How to Cure Sunken Belly Parasites & Worms in Picky Fish. The Simple, Quick & Affordable Way

[@XShaneswartzX]

Helpful video but one thing is Epsom salt won’t make water “brackish” Epsom salt is not actually a salt. Don’t let the ‘salt’ in its name deceive you it’s only given the name salt due to its crystalline nature. Epsom salt is, in fact, a mineral found in water(from Surrey England 🇬🇧) it contains-magnesium and sulfate at high levels and oxygen 😉so it really has nothing at all to do with real salt just thought I’d add that because lots of people think they are using salt and they aren’t However, unlike sea salts, Epsom salt is made up of magnesium, sulfur, and oxygen. So, the chemical compound factor is what makes a key difference between Epsom salt and sea salt. While the active ingredient in salts is sodium chloride, Epsom salt does not contain it.. it won’t dehydrate slugs 🐌 either mate it will in fact deter slugs due to cutting them but won’t do what sodium chloride does.. I have yet to try garlic for my fish may I ask can you use fresh garlic for an aquarium?

[@Fishtory]

Thank you very much for this! I'll pin it... I know this know that you say it, but I think I just spoke off the cuff when trying to explain you can buy salt. Thank you for the info 🙏

[@XShaneswartzX]

@@Fishtory I hear ye mate it’s difficult to ad-lib and u do a great job I’m not an internet trolll or anything just so u know I’m a fish lovin fool lol 😂

[@jeffreyfrank6998]

i know Im pretty randomly asking but do anyone know a good site to stream new tv shows online?

[@milojayson2542]

@Jeffrey Frank Flixportal :)

[@jeffreyfrank6998]

@Milo Jayson thanks, I signed up and it seems like they got a lot of movies there :D Appreciate it!!

[@hummingbird3771]

Besides being a veritable fire hose of knowledge, you're also humble enough to share the nitty gritty of the hobby. I really appreciate what you do, thanks Alex!!

[@FridayFishFacts]

Good advice. It can be very frustrating having sick fish and you can’t help them

[@misterdabalina4694]

How would you treat callamanus worms I know you are Canadian aswell and we can't get general cure as far as I know

[@robb8234]

@@misterdabalina4694 I just ordered some General cure online from the states n delivery to Canada.. I don't know how they do it but I just ordered 2 boxes with 10 count each, $45- canadian free delivery canada.desertcart.com/search/general%20cure?country=us

[@djfwi5283]

Thank you! I've bought fish recently that thinned out real fast and had their fins turning white and rotting away, as well as stringy white poop. This has affected my original tank mates, wiping out a good number of them. It's frustrating since it took me a year to finally have consistent, suitably soft, and balanced water parameters so I freaked out until some research was done. That led me here. Huge help! I truly hope I can save what I can. 😣

[@kurtlawrence4879]

Hey! Any progress with the method? I'M SO TIRED OF SHOPS SELLING ME MINOR TO SEVERE SUNKEN BELLY OTOS

[@leojnardrapsing9577]

Goodluck!

[@sarsvfx]

@@kurtlawrence4879 help me bro plse

[@brittniebeeman2833]

@@kurtlawrence4879they’re selling you hungry* otos- hope you figured that out by now. Research that

[@shesellsfish]

Good advice, particularly about making sure to treat your nets. That is something most folks don't think about when they are all stressed out over their sick fish.

[@kristaaustin3803]

Treat the water hose too!!! ❤️

[@lyndawilliams8434]

Just wanted to congratulate you on a really informative and accessable channel. I have no idea why you dont have more subscribers, you are one of my favourite for 'real life' fish keeping. Hope to see your channel grow to the subscriber level it really deserves. Thanks as always for the info.

[@QuailsFarmY]

i was thinking this also

[@poetical12]

Thanks for showing the difference between a healthy and a sick fish. I’m going to treat with API, all of the guppies I just inherited are so thin and have fin rot. Fingers crossed! Thank you!

[@sarsvfx]

Bro did it work help me plse

[@poetical12]

@@sarsvfx Having better water perimeters and using the API made a big difference in my fish. They didn’t regain color but they regrew their fins and grew in size. Hope that helps!

[@bunnyviperaquatics2108]

Thanks Alex and @Patties Petite tanks This was exactly what I needed! If it isn’t too late this will definitely help! Thanks guys!!!

[@Fishtory]

Oh good! Best of luck!

[@user-eo3ny4jc5p]

Assuming the General Cure won't kill parasitic eggs, as with most pesticides, how often should I cycle additional treatments to take care of parasites as they move though their life cycle even after all fish appear healthy. You mention they start/live? in the mulm. Are they ever completely eradicated? Also thank you foe the great hack on soaking the food. I bought daphnia for the first time and fishy go cray cray! ThANK YOU!

[@Fishtory]

Glad to hear the food tip helped. I usually treat every 7 to 10 days and do 2 rounds. Most fish parasites need a host by day 7 (ick/ich can last 14 in cool water)...but a round at 7 days after first dose and another at 14 or 15 should kill them in between the 3 to 5 days they take to set up on the fish and become reproductive in most species in the hobby.. Best wishes!

