What Medicines Should Be In A Fishkeeper's Cabinet...

[eaglesaquarium]

I know that there are several things that I should have on hand at all times, just in case. But, what are they - and what are they good for?

I've heard Melafix. What is that for?

Should I have aquarium salt on hand at all times? (I'm planning on keeping cories, so that may not be a good idea.)

Any others?

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

Melafix and pilafix I think. One is for infections and one is for bacteria. Not sure which way round though. I don't have either at the moment.

However there are a few experienced people on here that havn't used any ever. So those will say not to have any lol

I don't know about salt for cories. You could always have salt to give fish salt baths if they have ich. Or using in your QT.

 

[BigbruiserAl]

Have to be carfull with corys i have 10 and needed to treat ich didt say anyware that you need half dose's for them

 

[eaglesaquarium]

So, if you get ich in a cory tank, you dose at half the recommended dosage? Will the ich still go away? Do you still increase the temp? Do you still use salt?

 

[Harlequins]

Corys half dose & dont use salt,temperature can be upped,but i wouldn't go any higher than 28 degrees.Up the aireation.

The meds i keep but haven't used for over a year & a half(touch wood) are all interpet - white spot,anti fungus & bacterial meds.

 

[KkAaNnEe]

Dont meds have short use bys? Im only 5mins from my LFS so i dont have any sitting about

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Ok... do you have anything sitting around in the cabinet though, in case of emergency? What if the LFS is closed when you see the problem? I know that a large water change is SOP, but that in itself won't fix the problem, that will only help to stop/slow the spread of the problem.

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

I dont think meds will cure instantly. Meds fr fish is something similar to going to your GP. But if you were dying, you would go to hospital and have an emergency operation. I don't think having meds in your cupboard for emergencies just in case the shop is shut, will make alot of difference.

Meds work over a period of time. Not an instant fix like an operation.

I hope that makes sense. I could be wrong however

 

[KkAaNnEe]

I had protozin, but i used it up... I havent really had too many fish diseases or illnesses in the last 3 years, my lfs shuts at 8pm and opens at 10.

Whatever works for the individual i guess, as long as you do regular maintenance, water changes and keep your fish well fed you have less chance of fish developing problems

 

[colleen0309]

I've had fish for many years. I used to medicate when I had a problem, but I have found that the treatment is often worse than the cure. I haven't used anything except aquarium salt in the past 10 years. I'm just afraid of doing more harm to my fish. But in the past 10 years, medications and treatments have changed. Fish keeping in general has changed. The meds I hear the most about are melafix and primafix (I think that's how you spell them). I don't have any on hand. I probably should though. Guess it's time to go to the lfs. Oh boy! I love an excuse to go!

 

[KkAaNnEe]

+1 fishy. But also im aware newbie fishkeepers will read this, so i will state if you are inexperienced then it may be helpful to have meds in case of unexpected illnesses

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I understand that meds won't cure instantly, but if you notice the problem, I think the best course of action is to try to start treatment as soon as possible. For example, if your child has a fever, you don't want to wait until the store opens to give him some fever reducer. You would want to be able to medicate that right away. Also, if the child were to skin their knee or as my son did, cut their head late at night, you want to have some sort of bandage available immediately to prevent infection. So, while the thread title says "Medicine" it doesn't have to be strictly "medicine" but akin to something that you would keep in your medicine cabinet for such situations.


If you see a fish that has a missing scale, fin nips, etc. I would think that a quick treatment would be best to help the fish to recover. What would you use for such ailments?

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

Melafix and primafix are the most broad types of meds as I am aware, however until you can confirm the cause you shouldn't treat.

Also you may find you won't need the meds and they run out of date.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Are their shelf lives that short, or are they just needed that infrequently?

 

[KkAaNnEe]

I understand your comparison, but I dont know if it is accurate. All im saying is that under normal conditions, I don't need loads of meds in my cupboard, I would rather spend my money on keeping my fish healthy in the first place and if something was going to occur its not gonna be long until I can get some meds to help.

There is always proactive and reactive, some people are one way, some are the other. Obviously there are times when something has happened to cause a problem such as when I had a whitespot outbreak around 2 months back, i went and got the meds, used it and it was gone within a week.