Fenbendazole(Aka Panacur And Safeguard)

[cowgirluntamed]

I medicated with fenbendazole in my 5 gallon tank. unfortunately this affected my nerite snails and I dont know if they will recover. They are in a separate heated plastic tub for now with 50% daily water changes.

My question though is...will it be safe to add nerites to the tank again? Or will I have to break it down Nd clean it really well including putting in new sand? I didn't know if just doing water changes and running carbon for a while would get rid of the medicine or not. Anybody know?

 

[Essjay]

I've not used fenbendazole but I have used flubendazole (Wormer Plus) when my fish caught camallanus worms. I found this killed nerite snails when I put one back after a week of running carbon. I had to run the tank without the rest of my nerites for a few months before I dared put them back in, but they were fine after this length of time.

 

[cowgirluntamed]

I know it's a different chemical but I may just ditch the sand and rinse the plants and tank really well. As well as all the filter stuff. Bleach probably wouldn't help clean this out, right? Just maybe lots of rinsing and such?

Also...how can you tell if the snail is dead? One of mine still has a tiny bit of movement but the other two I'm not sure about. And do you think they can recover or should I put them down? I hate seeing them like this and also don't want them to starve to death since they aren't thinking of food. (If I need to put them down, any ideas?)

 

[Essjay]

The easy way to tell if a snail is dead is to sniff it - a very small sniff. Dead snails smell appalling and the the smell stays in the nose for hours if you take more than a tiny sniff

. Once you've smelled a dead snail, you'll never forget it 
 
I don't really know how to put a snail down, I've never needed to.

 

[cowgirluntamed]

Ok, thanks. I'll go sniff in a while.

 

[squidneh]

Are there fish in the tank? I'd be worried about ruining my good bacteria colonies with all that cleaning. I don't see how you could get all of the medication out of the filter without killing good bacteria, as you are only supposed to rinse the filter media in tank water, which is affected by the meds, therefor redundant. And a good amount of bacteria live in the substrate and on decorations/plants. So I'd be considering whether you want to have to do a new cycle because you would be starting from scratch or just ditch the snails, since the remaining ones are likely dying/dead, anyways.
 
As far as putting a snail down, I imagine the quickest/most humane way would be a quick smash with a hammer, but I've never had to do it before so I can't be sure. 

 

[cowgirluntamed]

No fish in the tank. My betta died. And no smell coming from the snails. So they are still alive but not in tank.

This tank is just going to be used for plants for a while. I may upgrade it to a ten later on anyway. But if this stuff won't be safe for snails then I'd rather clean it. If it's got lots of plants in it I may not need to cycle it for just a betta. I would also probably use tetra safe start as well. But that's a ways off too.

Thanks for worrying about the cycle though squidneh. I may give the snails another day or so...though I don't know about just smashing them.

 

[squidneh]

I know for fish it's pretty agreed upon that the smashing method is actually the quickest, most humane way to go. It's no more stressful than an average netting, and it's the only method in which the fish isn't alive for part of the euthanization process, like clove oil, freezing, etc. It's instant, which is why I suggested it for the snails as well. Some people are too squeamish but it's the way I'd do it, for the sake of the fish/invertebrate, personally. 
 
I agree that with a lot of plants in such a small tank, for just a betta, you wouldn't need to cycle. Just monitor the water levels closely. 

 

[cowgirluntamed]

I will monitor it closely whenever I get another betta. Not looking to for a bit though. I want to find plants that will actually grow in my water. Crypt wendtii is doing amazing so I may try another variety of crypt. Anubias does well too but I know that doesn't take up much stuff. But looks amazing nonetheless. I want to try some pygmy chain sword.

Anyway, my worry isnt about smashing them(though I think I would have someone do it for me if it came to it...) But would smashing a larger snail actually kill it? I've smashed pond snails easy enough for my tetras to eat...but I would think the bigger the snail, the harder it would be to kill that way. I wouldn't want to just ruin it's shell and have it be in more pain...would an overdose of salt do the trick? I've killed pond snails quickly that way before but then again, there is the size difference.

 

[Essjay]

I assume that squidneh didn't just mean squash the snail till the shell breaks but hit it with a hammer till it is squashed flat. I'd put it inside a plastic bag first to contain the mess.

 

[cowgirluntamed]

Would a big dose of salt not work good then?

 

[cowgirluntamed]

Well...so far everybody is still alive. I mostly posted this question and asked about euthanasia due to lack of movement period. Well....two are moving! And those two are no longer just trying to stay on their side. One is still sort of rocking, but the other has actually moved forward just ever so slightly. Takes a few hours but it's happening. So I'm beginning to wonder if taking them out of the tank might get them to recover! Now, I really have no idea how long these guys can go without food...but I'm not ready to try feeding them yet since its still not great movement. But...it is movement! I'm trying not to be too hopeful but....I'm amazed at the difference in the behavior from two days ago, even though it's only minor! So maybe...just maybe...