Parasites?

[madi]

I have a 75Litre, (20 gallon aprox) guppy tank. It's been established for about 6 months, and I have 3 adult females, and around 15-20 off spring in various stages of development.

I had four adults, but after dropping her fry, one of the fish's anus appeared to shred. This is the first time I've had female guppies (I've been keeping males for several years) so I wasn't sure if this was due to a bad birth or what. It go worse over the next few days, the anus shredded into a sort of star shape, with each point of the star having red strings coming off it. The fish died.

I didn't think to much of it, but now a few of my fish have the thing, white poop that I've seen in males with internal parasites, and another of my adult females and one of my adolescent fish have a red anus which appears to be starting to shred.
The fish haven't stopped eating, but they're spending more time tucked away behind the filter.


So now I'm thinking internal parasite. I've got some medication for fluke and tape worm (Praziquantel in tablet form), but when I brought it came with a very big warning to only use it if you're 100% sure because the medication can be more harmful than the worms. And the bottle says not to use it on baby fish. I want to kill the parasites I'm pretty sure are there... But I'm very attached to my fry.

So yes. I'm pretty sure they need to be wormed, but I REALLY don't want to kill my itty bitty fishies

Any advice?


Tank Info:
Size: 75L (20G)
Temp: 26degC (79degF)

Am: 0
Ni: 0
Na: 15

kH: 5
gH: 13
pH: 7

Fish: 3 adult guppies, 15-20 fry of various ages.

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Sounds like it could be camalanus worms, which are a parasitic round worms (nematode). The "red strings" are the ends of the worms coming out to disperse eggs. If it is indeed Camalanus worms the only effective treatment that I'm aware of is Levamisole which is very effective, but difficult to purchase in some countries.

In the US it can be purchased in farm Co-op stores as pig or cattle/sheep de-wormer, but the concentrations vary between the two forms, and I forget the correct dosage amounts. I remember that the cattle/sheep version is a lower concentration, and that I had to cut 1/4 of a teaspoon down 10 ways, but I don't remember if 1 cut treated the whole tank or if it was 1 cut per 10 gallons.

 

[WILDER]

You will need to treat with levaimsole.


Camallanus



Symptoms:

When the fish is stationary, deep red worms can be seen protruding from the anal pore. They are only visible when the fish is still because the worms retreat into the intestine at the fish’s slightest movement. Other signs may include an inflamed and enlarged anus. In severe infestations, the fish may become emaciated and spinal curvature may also occur.



Cause:

The parasitic worms Camallanus Cotti and Camallanus lacustris. These small, livebearing parasitic worms attach to the intestinal walls and rectum with pinchers. The worm’s grip is so tight that any attempts to remove it forcibly will rip away tissue from the intestinal wall. The worm’s pinching causes ischemia (reduced blood flow) to that part of the intestine. In time, the tissue to that part of the intestine will die, at which time the worm will migrate to another part of the intestine. This causes perforations throughout the intestine, which allows other pathogens to gain entry. If the fish is not treated, either the parasite or bacterial will kill the fish. Camallanus infestations occur most often in livebearing fish such as Guppies and Mollies, though infection is possible in all fish. Camallanus infestations are contagious. All fish, including those not yet showing visible symptoms, as well as the aquarium, should be treated.



Treatment:

Treat with Internal Parasite Guard, Pipzine, Disco-Worm, Trichlorfon or Fluke-Tabs as well as a medicated food to prevent a bacterial infection

 

[madi]

Ta for the info.

I've got the medication on order from my local aquarium, it'll be in within 3 days. They had one in stock but it had a sugar base, which apparently leads to bacteria blooms... Call me crazy, but a bacteria bloom when my fish are weakened from parasites seems like a bad idea.


What effect is the medication likely to have on my fry? The youngest is around a month old.

Ta again

 

[WILDER]

Not sure on the fry if I'm honest.
I would maybe do a thread in tropical discussion asking if anyone used levaimsole with fry in the tank.