[@קרןחיון-ו1ש]

hey alex what is your take about praziquantel and metronidazole? should i use both of them or just one of them??? please out my mind at ease thanks

[@Fishtory]

Some people will use both. ( generally alternating days of dosing each so as not double the toxicity small fish, shrimp or snails) Each chemical sort of world similarly, but they each are better at killing certain parasites and so depending on the type of infestation people may chose one over another ( for instance internal nematodes vs true round worms ). Levamisole is another medication usually used for treating worms like tape worms . If you know the source of the problem it's best to use the medication best suited for targeting it. However ifn you don't know the cause, but you see gut wasting or external parasites, try and research which is best for the problems you are seeing

[@קרןחיון-ו1ש]

@@Fishtory great! thank you very much!

[@Mathias_NB]

About to dose my 5 Gallon QT with the General Cure for one of the erithromicron Danios I bought that has had a sunken belly and curved spine. All these others have been put into community over a week and all look good, so we'll see if I need to dose that tank. Wish me luck!

[@katielyb]

I wasn't aware that quarantining plants was necessary but whatever came in on them killed my entire tank in a little over a week. I got a couple of plants from PetSmart that didn't come from tanks so I guess I just thought they were safe. Looking back now I'm guessing those plants were in an aquarium at some point. I knew something was up because one of my fish had white spots but they were gone the next day so I thought maybe it was just stress ick from the plant introduction. I also added a decoration too though, so idk. I did soak the deco and scrubbed it with a toothbrush I exclusively used to occasionally clean decorations before adding it. I'm really pretty sure the decoration wasn't the carrier though. I took action anyway after the white spot issue but I was not able to correctly identify the problem I don't think. The fish were hiding which was not normal but their appetites were and I saw no noticable signs of problems either. Like the sunken belly thing. Maybe I just wasn't able to get a good look at them though when those signs were noticeable since they had started hiding. I treated the tank with paraguard after vacuuming the substrate and removing chemical filtration but all my fish died anyway. I don't know if I didn't act fast enough or if paraguard wasn't the right choice. What else could it have been if not parasitic? I just really wish I knew so if I ever happen to encounter the problem again, you know? Losing my Hero fish was devastating. I called him/her that because when I added another fish after getting my little Hero, even though he was still much smaller than my larger ones, he swam out in front of the newest littlest one to protect it from my bigger fish. It was a behavior I've never previously observed in fish or heard of. He was such a brave and protective little guy to a fish he'd just met. It was truly astonishing to see. Proved to me that fish are far more complex creatures than most realize. I felt so bad that my little Hero died. He was the best little fishy I ever knew. I had actually separated him and the new tank mate he'd protected into their own apartment shortly thereafter. I really do feel awful and that little fish deserved so much better. Oddly enough, the two fish I'd added to the new apt a few months prior to adding the plants outlasted my Hero fish and his protected. I really wish I'd had my phone out and was about to record the quick action my Hero fish took to protect the one. I mean, I witnessed it and still hardly believe what I saw. Truly amazing.

[@Fishtory]

Thanks for sharing!

[@hummingbird3771]

Do you use aquarium salt for treatment ever? As I understand it, the epsom salt (I have no direct experience with epsom) has a laxative effect and helps pass eggs and such, while rock salt actually kills a significant range of pathologies (many personal success stories!). Would they work better in tandem? Would rock salt work for wasting?

[@vvltures]

Yes for livebearers you can safely use 1 tablespoon per 3 gallons of water and the fish are fine because they are sufficient to make more slime but the parasites can't and die methylen blue works good 2

[@toria165]

I’m not sure if I missed your info on garlic but how much do you put in? Do you mince it? Do you do it once or daily?

[@jamesburke1723]

Yeah i got lost on the garlic part too

[@superaquatics]

Thanks for sharing. Won't the erythromycin disrupt the beneficial bacteria in the tank and the filter? One of my goldfish has been pooping white/clear poop, another has a slightly sunken belly despite having a good appetite and a third one developed cloudy eye. I don't have a separate quarantine tank and wanted to treat all of them as they all may be infected with the parasite and the bacterial infection in the one with the cloudy eye. Water conditions are good & tank is mature & cycled. I am however unsure if I should put the antibiotic or the parasite medication in the main tank as it could disrupt the cycle.

[@Fishtory]

Interesting. Are you sure the nitrates aren't over 50 ppm or so? And no ammonia/not a tank full of blue green algae of too much debris? Most times, that's what stressed a goldfish immune system to the point of those symptoms. The eye is almost always a bacterial related issue, but sunken belly could also be a parasite too... I'd recommend doing the aquarium coop med trio / or levsmisol and erythromycin combo, and lots of water changes, and frozen foods. Some tannins may help also. Yet the bacteria will be harmed by antibiotics, but if dosed at the amount on the package or less, enough will survive that it will be fine. Best of luck to you!

