Levamisole

Levamisole anyone used it:?:
what will it treat :?:

Levamisole is a worm treatment for nematodal parasites, camallanus and capillaria.

You need to make sure you get the pure stuff, usually sold as Pig and Poultry wormer. The dose rate is 1 ml per 7 lts. aquarium water. Or buy a worm treatment from your aquarium store containing levamisole.

is there anywhere i can find picture of what nematodal parasites, camallanus and capillaria looks like?

Google should supply you with some answers.

Basically they are also known as threadworm and round worm. Internal worms, that can eventually build up to such a population that they protrude from the anus of the fish.

Are these worms contagious?

They are extremely contagious, many are livebearing and spread fast with no intermediate hosts needed.

Here is a good link with pics... In heavy infestations they can be seen as tiny 1-3mm red "hairs" sticking out of the anus of the fish when the fish is not moving.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/FA091

Thanks mtchye.

Maybe there should be a sticky post with good links to common problems?

What I meant was a seperate thread with all the good links in one place.

I'll try and get a few together.

Will Levamisole kill your Filter :?:
I was having a problem with my Fry as a last result I treated with Levamisole at nearly double the rate described here.
They all pulled through I was very suprised on there recovery rate.
I treated with Metro no result, symptoms were very simular to Hex.

Levamisole will not affect any bacteria, including that in your filter. It is very specific to nematodes.

I spose what Im saying a lot of people say treat with Metro for certain fish behaviour, Ive taken this advice and loss fish with my Fry they had long white poos not eating, simular signs of Hex. I used Levamisole and quered them :wink:
If we only had access to a Microscope and knew what to look for it would be easier :!:

What about plants do they get affected by Levamisole

Never had any problems with levamisole and plants, but it's better to treat in a hospital tank, if you can.

I agree with Merrilyn, never had any problems with levamisole and plants. I've used it in several fully planted tanks with no problems.

It’s that time of year to worm my precious fish!

None of my fish show any signs of intestinal worms, will treat anyhow.

I gave the fish a %60 water change, cleaned the glass, sponge filters and taken out their spawning pots.

I will moniter and take pictures over the next few days.

I have put up a few photo's of the product to use and how simple and safe it is to administer!

Ben

I did a water change 24 hours after treatment, and not one little crippy crawly to be found!

in a stupid sort of way it would have been nice to see a dead worm or 2?

i guess they did not have worms.....

Ben

Hey Ben good work buddy what dose rate do you use :?:

cheers mate,
1ml per 7 litres water.

ben

Ben how often do you worm your Fish, and do you treat them for anything else - if so, what with?.

Also, will Levamisole harm Clown Loaches, Knife Fish and Bristlenose?

Regards,

Marg.

How about a product called Worm-Enda? is this ok to use at the dosages rate metioned above?

the bottle states 10mg/ml Levamisole Hydrochloride (Equivalent to 8.48mg/ml Levamisole.

Hey Ben

Tried it last night on one of my pair and also nothing and your right a little disappointed too?.

brad

Brad, i guess we should be happy our fish were free from worms!

Cheers
Ben

Hi guys,

I just wanted to know if its ok to use a product called Aristopet - worm-enda poultry wormer? The ative constituent is 8.4g/L Levamisole (Present as Levamisole Hydrochloride)

Hi Mak, just be sure there is no glucose in the mixture. Some of the bird wormers have sugar or glucose mixed in with them to make it more palatable to birds. This will cause a huge bacterial bloom in your tank, and could be fatal to your fish.

Be sure to read the ingredients carefully. :P

hope I am allowed to do this but it seems that Big L pig and poultry wormer is the recommended one by everyone here so I found the link to the manufacturer...

found the sykes website with product info on Big L... they may have details of where you can buy it... HTH

http://www.sykes.net.au/sykes/bigwormpoultrypigs.htm

thanks sammi for the link!

No probs... a pleasure!!! :D

just a question:: one of the members on gup forum used levamisole on their tank for camallanus worms and mentioned that it destroyed their bacteria in the filter and that the tank had started to cycle again and he lost a few fish to ammonia spike... I read here that Big L doesnt do this... could it be that unless your tank is really well established that it may affect the bacteria?? (I know they used BigL because they got the link off me. :cry: )
I also linked them to this thread so that they could read about it and learn more...

