Parasite on my new Marble Goby

[DanDanUK]

I just picked up my new marble Goby yesterday and noticed that it had some sort of parasite attached let me describe it to you , it's like some sort of worm it has got a clear body which seems to be some sort of jelly and has a black line inside it and it just hangs on the outside of the fishes body. I pulled them all off with tweasers and form the eye it looks like i got them all there was loads of them.

What i'm asking is although it may look like i have them all will they still be in the water and will they attach them selfs to my other fish ? is there a treatment which will get rid of them completley ? should i be worried !


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[DanDanUK]

Hey guys i just found out that it's ANCHOR WORM is there a chance that all my other fish are still gonna catch it even though i think i got them all ?

[Fruitbat]

It is possible that the Anchor Worms (which aren't really worms at all but are parasitic copepods) could infest your other fish. If the female 'worms' happened to release an egg case then you will still have some of the nasty little beasties in the tank. Certainly worth keeping an eye out for.

While some people advocate pulling the 'worms' off with tweezers, I've always had my best luck getting rid of this parasite using a product called Jungle Parasite Clear. I don't know if it is available in England, however.

-Joe

[Ken]

Use a copper based medication, coppersafe comes to mind.

[DanDanUK]

Use a copper based medication, coppersafe comes to mind.
Well fella thanks for your feedback but !..... i have an Arowana in my tank and copper medication is a big NO ... NO ! for the likes of Aro's You see copper is bad for these sort of fish . :)

[Masa_Rov]

Well fella thanks for your feedback but !..... i have an Arowana in my tank and copper medication is a big NO ... NO ! for the likes of Aro's You see copper is bad for these sort of fish . :)

You may want to look into the following drug companies:

http://www.pondliner.com/Dimilin.htm
http://www.aquariumpharm.com/pchealth.html
http://www.junglelabs.com/pages/details.asp?item=TB635

I believe that all of the products mentioned above have no copper but have diflubenzuron (which kills anchor worms).

Some people have said that arows are sensitive to Dimilin.

I have only used the one by Jungle Labs (to get rid of another type of parasite) with an arowana in the tank. The arowana was not hurt by it.

If your fish has anchor worms: Anchor worms are crustaceans. All crustaceans, unwanted and wanted, will probably be negatively affected by those medications.

Masa

[DeLgAdO]

i used copper on my jardini a long time ago, never had a problem.

[DeLgAdO]

you should quararintined your fish before you introduce a new fish to a tank, after you cure them all, get a quarintine tank for safe measures.

[DanDanUK]

you should your fish before you introduce a new fish to a tank, after you cure them all, get a quarintine tank for safe measures.
Yeah i know i should have quararintined my fish my own fault i didn't think at all ! :cry:

[DanDanUK]

You may want to look into the following drug companies:

http://www.pondliner.com/Dimilin.htm
http://www.aquariumpharm.com/pchealth.html
http://www.junglelabs.com/pages/details.asp?item=TB635

I believe that all of the products mentioned above have no copper but have diflubenzuron (which kills anchor worms).

Some people have said that arows are sensitive to Dimilin.

I have only used the one by Jungle Labs (to get rid of another type of parasite) with an arowana in the tank. The arowana was not hurt by it.

If your fish has anchor worms: Anchor worms are crustaceans. All crustaceans, unwanted and wanted, will probably be negatively affected by those medications.

Masa
Once i have used the treatment and have used it for the correct amount of time any parasites that have missed on the fish will they just drop off ?

[rweedon]

parasite guard worked for me... know where I can get some marble gobies... been looking but can not find!!!

[Masa_Rov]

Once i have used the treatment and have used it for the correct amount of time any parasites that have missed on the fish will they just drop off ?
The visible anchor worms (female) will just drop off after they die. Don't try to detach anchor worms once they are dead, as that will likely cause fungal or bacterial infections. You may have to treat for secondary infections, anyway, that have already started in the lacerations produced by the parasite.

