Long White Poop

[jaimeg]

I have 3 dwarf platy that I've noticed some long strands of white poop. Otherwise they are acting fine. One of the 3 always hides, but she always has. Oh, every so often she goes nuts swimming around quciky and hitting the bottom, then goes back to hide. I catch this about once a week. One has spent more time near the top of the tank over the last two days. Other one acts fine. They are eating normally and look fine otherwise. Should I treat with a parasite medicine? I treated with a parasite tab about 1 1/2 weeks ago...and my snail died...maybe a coincidence, but maybe not? So I'm wanting to rush to treat again if it is not needed. But I don't want to ignore long, white poop if it is always associated with a problem...

Thanks,

Tank stats:
10 US gallons
3 dwarf platy (+one fry in breeding tank)
2 cory
1 zebra danio (other 4 died recently, but no long poop here!)
1 large snail

amonia 0
Nitrates fine (can't remember number, but lowest reading on strip)
Nitrites 0

 

[WILDER]

Long stringy white poo can be constipation so what do you feed the fish, internal bacteria, to internal parasites, check the anus to see if its red and inflamed or enlarged.
Check the gills of the fish to see if they look pale with excess mucas on them, or red and inflamed.
Somthing not right if she darting around and hiding, any signs of spots, fluff on the body of the fish, or even a dusting or slime look to it.

 

[jaimeg]

Sometimes I've wondered if the gills look a little red, but then again, I'm not really that familiar with what they normally look like. We've only had the platy a couple of months.

I don't see anything else on them at all.

Do you think I should do another parasite tab, just in case?

Also, when I did the tab before...the fish that sometimes darts around went crazy for a few minutes and the next thing we knew there were 3 fry in the tank. I wonder is she stressed out and had them early (no new fry, kept for one week in breeding tank and then let back out into tank, maybe still a gravid spot)

So you think the platy shouldn't be hiding at all?

 

[WILDER]

Its normal for them to hide when giving birth but not all the time, it's a sign that something not right most of the time.
Darting is a sign of bad water quality, toxins, meds, to parasites, even stray voltage in a tank.
Any signs of the fish flicking and rubbing on objects.
The reason why the snail died is because they can't handle parasite meds, you are meant to issolate them.

http/article.dphnet.com/cat-02/flukes1.shtml

You say you have lost 4 fish were they flicking and rubbing.

For the long stringy white poo try some shelled peas first, boil frozen peas for a few minutes, let cool down, pop out of shell, mush between fingers and add to the tank.
It a laxative to a fish as it flushes them through.

 

[JackoUK]

One of my 3-spot Gouramis had long and white stringy poo recently and after some advice from the board I ended up putting a few boiled and de-shelled peas in and that seemed to do the trick. I bought some meds just in case but haven't had to use them yet. The Gourami seems fine now, regular poo.