[@superaquatics]

@@Fishtory Thanks for the advice. Nitrates are between 30 - 40ppm and zero ammonia & zero nitrites. No blue green Algae. I do weekly 30% water changes. However, I had traveled in July & August and someone was taking care of them for me and when I got back, I saw the cloudy eye. So possibly parameters could have gone haywire during that time. I've dosed the tank with salt and yes I add tannins from rooiboos tea since other tannins may alter the ph of the water. I don't get aquarium coop products in Kenya so was considering either erythromycin or tetracycline or Sera Bactopur for the infection & metrinodazole/flagyl for the internal parasite.

[@CaylorsReptilesAquatics]

Doing this exact procedure on seven Albino Koi Santa Claus Swordtails. Hope I can save a trio out of the group. Good info. Thanks Alex.

[@Fishtory]

good luck...if it doesnt work. try levamisol or pig/cow/dog deworming products. It's getting hard to find those products and also antibiotics over the counter or at pet stores, but granges and or feed & seed or farm supply shops usually have it (I got enough for a lifetime of fish for like 59 bucks last year. A whole soup can size jar of the powder) ...online if all else fails. best of wishes to the fishes

[@CaylorsReptilesAquatics]

You forget I'm a RN, and Shelter Director of a small all volunteer pet shelter. Meds are not an issue. Fewer and fewer parasites that will respond to meds is. Thanks for the advice.

[@ethicalhackerwhitehat]

can I use dead fish body as a fertilizer for the substrate?

[@ryanhatfield1803]

Hey Alex, can I dose their food with a packet if I dosed their tank with the full dose yesterday? Or would that be overdosing the tank technically?

[@Fishtory]

Yeah you can. It is a bit of an over dose...but each fish is probably only getting a fraction of whats in the packet if you mix it in enough food

[@zz32088]

Hi Alexander, how likley is it that a sunken belly is fish TB? I have a couple of wild caught African butterfly barbs that have sunken bellies and are not eating.

[@Fishtory]

Um not that likely... parasites and specifically tricky worms are 9x more common. Id google levamisole and get some to treat them with ... its strong so follow the instructions per the formulation you buy

[@zz32088]

@@Fishtory okay, thank you for the information!

[@mammawombwomb]

Good educational video. As unintended comical relief turn on the captions and listen/read at 7 min 20 sec 😂😂😂

[@Fishtory]

Haha thank you

[@Fishtory]

Always dip your nuts

[@willwinn8559]

Just picked up a couple of guppies from pet supermarket , During the carona virus outbreak , you stand out front and they bring you what you are looking for . I asked her for 2 healthy nice looking guppies , 1 male , 1 female , and some shrimp . She came back 42 minutes later with a frosty looking bag???? With a couple fish , not great , but what i saw , didn't look like what i saw when they came out of the wavey bag ... She was sunken in and hanging on deaths door ..he looked alright .. Shrimp were fantastic 😎👍 .. Why would she allow such a pitiful fish to go home with ANYONE , and someone that paid good money too.. TERRIBLE ..

[@Fishtory]

Im sorry. Was it petco or petsmart? Thats bad service and sad for the animals...she probably has a parasite/worms

[@mondraymondo]

i would love to treat my main tank, however I have shrimps... even if the med says its safe for shrimps, the problem for me is that we have to siphon and do water change often... which stresses out the shrimps :( if I only have like 1 or 2 skinny guppy is it ok to just net the sick ones or is there a way to safely water change without stressing the shrimps

[@Fishtory]

Either way should work. Perhaps you need to dial in your kh/gh/ph to shrimp parameters?

[@primesspct2]

Great video! I am treating predominately guppies but also corys , bettas and raphael catfish. I don't have any secondary medicine such as erythromycin, ( I don't see any ich). I hope this treatment works, how long until I can expect to see my fish gaining some weight ? Only one or two looked sick at all, but quite a few look thin. And you said that plants could carry the parasites? That's really the only new thing, in any of my tanks, and I did move some from aquarium to aquarium. I also have snails, which seem ok after the first treatment. I am an aquarist on a budget and I found your video very informative and doable. Do you consider a secondary antibiotic necessary, I hate to use medicine that is not required?

[@savigirl1275]

Thank you soooo very much for all your Awesome insight and knowledge!!!

[@Fishtory]

That's kind of you to say. Thank YOU for tuning in and engaging with the world and ideas all around us!

[@VolcanixAquatix]

How do i get the worms out of a heavily planted tank? I have an outbreak, used api general cure. No effect. Still losing fish. Ordered levamisole aka Fritz Expel-p. Raised temps to 83, added sea salt/no additives. I have kanaplex and nitrofurazone too but i think those are strictly for bacterial infections. But i really do not want to lose any more fish if i can prevent it. I already lost my 2 very first fish and im heartbroken 💔

[@hmerchant3349]

Thank you for this. Very educational 👍🏻👍🏻

[@Fishtory]

you're very welcome my friend

[@jess3625]

Nice video Alex! Thanks for the info!

[@five-0grinds947]

This is why I subscribed into your channel! It’s very helpful it’s like a free educational system while enjoying every moment of your video, question - aren’t the medication going to harm the plants like mosses, Ludwigia etc. 🌱? How about if you have shrimps in your tank?