You should raise the temperature of the tank to speed the cycle (if your fish can take it, of course). Each female may contain more than 500 eggs. Once they hatch, the parasites are free-swimming and will feed off the mucous of the fish. The female anchor worm will attach itself to the fish, as you have seen. One of the problems this may cause to small fish is that an anchor worm can penetrate as deep as an organ of the fish.

You should follow the indications in the drug. I believe, but I am not sure, that the anchor worm cycle is 14-15 days at high temperatures (upper mid 80s F).

If I were you, I would contact right away local universities or high schools and talk to the zoologists there, particularly those who are ichthyologists or have a lot of experience and knowledge with fish and fish diseases. (College and high school profs and teachers are generally very helpful, in my experience.) Also, the local chapter of ornamental pond fishes in your area should be very helpful, since anchor worms are more commonly seen in pond fish. A vet could help, but it would cost you money and it would have to be a vet who has experience with fish. I think contacting local experts is the best thing to do under the circumstances. Check also with the folks at TFH--they do know their stuff.

Good luck.

Masa

[DanDanUK]

Thanks for your advice you have been a big help i'm gonna go and pick up a treatment in the morning.

I have never encountered anything like this in all the years i have been keeping fish yeah i have had some fish health problems but i have allways come through it and cured them.

It was stupid of me to put him straight in to the tank i wasn't thinking at all i have been very tired these past couple of days as i have been working nights and my body clock is all over maybe thats where i made the mistake who knows.


I'm a fool !!!

[Masa_Rov]

Thanks for your advice you have been a big help i'm gonna go and pick up a treatment in the morning.

I have never encountered anything like this in all the years i have been keeping fish yeah i have had some fish health problems but i have allways come through it and cured them.

It was stupid of me to put him straight in to the tank i wasn't thinking at all i have been very tired these past couple of days as i have been working nights and my body clock is all over maybe thats where i made the mistake who knows.


I'm a fool !!!
You're welcome. We all make mistakes. (At least I do often enough.) We are dealing with closed and artificial systems, after all. In a way, we are corralling life, but life finds ways of cunningly bursting through those limits. That is why we call it life, I suppose.

Keep in mind that some (though not all) anticrustacean remedies will also kill aerobic bacteria and plants. Thus, you should keep a close tab on ammonia and nitrite levels.

Would a daily introduction of filter material from an uninfected and cycled tank ensure that your ammonia and nitrite levels don't spike upwards? I don't know; I've never tried that. On the one hand, it would seem to be replenishing aerobic bacteria colonies; on the other hand, those colonies could also be killed by the drug, thus actually making the situation worse by increasing the amount of ammonia-producing matter.

I have little knowledge and experience about this. What successful strategies have people developed to maintain aerobic bacteria colonies in their tanks during treatment with drugs that may also kill aerobic bacteria?

I mention this because fish that are very sensitive to ammonia and nitrites will really suffer, especially after having just put up with parasites and what not.

Masa

[jenBLKAROWANA]

Dan, you could try a HIKARI brand treatment - CYROPRO - this is a highly effective & safe treatment -

http://www.uskoi.com/cyropro.htm

This should help!
Jen

[DanDanUK]

Dan, you could try a HIKARI brand treatment - CYROPRO - this is a highly effective & safe treatment -

http://www.uskoi.com/cyropro.htm

This should help!
Jen
This is the sort of treatment i would like to use because it also heal's the fish and replaces the fishes body slime,............BUT ! i'm not sure they sell that sort of treatment over here and if they do have something similar they won't sell it in the one bottle they will sell the anchor worm killer in one bottle and the skin healing treatment in another bottle thus costing twice as much and our equipment in the UK is a lot more expensive than what you would pay over in the states :cry:

[jenBLKAROWANA]

Try this link...This may be helpful...


http://www.petproducts.co.uk/

Happy Hunting!

Jen

[DanDanUK]

Try this link...This may be helpful...


http://www.petproducts.co.uk/

Happy Hunting!

Jen

Hi there thanks for the link i have just e-mailed them but i think it's for buisness's only but i'll see what they say many thanks.