Can you overdose?

Hi Sammi,

Levamisole should not affect the filter bacteria. As far as overdosing is concerned you most certainly can. There are many opinions on this stuff and personally I hate it but still use it when I have to. Even though there is little research or articles on Levamisole IMO it's better to use it than start running trials on Fenbendazole which was suggested to me recently.

The information I have been given (please don't shoot the messenger) is that 1. there is no proof that Levamisole does not affect the fertility of fish after heavy treatments with it, however, there are reports that fish have bred successfully after its use, 2. Levamisole has the potential to cause permanent nerve damage in fish and 3. Levamisole has been known to cause spinal deformaties in young growing fish. Doesn't fill me with a whole lot of confidence and especially after seeing what it does whilst under treatment.

Dosage in food is between 5gms and 10gms per kilo of food but I was advised to go the lower amount. In water (I use the pure powder form) it is 1.14gms per 100 ltrs of water but I found that to be about as useful as a knob of goat shite. IMO use it in food if you have to use it at all.
MAC

I would like to start by saying thanks to everyone for all the great information contained in this thread. With that being said, after reading about Levamisole and what a great dewormer it is I began to look for it. I am from the States so it is very difficult to find but I did find it on this site and ordered it.


http://www.2easy.com.au/shop/articles.php?cat=673

I was wandering if anybody could help me determine if I am diagnosing my fish problem correctly? I have a very young discus about 2-2.5 inches in size and he is not looking good. He has a pinched appearance about his eyes and seems very thin. His poo is clear and stringy. He isn't hiding or really dark in color he just doesn't seem to be gaining weight or eating very well. From reading this thread I believe it to be worms but before treating I would like to get a second opinion on this. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Also since this is a community tank is it safe to assume that what ever is affecting this fish that it will soon be affecting all of them and I should just treat the entire tank? And how long do I leave the Levamisole in there before doing a water change? Does the Levamisole kill the worms?

Thanks again for all your help!

Preston4479, it sounds more like Hex to me.

Try putting him in a Hospital Tank and treating with Metro. There are plenty of good Articles on this site about Hex and treatment with Metro. Just go to Quick Search and you will see what i mean.,

Regards,

Marg.

Hey Marg is it OK to treat them in the tank they are in with Metro?Also, is Hex contagious because my other Discus are now showing signs of white or clear poo? That is why if it is OK I would just prefer to treat the entire tank. Will Metro affect my biological filter or harm the plants?

Thank you very much for your help Marg!! Really appreciate it!!

Oh yeah I have been reading that alot of people are having trouble getting Metronidazole. Don't know if this will help or not but hear you go!


http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Produc...&N=2004+113017

Regarding the 1ml per 7 litres recomended dosage.
What should be done after doseing the tank? waterchange 24hr later? is it just a one off dose?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sime76

Regarding the 1ml per 7 litres recomended dosage.
What should be done after doseing the tank? waterchange 24hr later? is it just a one off dose?

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I'm not sure about this either ?.....someone ???

I ordered some of the BIG.L Levamisole, but it seem they delivered the wrong one, I've got Sheep and Cattle mix :x ......however it seems the same but a stronger solution, so can anyone tell me if it is Ok used at half dose, ie:......1ml per 14 litres of water, or should I refrain from using it at all ?

Hmmmm Phil, it depends what else is in it. Some of them have glucose in them to make it more palatable.

Can you get a shot of the contents?

We use the Pig and Poultry wormer because it's water soluble, so not too sure about this one. It must have something different in it, even though the main ingredient is levamisole.

Well it says nothing about glucose or aything else, just Levamisole Hydrochloride 32g/L, and the contents colour is the same as the pig and poultry...........ie: pineapple juice :roll:

I'm disappointed they got the wrong bottle in for me, and had to go a fair way to obtain it grrrr ! I might just try it out on some of my more expendable fish like Platies and Guppies etc, I'll try the half strength dose.

Hey peeps, just a quick query i dosed my piegon with Levamisole and he passed a couple of worms but he still looks like he has a full tummy but i havent seen him eat so my question is can i redose in a week or so?

here's a link to order sykes pig poultry wormer online 500ml for $14.95 and postage free for Sydney.
http://www.sydneyequestriansupplies....33265e89fd8ef1