[@Fishtory]

Thank you, first of all- secondly, yes they can harm the tank....but in a single recommended dosage, they should all bounce back most likely... however there is risk and setting up a non-planted Quarantine tank is always the best plan if you can

[@five-0grinds947]

The pleasure is mine. Thanks a ton and All the best.

[@twinedbenji007]

Very good info video i didn't know of the sunken belly

[@alecj4439]

Do I need to remove peat moss like carbon from the filter?

[@terrygorsch386]

Thanks Alex 😜🐠🎸

[@Fishtory]

You got it

[@Riley095]

I usually use paraguard and medicated food works wonders

[@Fishtory]

Yeah the foods are where it's at!

[@Vohasiiv]

Will microbe lift herbtana (parasite meds) work? I'm pretty sure my mom won't want to buy any new medicine for my "cheap" endlers

[@Fishtory]

umm to a degree. Honestly for bad infestations of parasites...especially in bottom feeders, kribs or puffers, you need rx level meds for a dog or something similar. A lot of fish shops sell deworming meds by the little packet for 5 or 10 dollars instead of 70 or 80 for a dog sized box

[@jerricorbett7461]

Great video Alex

[@Fishtory]

Thank you!

[@heatherleelovejoy9690]

Great video! I have a hand full of guppies in my 36 gallon tank with sunk in bellies, 1 female has her gills are wide open, I'm on the second dose of General cure and hoping it will work, I decided to just treat the whole tank, how are your fish doing? Did they recover?

[@Fishtory]

yes all but 2 recovered well

[@tomlee7258]

My endlers have callmanus worms. If I remove all the fish will the worms die off in the tank?Being parasites they need a host right?What about the snails and shrimp? Any help would be greatly appreciated 🙏 🙂 Thanks

[@Fishtory]

Yes they should die off...but I believe they can also live in some snails, and not just fish.

[@tomlee7258]

@@Fishtory Alright thanks for your help! These snails are just the common kind considered pests by many people.

[@tomlee7258]

Hey thanks again for your help! What is the life cycle of the worms how long will it take for them to die off?

[@thegreekanimalkeeper]

what do you mean garlic, in what form??

[@Fishtory]

Garlic...human food mashed up into a paste

[@thegreekanimalkeeper]

@@Fishtory how safe is it in the aqarium??

[@Fishtory]

@@thegreekanimalkeeper very safe in small amounts (about the size of a pea)

[@thegreekanimalkeeper]

@@Fishtory thanks for telling me the amount (your videos are awsome but i think that you should do a bit more or breeding videos)

[@thegreekanimalkeeper]

@@Fishtory also, you mean to feed it to our fish??

[@steveallen3845]

Good vid!!

[@lacyfins9627]

The fizzy cure tabs(I forget the name) in yellow box at walmart works great for intestinal parasites, just follow instructions.

[@Fishtory]

They work for most nematodes. ring worm and some other intestinal ones. Really need that levamisole to knock them out from my experience though ...like in catfish and puffers. Livebearers, tetras and danios are much easier to clear out though

[@JessicaChilll]

I know that this is an old video so I don’t know if you will see my comment. I have several guppies and I’ve been noticing a red spike looking thing coming out of my pregnant guppies anal areas. I thought that it was fry for some reason, maybe because this is the first time I’ve had guppies. so I wasn’t sure Until tonight when I noticed one of my guppies that had recently had babies had what looked like tentacles coming out of her anus, and she has been hiding since yesterday. The only thing that I have on hand is Epson salt, aquarium salt, and general cure. I will be going to get more tomorrow. Do you still stand by this video? Also, do I need to just feed them the medicine with the food or add it to the tank and feed the most medicated food

[@Fishtory]

So that is a camallanus worm. A nematode/Parasitic worm that can be a little tricky... www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/camallanus-worms

[@JessicaChilll]

I read that article yesterday. My issue at the moment is, the Fritz Expel won’t arrive for 2 weeks. I’m trying to figure out what to do in the mean time. I’d hate to loose all of my fish. I know for a fact that my guppies all have it.

[@TuanCaCanh]

Wow amazing

[@Fishtory]

Glad to hear you enjoyed this

[@tj1096]

Not sure if you said it and I missed it or not. Is the sunken belly contagious? I’ve have platties for a couple months in my Cory tank and they have slowly been getting skinnier and skinner, over the past couple days they have just gotten way to skinny, I mostly noticed it after my female gave birth. I breed corydoras and I have probably 40 juveniles in there I’m worried

[@Fishtory]

Yes sadly

[@sachinmd1]

Erythromycin isn't sold in the US anymore, can you recommend an alternative?

[@FredHOleniuk]

Chemiclean is an erythromycin although not listed on the manufacturers information. Chemiclean has been investigated and analyzed and found to be an erythromycin.

