which worms?

[bushie]

I have a red turq which is very hollow and shy
I also have a blue ram which is extremely hollow and I don`t like it`s chances of survival.
I noticed some small red hairs protruding from the vent which I also noticed on one of my other discus.
all water params are good.
I am assuming worms but which ones and what treatment?
can I treat the whole tank ( community)?
I do have cats and loaches and would like to ensure their safety.
where to get medications in perth?
any help appreciated.
thanx
BUSHIE

[*Chris*]

thats camillanus worm mate once they are pretruding from the vent it means that there
heavily infested
and that the worms are sending of the larvae into the tank
levimisole is what you need to use
you can get it from the vet
and its safe to use for cats and loachs
cheers
EXAI

[sharn]

yip, camillanus and its not nice. i found once they start to go hollow it can be tricky to treat them but its worth a shot as its very likely the other fish will have them too.

levamisole, as EXAIFB said, is what youll need. i had great success with using this. i did three treaments two weeks apart each, normally only two is needed but i wanted to be 100% sure.

after reading around alot on the net and compiling many pages on how to use it i decided to use this method

1: do as bigger water change as possible, i did 90% but make sure you vacumn the substrate really well, remove rocks etc and get right in there.
2: fill back up with nice clean aged water
3: work out how much is needed for your dosage (i used 1ml per 20L but my levamisole was a 24% solution)
4: get a jug of tank water, add levamisole to that, give it a mix and pour into your tank
5: (the time for using is debated a bit) wait 48 hours. i found after 48 hours my fish were looking a bit sad. some sources said 24 hours, some said three days so i went with the medium (you can choose whatever time based on your own reading).
6: do a nice big 90% water change again making sure to vacumn real well.
7: (this is personal choice), i added some epsom salts at the reccomended dose just incase there might have been blockups in the fish from the worms. many people reccomned using metro after this to combat possible internal infections i beleive
8: repeat in another two weeks.

NOTE- this is how i did it personally after reading alot on the net, i advise you to do the same and pick how you would like to go about treating. its a very gentle med as far as bio filters etc go, it wont harm that at all but increased dosages can lead to bad intestinal upsets in the fish i read. it wont harm your cats or loaches too but do keep an eye on them as all fish react differently.

levamisole is used as a pig and poultry wormer and also a bird wormer. make sure the solution you get doesnt contain glucose cause that can encourage algae (i think).

hope this helped some and good luck :)

[Merrilyn]

Some great advice there Sharn.

BTW glucose in the tank will cause a bacterial bloom, which can be fatal, so be sure to read the label carefully.

Best one to use is the pig and poultry wormer known as Big L. You should find it at any feed and grain store that sells farm products.

[bushie]

thanx for all your help everyone.

I couldn`t find big L anywhere,
I did find coopers nilverm pig and poultry wormer, which looks to have same active ingredients and no mention of glucose.
i.e. 16g/l levamisole hydrachloride equivelent to 14g/l levamisole.
I have tried this at 1m per 7/l
hope this works and is the right product ( bit expensive though $35.50/ 500ml)
now, should I be able to see them passing worms?
should I retreat in two days or two weeks as I have seen both mentioned?
should I follow up with prazi treatment as well?
my larger discus was seen this morning before treatment passing something that resembled white faeces although it seemed to be segmented.
is it possible that this is a tape worm or egg sacs?

once again thanx for your help all
BUSHIE

[SandyLynne]

I also use Nilverm pig and poultry wormer as I was unable to find Big L. The only difference I can find with the two is that Nilverm is a LOT more expensive, well it was for me anyway.

[Phlipper]

One of the local shops here uses the Nilverm with no problem at all,but I think a couple of treatments may be warranted, doesn't seem to hurt the fish.