cichlid sticks, blood worm, and bottom feeder food. I was thinking possibly worms of some sort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 I think you can usually see worms sometimes coming out of their anus if that is the problem. Also, I understood fish with worms lost weight. I've not seen the problem first hand though so can't be definite Sounds like the diet is fine though. :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redracer77 Posted February 15, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 Haven't seen any worms, but is looking a little thinner, the electric blue ram that died was definitly thin, a couple of other fish looking a little thinner as well. I have some prazi on the way, is that the best thing to treat with? will I need to treat the whole tank? How long between treatments? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 Hopefully someone can answer this as I have never used the stuff :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 Praziquantel is probably the safest and most effective medication you can get for flatworms like flukes and tapeworms. It is commonly sold as Droncit and is available in your local vet clinic. The medication will not kill eggs and generally does not kill free larvae so there is not a huge benefit from treating the tank itself however if you want to dose all the fish in the tank you can use 2mg of prazi per litre tank water. The medication will work within 4 to 12 hours. Add carbon after 24 hours to remove the excess. Repeat in 10 days. It might also be a good idea to treat for roundworms, Levamisole has greater broad spectrum effectiveness against nematodes it is available at large animal vet clinics. Fenbendazole (sold as Panacur in granules or as a liquid suspension) is my preferred dewormer. It works well for all types of worms but it is not very water soluble so you need to dose it by putting it in the food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redracer77 Posted February 16, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 Hey thanks for the advice, thats the dosage I thought for droncit. Should I try the Droncit first as its on the way to me now or should I get some Fenbendazole and treat with that? I think I will treat the whole tank as i don't want to miss any fish that are affected. Will either affect plants or filter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 At the correct dosage it should not affect the plants or filter. I don't know if your fish have worms or not, so I can't really comment on what to treat them with but if you have already obtained some praziquantel it won't hurt to have a go and see if things improve. If they don't improve you can try treating with Levamisole as well to see if it was roundworms that were causing the problem. Fenbendazole is very safe and extremely affective but it is harder to obtain and more challenging to administer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.