[@XShaneswartzX]

I suggest Kanamycin it’s way better than erythromycin ..Erythromycin is considered primarily a gram positive treatment and should be used accordingly Generally Erythromycin is not effective for most common aquatic diseases, especially in saltwater aquariums since it is primarily gram positive while the majority of aquatic infections are gram negative. not saying Erythromycin is a useless treatment for aquariums, as it is still useful for some diseases especially some of the more difficult gram positive infections such as Streptococcus, some cases fin rot and even some causes of Neon Tetra Disease (not all as this is more a symptom of several possible causes rather than an actual disease).and pop eye etc ..anyways erythromycin phosphate is the one you want it’s more of a wide spectrum than the sulphate .. the phos is sold as AAP MYACIN but I really suggest kanamycin which can also be used in conjunction with Nitrofurazone to make a synergistic wide spectrum treatment. .... AAP FURACYN .. can be combined with furian but it’s far less effective ... right that does my two cents for tonight lol sorry to bomb your comments I’m autistic and yeh I guess that says it all ! why am I still awake lol NIGHT ALL ✌🏽

[@XShaneswartzX]

Ooooh and erythromycin is very hard on nitrifying bacteria! Just a thought if u use it have a seed bed of beneficial bacteria ready!

[@primesspct2]

I bought a juvenile betta female, who soon showed signs of parasites. How soon after treatment should I see a change? Thanks for your time, it is certainly appreciated!

[@Fishtory]

Id wait 2 weeks and dose again if there isnt improvement. Also if you're not using metranitazol, levamisol or some actual "deworming" medication, that may be a good idea as well.

[@primesspct2]

@@Fishtory i am using a medication called parasite guard which contains praziquantel,diflubenzuron,metranidizole, and acriflavine. with the garlic added as well with some good quality frozen food, How often can I feed the medicated food? just once? Thanks so much for getting back to me so quickly!

[@cryoraptora303tm2]

@@primesspct2 If she doesn't respond to all those medications plus the garlic then she won't respond to anything, in which case euthanasia is the only option. Having said that, it's likely that the parasite she has is sensitive to at least one of those medications. Dosing information should be on the container. If it's not, you're using a dodgy brand that you should avoid. Considering that it contains an insecticide(?!) and an antiseptic that is used to treat aquatic fungal disease, it's probably not a very good brand to be using. I wouldn't feel that comfortable with unleashing a powerful insecticide into my aquarium but that's just me.

[@primesspct2]

@@cryoraptora303tm2 thanks for the advice, unfortunately she was just too young , and too sick, and passed soon after i medicated the tank. At least she didn't infect any of my other fish who I treated with medicated food and are doing fine. I sure appreciated the advice.

[@cryoraptora303tm2]

@@primesspct2 Oh, sorry to hear that. Sometimes things like this just happen sadly. What other fish do you have?

[@laughingc0w]

Can you do this with shrimp in the tank?

[@Fishtory]

Usually any shrimp other than taiwan bee's are fine, yes

[@willwinn8559]

Like my guppies , LOVE my shrimp 👍

[@ebonhawken574]

Is genera cute reef safe? Like for corals and stuff?

[@Fishtory]

I do not know for sure. Apologies

[@dakhangsta]

This will treat internal parasites too?

[@Fishtory]

Some yes!

[@bornsniper9531]

Does this remove tape worm

[@Fishtory]

Levamisol will but it may be regulated outside the USA/ in some states fritz "expel p" I think it's also just the same thing over priced but works wonders

[@bornsniper9531]

@@Fishtory yeah you are correct I live in Canada that’s not over the count has to be prescribed so idk what to do

[@Fishtory]

@bornsniper9531 vet visit for a pig or farm animal. Will get you a lifetime supply lol...but perhaps explaining the situation to any vet may elicit some assistance. All this. And most of all.... source fish from the best places around, that you can

[@Mathias_NB]

I didn't mix any with food for the first dose last night. I plan to for the next dose in 48 hrs, but should I mix a tiny bit with some food in the meantime since I didn't do that initially? How important is the ingestion element of this?

[@Mathias_NB]

Does erythromycin also not hurt the beneficial bacteria?

[@Fishtory]

It hurts the bacteria slightly, however it is robust enough to withstand several rounds

[@Fishtory]

The ingestion isn't essential in most freshwater fish, as they actually hydrate through the gills and skin- so it absorbs in freshwater. Saltwater fish, need to filter their water of salts and large compounds, however- so in saltwater fish, it is more important for them to consume and digest the compounds

[@Mathias_NB]

@@Fishtory Ok cool, thanks for the info. I dosed the one obviously emaciated (yet eating and no other obvious signs of distress) Erythromicron that stayed in QT, and decided to dose the community tank as well, where the others went last week to join 8 CPDs and a Scarlet Badis. One of the Erythros in the community tank is skinnier than the rest, and I figured if one had parasites, why wait. Anyway, this morning, only 12 hours after dosing, all the erythros in the community tank, who most of have been hiding since moving them in there, were out circulating with the CPDs, nipping at plants here and there etc. Maybe coincidental, but all the Erythromicrons seemed much more content this morning, and I've definitely not seen more than a couple of them out with the CPDs in the front of the tank until now. I wonder if the meds could be responsible (?)

[@marthanewsome6375]

Trying to figure out how to treat some corydoras with anchor worm. What would you use?

