Internal parasite: fish eating but does not eat pellets

[tvbbnumber41]

Hey guys I recently bought a zebrina pike and unfortunately I noticed white yellowish poo. On top of that I also noticed it to be breathing heavily (this is with aeration in the tank). I'm pretty inclined to think that it's some sort of internal parasite (please object if you think otherwise) and so based on my experience I'd treat the tank with epsom salt and metro while also soaking the food prior, however, the issue is here that the zebrina pike will only eat silversides. So I dont know what to do. Would soaking silver sides work?

 

[Rocksor]

You would have to practically brine the silversides for a da in a 3% epsom salt solutiony, and that may not even get you the right amount of epsom salt concentration in it. Instead, soak freeze dried krill with 3% epsom salt solution. Once the fish starts taking that, you can coat with metroplex and seachem focus. A 6" pike can easily not eat for 30 days, and still be okay healthwise, so keep that in mind for training to feed.

 

[tvbbnumber41]

You would have to practically brine the silversides for a da in a 3% epsom salt solutiony, and that may not even get you the right amount of epsom salt concentration in it. Instead, soak freeze dried krill with 3% epsom salt solution. Once the fish starts taking that, you can coat with metroplex and seachem focus. A 6" pike can easily not eat for 30 days, and still be okay healthwise, so keep that in mind for training to feed.

So idk why I didnt think of this but I ended up cutting the silverside in half and using a sharp skewer stuffed the gut with a pinch of epsom salt and metro/praziquental and clamped the open end closed. As soon as I popped in the tank fish took it. Before I did all this I also did a 30 percent water change, and dosed the tank with the same epsom, metro, prazis. Anything else I should be doing? Fingers crossed.