Danny

[Mattcomptonassvanhorn]

You can remove a quarter million of those guys and there still in there. If the worse passes, a breakdown is recommended. :cry:

[DanDanUK]

You can remove a quarter million of those guys and there still in there. If the worse passes, a breakdown is recommended. :cry:

Elabourate on " A breakdown " ? what do you mean by that ? :feedback:

[jenBLKAROWANA]

Tearing apart the tank, bleaching the rocks, and the tank...ECT...leting it dry out, bleach evaporates compleatly, it is safe, I have does this myself to rid my tank of a fish lice that infested the whole damn tank! I lost some fish because of "tainted" feeders, boy did I learn my lesson, they now get a "salty" fish bath before they are fed to any of my tanks!

Jen

[DanDanUK]

Tearing apart the tank, bleaching the rocks, and the tank...ECT...leting it dry out, bleach evaporates compleatly, it is safe, I have does this myself to rid my tank of a fish lice that infested the whole damn tank! I lost some fish because of "tainted" feeders, boy did I learn my lesson, they now get a "salty" fish bath before they are fed to any of my tanks!

Jen

Oh ***** !!! NOW I'M WORRIED

I've only had my goby for a 2 day's now and i pulled off about 30 parasites i have noticed one or two really small ones on the fish which tweezers are too small to get i'm gettin the treatment tommorrow morning ! at about 10. o.clock do you think i'll need to do a break down ????????????????????????????????????


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[guppy]

Fish lice are a worse problem because they are so mobile. I have had isolated anchor worms, esp. on cats and eels, and have always hand revoved them with a firm slow pullusing tweezers and them swabbed the wound with hydrogen peroxide. then keep an eye out for secondary infections. Remove them gently so as not to break off the head inside the fish. I never used any other way because the parasites were always few in number but I did follow up with salt and heat as for ich and never had any subsequent problems. I was always afraid meds would leave the anchor part still embedded and lead to fungus. The eggs and freeswimming stage are alot more vulnerable to elimination than are those of the argulus fish louse. If it was lice I'd say break it down but with anchorworms you can probably get by with salt. Look at the worms and watch for swollen yellowish egg cluster pairs where the body splits, a day of salt should destroy those even on the worms you can't get off yet, also keep a close eye on your other fish, hopefully you won't need stronger methods like a copper solution bath. Anchor worms seldom kill fish but can blind them.

[DanDanUK]

Fish lice are a worse problem because they are so mobile. I have had isolated anchor worms, esp. on cats and eels, and have always hand revoved them with a firm slow pullusing tweezers and them swabbed the wound with hydrogen peroxide. then keep an eye out for secondary infections. Remove them gently so as not to break off the head inside the fish. I never used any other way because the parasites were always few in number but I did follow up with salt and heat as for ich and never had any subsequent problems. I was always afraid meds would leave the anchor part still embedded and lead to fungus. The eggs and freeswimming stage are alot more vulnerable to elimination than are those of the argulus fish louse. If it was lice I'd say break it down but with anchorworms you can probably get by with salt. Look at the worms and watch for swollen yellowish egg cluster pairs where the body splits, a day of salt should destroy those even on the worms you can't get off yet, also keep a close eye on your other fish, hopefully you won't need stronger methods like a copper solution bath. Anchor worms seldom kill fish but can blind them.

Excuse my ignorance but you refer to using salt can you explain in a bit more detail please i,e how much marine salt do you use i appreciate all advice given ! but would like you to give me a bit more detail please many thanks guppy lad !

[guppy]

1-2 grams per liter for 5-6 days and raise the tank temp to mid 80s farenhiet. afterwards do a couple 75% waterchanges a day apart to get rid of excess salt and lower tank temp to your normal level. Most fish tolerate this quite well. On a recent thread someone, Miles I believe, said table salt works as the iodine level is only a trace and thinking about it I don't see how it would hurt at that level and might help lessen chance of fungus, a lot cheaper. Scaless fish seem to be more easily infected by anchorworms than scaled.

[guppy]

Works out to around 1 lb/100 gal, or 1/2 kilo/400 liter. I use less salt than some I've met, you might ask some others also.