[@Fishtory]

Id probably use a dog dewormer/antiparisitic like advantix. Or levamisol

[@krissarni6074]

I GOTTA ask you my fish are💯💯 just getting skinny skinny I've used Focus Metroplex and Kanaplex concoction in the pellats everyone are them for 5 days and THESE fish I've had over a year and the Cory's and Rainbows Dwarf Gourami Kribensis Cichlid all getting smaller one Rainbow his eye is starting to pop out still....

[@Fishtory]

I would guess there's a nematode flat worm in them, and other than feeding them more frozen or live food. Also if you really want to blast ALL worms and parasites, I'd get "Levamisol" which is what zoos and most farmers use... you can find it online in the USA or at granger/farm supply stores as goat or pig dewormer...and then dose as per online recommendations

[@krissarni6074]

@@Fishtory Feels like EVERYONE else is saying that but it's weird some fish keep growing my Geo's and my Leopard Ctenopoma's also not looking affected at all which is killing me just took all fish out except the Leopard Ctenopoma's, Geo's and two Plecos? Just add Paragon.... It's a 60 gallon tank so plentyy of room for more fish etc.... Any ideas ( Have a few people saying I need to redo the whole tank.... New gravel new Media etc etc )

[@Fishtory]

@@krissarni6074 no do the heavy duty de-wormer that isn't sold at big box pet stores... you don't need to redo the tank at all probably...adding more plants is always a good idea for good water parameters. If your nitrates are over 40 or 50ppm ever, then definitely add a few more plants or do more water changing days a week or month. But catfish (plecos) and many predatory fish (pirahanna) and bottom feeders like earth eaters don't get worms or parasites as easily because they evolved to eat dead, sick or rotting meat that has all sorts of nasty stomach bugs. So sometimes they're immune, other times they just don't care and eat enough to allow the parasite and themselves. Get the levamisol and treat 2x , that should fix it all

[@krissarni6074]

@@Fishtory Damn that makes sense with Plecos🤦🏼‍♂️ I'll Google it again... General Cure kept popping up and Paragaurd TWO last questions lol I had a Cichlid in that tank and a Pleco then moved them into my 90 gallon Cichlid tank and im seeing some unusual behavior with a few Peas I have.... Is it bad that I already made a Focus Metroplex and Kanaplex concoction for them and want to treat thaat WHOLE tank with pellats soaked in medicine juust in case? Lastly should I medicate the food still for the Geo's and my Leopard Ctenopoma's as well Juust in case as well..... Two separate tanks I'm referring to I CAN'T loose my 27 Cichlid's!!! Jesus I have like $5,000 in there stunners, ya know??

[@krissarni6074]

@@Fishtory Ooh ya sorry thaats ANOTHER thing! I can't figure out why but all the plants just die? I've spent$$$ on root tabs Cory Aquarium Co Op's liquid fertilizer Co 2 etc etc etc they just die i have had success a year ago where I was giving away plants Water Wisteria, Red Ludwig's,Bacopas etc too friends and blue boom NOTHING grows and snail's etc just end up not moving..... That help with ANYTHING lol.... Plus I found the stuff does it have to be liquid or powder form

[@Aquafinity]

Nice video! I’ve been having some problems with these as well. Another symptom is that the gravity sport will become smaller. P.s will the filter also filter out garlic? 🤔 thanks!!

[@Fishtory]

Yes, but garlic should break down into nitrates, nitrites and ammonia eventually and slowly...so unless you had a whole head of garlic in there, it should be fine...especially if you have corydoras or guppies etc... they'll eat the pieces

[@Aquafinity]

@@Fishtory Do you turn off your filter when you feed garlic? :) .

[@krissarni6074]

I've used the Garlic Gaurd with Metroplex and Kanaplex Focus conjunction for 5 days and they HAVEN'T changed

[@liedetector6849]

Not all but some baby guppies have a bloated belly going on for about 5 days now , notice one yesterday has a long tarnish/whitish steam of poop like subsystem , it was probably 3 and a half inches long , and we are talking about 4 week old guppies . Another one was doing it today , is it safe to add API in with them? They are also housed with 10, 1 week old , and 2 I think 2 week oldish? Molly babies , that I took in yesterday. Plus a adult male guppy. Notice his belly is looking bloated as well ? So no doubt they have parasites , I just need confirmed of the babies should all be fine

[@Fishtory]

Yes should be fine...definitely treat them with that and perhaps an antibiotic like erythromycin, since worms leave lessions that get secondary infections often...ichk is common as well, so if they get any whitespots treat with ichk-x and or raising the temp to 83 degrees slowly and the ichk dies (dont heat up the tank like that unless you are seeing white flecks all over the fish though. Good luck! It's all very common with such social fish

[@liedetector6849]

@@Fishtory Yea , I bought a endler from petco awhile back , came with worms /parasite , so still had the med on hand. I also have med for ich, antibiotics, etc. I try to buy any med when I go fish store shopping , just for on hand purposes . But was a lot confused about the baby part , I could not find one single thing online about at least a conversation about treatment of babies lol. But thank you for the helpful info !

