medicated fish food

[kenneth_kpe]

what do you guys think about medicated fish food ? do you use it regularly as sort of a preventive measure or do you use it as a cure or you dont use it at all ?? you know just to prevent bacterial infections ? etc etc ?

 

[Angry_Platy]

I have never seen medicated fish food where I live at any of the LFSs

Could be worth a try though.....

 

[smithrc]

not come across it myself... and probubly wouldnt use it.

It would mean feeding everyone with the same food. and no gauentee the sick fish would get enough/any.

 

[Tolak]

I've made my own for internal parasites, just mixed the meds with some brine shrimp. Always had the fish in their own tank though. There is no sense in medicating fish that aren't sick.

Tolak

 

[black angel]

from what i remember medicated food is banned in britain. think it was because fish farmers were abusing it somehow, not really sure.
i think it does some good as it is working from the inside of the fish.

 

[smithrc]

surly there is a big risk of over dosing with your own mixes??

 

[Tolak]

Surly?!? I may be a bit cantacerous, but surly is pushing it!

 

[Tolak]

LOL, just kidding smithrc! I just sprinkle a bit on the frozen brine shrimp, learned the trick from a breeder for dealing with hex. Treated 3 or 4 fish, all they need to get is a tiny bit to get them to eat again. Haven't o.d.'d yet, but half are going to a 12 step program!

Tolak

 

[smithrc]

lol - can we get a dictionary over here!

 

[Bignose]

Feeding medicated food in many cases is the only way to treat an internal infection -- if you just treat the water, only a very very little medication gets delivered to where it would do some good.

That said, I would urge you to stop using medicated food as a preventative. Almost every anti-bacterial, food, medication, etc. is only a bacteriastat -- that is, it prevents bacteria from growing, but does not actually kill them. This stopping of the growth gives the fish's own immune system a chance to catch up and take care of the infection.

All you are accomplishing by using medicated food as a preventative is culturing resistant bacterial strains. You stop the growth of other bacteria, but the bacteria that are naturally resistant can keep growing, and quickly become the dominant bacteria in the system. And now, when you do need the medicated food for an actual diagnosed infection, it will be largely ineffective.

For example, have you read or heard about the number of staph infections in hospitals that kill people now? Staph used to be a very very minor infection, but nowadays there are strains that are resistant to almost all of our antibacterials and they kill several people every year. Too casual use of antibacterials is the primary cause.

So, not only is wasteful to use medication when it is not necessary, but it actually contributes to the culturing of drug-resistant strains.

 

[kenneth_kpe]

i thought soo too, ive always read stuff on bacteria becoming resistant because of constant exposure to anti bacs. So the answer to my question then is to cure and not prevent bacterial infections. But is there a way to minimize hrmfl bacteria inside the tank ? u know kinda like washing your hands before eating, so as to make sure your fishes dont get internal infections. But i guess with liquid anti bacs, its a shotgun treatment where you kill off the beneficial bacteria too ?? just my opinion ?

 

[Bignose]

If you use an antibacteria medicine, you do inhibit your beneficial bacteria too -- most medications on their bottles warn of this.

In terms of minimizing bad bugs in your tank, 1) quarantine new fish and plants probably the most important by a lot.

And then, 2) I think is to encourage biodiversity. Which means that a little algae is not a bad thing (since a whole host of other buggies thrive on the algae etc.) The layer of growing stuff on every surface is not just the beneficial bacteria, but everything else that makes up biofilm -- all sorts of diverse bugs, that you'll see fish eating once in a while. And then, this is the time of year the outside temperature changes a lot, and I normally begin the lower the temp in my tanks a few degrees F. Not a lot, but by keeping our tanks at a constant temperature, we are culturing bugs that grow specifically at that rate. By changing the temp just a little, a different set of dominant bugs can take over. In this way, there is a great diversity of bacteria and other buggies in the tank, all in harmony with nature.

Skeptical Aquarist's page on bacterial infections has a lot more of this kind of info.

 

[kenneth_kpe]

oic that is some interesting information. il take not of that.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi kenneth_kpe

The best way to keep fish healthy is to keep a clean and cycled tank that has a high oxygen content in the water. Regular water changes and bottom vacuumings remove uneaten foods and fish wastes that harmful bacteria thrive on.

Most tanks contain some potentially dangerous bacteria but if the fish are healthy and have strong immune systems, they are naturally resistant to them. Stress factors such as aggressive tankmates, uneaten food, overcrowding, infrequent water changes, high nitrite levels, or sudden changes in temperature weaken the fish and make them susceptible to bacterial infections.

Kanamycin is an antibiotic frequently used to treat bacterial infections either by mixing with paste food or by adding it to the water. I have never used it mixed with food because none of my lfs make and sell this kind of food, and I have never tried making it myself, but it seems that would be a very effective way to treat disease. Put into the water, it must be absorbed into the fishes systems, which must take longer and, it would seem, be less effective.

When treating for bacterial infections, be sure to administer the entire course of treatment because if some of the harmful bacteria are still in the fish's systems they could mutate and become resistant to the medication that was used, and potentially become untreatable with the medicines we have available. For this reason it's best never to use any medicine or chemical preparations as a preventative measure, but rather stick to keeping a clean and healthy tank to avoid problems with disease.

 

[kenneth_kpe]

i guess proper prevention is better then cure.... il keep my tank clean.