Help With Possible Parasites...

[terd ferguson]

Check out my thread in the SA/CA forum about my Green Terror that suddenly died...
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93771

Can you please tell me if you agree with the guy who said the clear poop is indicative of internal parasites? If so, are they contagious? If they are contagious, what can I do to protect the rest of the fish in that tank?

Please help, I've already lost an awesome Green Terror. I don't want to lose an even more awesome 5 1/2" jack Dempsey or a newly purchased Synodontis.

Thanks very much in advance for any and all help and/or suggestions. And, thanks for this great forum. You guys (and gals) are the best.

 

[terd ferguson]

Local fish store guru (in the hobby for 20+ years) says the GT may have pooped out his swim bladder. He claims parasites is more of a wasting away over time versus a quick degradation of health ending in death (12 hours in my case from healthy to dead). He says the swim bladder explanation also makes sense because of the sinking to the bottom, unable to swim.

I'd like to be relieved that I don't have to worry about my awesome JD and a parasite infection. What say you, genious hive mind that is MFK? Could the fish store guy be right? Everything I've found in searches say that clear white poop is indicative of parasites, but they don't result in a quick death as in my case.

Thanks again.

 

[guppy]

Feces can give many clues to health. Check this site for a basic check list, http://www.fishyfarmacy.com/fish_diseases/fecal_disorders.html
I have never heard of a fish pooping out it's swim bladder,
as you can see in this diagram, the swim bladder is not contained in the digestive tract, so this seems unlikely.
Most internal infections are at least somewhat contagious and the tank should be treated, a mix of praziquantel, metronidazole, and something like flubenole or levamisole mixed in food is a good general internal parasite cure, There are several available including the antiparasite medicated food made by Jungle, or geltec. One thing to bear in mind is that just because a fish has parasites does not mean that this was the cause of death. I say this because it is true that such a short time frame is very unusual for parasites.

 

[terd ferguson]

Feces can give many clues to health. Check this site for a basic check list, http://www.fishyfarmacy.com/fish_diseases/fecal_disorders.html
I have never heard of a fish pooping out it's swim bladder,
as you can see in this diagram, the swim bladder is not contained in the digestive tract, so this seems unlikely.
Most internal infections are at least somewhat contagious and the tank should be treated, a mix of praziquantel, metronidazole, and something like flubenole or levamisole mixed in food is a good general internal parasite cure, There are several available including the antiparasite medicated food made by Jungle, or geltec. One thing to bear in mind is that just because a fish has parasites does not mean that this was the cause of death. I say this because it is true that such a short time frame is very unusual for parasites.

Thanks for the great info. I thought I read somewhere that they excreet air from their swim bladders through their digestive tract (I could be wrong though). The fish store guy's explanation makes sense (If the above is true) because of the quickness of illness and death. I've never heard of that either, however he says he's only seen it twice in 20 years of retail fish store keeping. I don't know.