[@Fishtory]

They can usually take any standard dose, but if one or two die during any med treatment, pull them aside just to be safe. Manufacturers try and account for these things, as well as invertebrates with most products on the market

[@charliehobbs7968]

This doesn’t harm the plants?

[@Fishtory]

Everything in moderation. Lots of recipes online

[@mrfry5637]

thankyou this is a good idea.

[@sunvol4503]

Those look like regular guppies to me, not endlers. Doesn't matter very much but just good to know.

[@Fishtory]

They kinda look similar anyhow

[@anibanani2860]

can i use aquarium salt instead of espom salt?

[@Fishtory]

Yes it will do the same type of things. (But isn't the right salt for microbial sea life... but for freshwater treatments and or raising the ph /tds, yes its just as good

[@anibanani2860]

@@Fishtory thank you very much !

[@juliebrown1510]

Can you write down the things you used in this video please?

[@bigyan2334]

Is it shrimp safe

[@Fishtory]

In low concentrations but id google the active ingredient and the species of shrimp you have just to make sure

[@psycho478]

How much epsom salt should I apply to my 10 gallon tank? Is it safe for both my guppies and golden platies?

[@robb8234]

safe for all fish.. 1 tablespoon per 10 gallons of water..

[@bletz5732]

Get some fish from a friend and catch a parasite 🤣

[@stevo987]

Hi bud, my guppies have this 😔 general cure isn't sold here in the UK. What would be the equivalent?

[@Fishtory]

Fenbendizole and metronidazole... perhaps a cat or dog dewormer? We do that in states where they can't sell certain meds too

[@stevo987]

@@Fishtory cheers buddy, thanks for the info. Went with esha gdex and seems to be working 🤞☺️ keep up the uploads, always like your vids!

[@milesm9356]

are your fish gaining back their weights?

[@Fishtory]

yes! all but one female are getting fat and sassy

[@mihaitabalasa9567]

What is ati?

[@Fishtory]

API American, japanese and European product line its just fenbendizol

[@mihaitabalasa9567]

@@Fishtory thenks a lot

[@corrosive72]

Any recommendations for other products to use for parasites, API General Cure is illegal in Canada and so is alot of other products for parasites

[@QuailsFarmY]

same issue in australia, no idea why

[@fionabailer5213]

Tess Tess I think it's because the medications end up contaminating the water systems it when you do water changes

[@fionabailer5213]

Tess Tess Wow! I didn't mean for this to be political. I just heard this off another site.

[@biancaok3745]

Tess Tess sir this is an aquarium channel

[@TriHard7c]

can you overdose on garlic when adding into a tank ?

[@Fishtory]

Not that ive heard of

[@TriHard7c]

@@Fishtory when adding garlic do you add whole crush garlic or just the garlic water ? and how about garlic powder does it have same effect ?

[@jethroericson8147]

Its good for black spot, for my parrot fish?

[@Fishtory]

Most likely yes.

[@bullseye_1509]

My fish had this but then he like I guess He got it off because it’s not there no more can someone help please

[@jerradlwells]

Does general cure work for the callemanus worms?

[@Fishtory]

somewhat, but you need to kill all life cycles...worms and larvae also, so id use levamisol or metronidizol type stuff

[@Fishtory]

should

[@bernadettebothabb2816]

I'm in serious need! My guppy fry is like atleast 8 months old.. and stopped growing.. they are swimming skew.. like laying down to the side.. they're very active and all.. (not skew like bladder disease) I change 25 to 35% water change each weekend .. they have air and a filter.. its a 30L tank.. no plants just gravel and fake plants.. theres like 20 guppy babies in so its not over stocked tho.. Please help :(

[@gascoyne7945]

Hi, BlueBattleBunny I’ve had the same thing happen to my fry (3 months old) I’m not sure on an exact cure but I added live plants and added general aid medicine and they got better in about a week, I’m no expert so I recommend going to the fish forums and see what more experienced people say 👍

[@bernadettebothabb2816]

@@gascoyne7945 awww thanks for commenting! I started getting afraid its something I've done.. i have like 2 litt2stems starting to grow.. but ill add more.. what plants did you add tho?? And is that the medz name?? Thanks you for taking time and commenting!!!

[@sarsvfx]

I feel you as a guppy breeder and seller taking care of fish is hard parasites makes us wanna quit it's hard to treat especially internal parasites

[@augustvukosovich4683]

I have this in my tank. I'm losing almost all of them. I have tried general cure with erythromycin. Nothing. I tried fendbendazole. Nothing. I just ordered levamisole and hoping that will take care of it. It's so sad. I don't know what else to do. It's my guppy tank. I have the hunch back too going on.

[@christinamanuszewski1448]

me too, did you ever find a solution?!?! im so depressed that all my babies are dying

[@augustvukosovich4683]

@@christinamanuszewski1448 After I treated with Levamisole I stopped losing them. But they have these strange hump backs from being so sick so I can't even sell them.

[@augustvukosovich4683]

@@christinamanuszewski1448 I actually took three of them to my vet that has taken courses in fish care. He is awesome. He told me after the levamisole that he couldn't find anything in their feces so I know they are parasite free. But I'm thinking they may have fish tuberculosis. Which cannot be cured. It's best to euthanize if they have this. If I lose any more I'm going to take them to him and have him do a culture which is the only way to check for TB. I would try levamisole and if it works you're good. I'm sorry you're losing your babies. It's really hard to watch them go through this.

[@BrutalRiotGirl01]

Where do you order levimesole?

[@cryoraptora303tm2]

If all your fish die, make sure to leave the tank with no fish for at least a few weeks to make sure any latent parasites die off; some can last in the first stages of their life cycle for weeks without finding a host. If you get new fish too soon then they will get infected and you'll have the problem all over again. It would probably also help to drain all the water to make sure there is no TB left in the water column. _Mycobacterium_ are resilient little bastards and can survive bad conditions for a long time. The reason why they are so hard to cure is because they are naturally resistant to many antibiotics. I've had both internal parasites and Fish TB in the past and it's never ended well. I got to the point where I just euthanized if a fish was showing signs of either disease. Unfortunately it's hard to find healthy fish these days and many stores have no idea how to spot and treat ill fish before they sell them; that or they don't care because they are businesses that need to make profit and most people are noobs who won't identify the diseased fish. Really, all you can do to try and stop it from happening again is finding a highly reputable farm and getting them direct or ordering from private breeders: Surprisingly, ordering fish online is actually highly reliable. I've given up with local stores; the ones round here are worse than chain stores. The only decent one is 40 mins away and sometimes their fish are ill as well, although not as often. Luckily I found out that one of the country's biggest tropical fish farm is not even 2 miles away from me, so I'll be giving them a try.

[@UpperAquatics]

For the algorithm!

[@farshidkavosi5818]

I really appreciate it

[@Fishtory]

I am Glad to help! Thanks for watching.

[@Shaden0040]

Clown loaches can get this too.

[@Fishtory]

Yes! And neon tetras commonly

[@michaellou7101]

Actually pure nacl rock salt or kosher salt with no caking agent is great for slime coat stimulation. Epsom salt is to pull moisture out 0f fish body and a great way to treat constipation. Guppies don’t mind either but for most fish they tolerate regular salt more than epsom salt. N

[@stephenblack8698]

I dashed ranulated garlic in my tank and the fish all grab it and spit it out.

[@Fishtory]

Awww bummer yeah try sautéing it perhaps... just kinda brown it, in a pan and then crush it into a smooth paste. Then you can also mix in their favorite food...or coat the food a little. Goodluck

[@stephenblack8698]

Thank you. Your videos are immensely helpful. I lost my first female guppy tonight as I had other problems going on and I couldn't go get any medicines for them.

[@Anthony-bz1vt]

you talk too much. get to the point

[@FredHOleniuk]

Would sacrificing the infected fish reduce the parasite load in the tank? Thanks for the information.

[@cryoraptora303tm2]

This question has many answers. If you bought your fish from a tank that looked completely healthy and had no ill fish, and you remove a fish as soon as you see a sign of the disease, then yes, you have most likely stopped it from spreading. However, if you got it from a tank that had ill fish in it already, the chances are that most or all of your fish already have the disease and you just don't know yet. In this case, removing the first fish to show symptoms won't slow the progression of the disease at all. If you have a fish that has been showing symptoms for a few days and you now decide to remove it, it's possible that you have stopped the disease but not very likely. I used to get guppies from a shop that had ill stock. I'd always get the ones that were healthy, but they always ended up developing the disease anyway. I was very stubborn about it though and I kept getting fish from there. Whenever another fish came up with IPs, I euthanised and patted myself on the back, thinking 'one fish is better than the entire tank', but it never worked. More and more got ill until they all died. Eventually, I just gave up with guppies and I've switched to swordtails for my community, and they have done far better. Only one death and the rest are completely healthy. However, I've set up a second tank and I plan on trying with guppies again. However, I'm getting them direct from a tropical fish farm this time.

[@sarsvfx]

@@cryoraptora303tm2 yh bro I have a pond of guppies but parasites only affect certain locations this shit is weird makes you wanna quit the hobby just got some swordtails today and platies and Bettas to breed

[@kristaaustin3803]

I gave my puffer fish a salt bath and they died…

[@Fishtory]

Oh no! Maybe too much salt? Sorry to hear that

[@mikegiaffoglione]

Get to the point most people watching it just wanna know how to remedy at

[@kevywilliams3304]

You should not give the garlic to any med! Garlic alters some meds ! Fish love food soaked in garlic

[@Fishtory]

Garlic is in many preparations of antiparisite meds for public aquariums. ...it can alter antibiotics

[@Frank.i.e_g]

First

[@mellewedin8221]

This really isn't a effective way to kill these worms. The meds would probably work better if you put it in their food. This video wasn't helpful at all.

[@Fishtory]

sorry you feel that way. These medications are designed to be soaked into the skin and via gill aeration due to the massive dose... but for larger fish, I definitely but levamisole in food... this video speaks to detritus worms, paramecium and hydra in the water collumn also

[@Fishtory]

Also... the meds are being mixed with food in the cup which has a bit of water in it also...so they will eat clumps of it