Pimafix and Melafix--are they effective??

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Fishstix3000

Beware the Caerbannog Rabbit!
Nov 23, 2008
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I introduced a new guppy into my established tank. It died a few days later. Several days later, several of my guppies developed columnaris and fin rot. They have been on a seven day course of Pimafix and Melafix, and two have died, one has recovered, and three more look about the same as before treatment. Most of them are flashing on the rocks and plants.

Are Pimafix and Melafix effective treatments?

Is there something better I can try? I have several snails, a crab, and a frog, so I want to be careful not to harm them, whatever I do.

Thank you!!
 

Shoebox_16

Snr Member who craves knowledge.
Oct 5, 2008
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Greater London, UK
I have only tried Melafix - it worked to an extent.
 

AfroCichlid

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Jan 10, 2008
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In my experience they are not effective as treatment for disease. A quarantine tank would be your best bet. Maracyn is effective for finrot, but I have not dealt with columnaris. From what I read it is gram negative. Maracyn and Maracyn II should work. Would be more effective than Primafix or Melafix in my opinion.
 
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kj5kb

KEEPER OF CATS, FISH AND CATFISHES
Mar 1, 2007
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Spring Hill Kansas SW of Kansas City
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I've had good luck with sulfa drugs, like Triple Sulfa/Sulfa MS for that. I had 5 platys QTing in a 10G, and tried ~6 different meds for the fin rot. The Triple Sulfa tabs worked best. I later found Sulfa MS, which is a little cheaper per dose.

QT them if you can, even if you have to go to an unheated tank. Unlike ich, most fungus and bacteria grow faster the warmer they are.

Pima & melafix won't hurt, and may help prevent secondary infections; I'd go with a low dose if using along with other meds.
 

BigNorsk

AC Members
Nov 13, 2008
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I really can't tell that either of those products works very well at all. Certainly not good enough quick enough to save guppies infected with columnaris. It might be possible they can help slow or stop the spread of the disease.

In any case the Primafix is for fungi and columnaris is a bacteria, though it confuses people because it looks like a fungi. So one wouldn't expect the Primafix to work.

The Melafix is supposed to work by oxidizing the bacteria. If I was going to go that route, I'd do a hydrogen peroxide bath instead. At least that works sometimes.

Columnaris is a gram negative bacteria. So basically you have to use something that works on them. That list gets fairly narrow in aquriums.

Copper sulfate works well in the water but your invertebrates will die faster than the bacteria.

That leaves us with terramycin, which works well, especially if they are still eating and you can get a medicated feed into them. If nothing else, it protects the ones that aren't already sick.

Terramycin can also be used in the water, and I believe it won't kill your other species but I don't know.

Other antibiotics that should work would be Furan or Acriflavine.

So get a product with those and maybe you can save your fish.

Now antibiotics are just part of the treatment. First get rid of any charcoal or it will absorb the antibiotic. Then, partially change the water, and keep doing partial changes daily until the epidemic breaks.

If your particular other tank dwellers will stand it, salt helps the guppies breath. Columnaris kills by blocking the gills and the fish suffocates. Adding salt is like putting a person with pneumonia on oxygen. It helps them breath and buys you time for the antibiotics to work. I'd put at least a teaspoon a gallon in and if the snails die, well I like my fish more than my snails. Or remove a few snails to some container until this is over. They're just snails it's not like they require a huge filter running every moment to stay alive. Probably move the others too. But that's me. I love my guppies and like the others.

If the others are your priority, get some clove oil out, capture the guppies and anesthetize them and put them in the freezer and get it over with. Sorry if that sounds harsh but if you don't use something that could work, you've already made the decision to kill most of them by suffocation after a period of illness. Being knocked out and then frozen is a much nicer way to go.

So water changes with vacuuming, add salt. And try and find one of the antibiotics that would at least have a chance of working. If the label doesn't list one of those, I wouldn't even bother trying it unless it specifically mentions columnaris or gram negative bacteria.

And it is one of the most spreadable diseases so it is important to disinfect things like nets and such between fish.

For some reason, it's actually fairly difficult to find antiotics that will work in many LFS.

Aquarium Pharmaceuticals has some good products, and have both the Terramycin and Furan available. See: http://aquariumpharm.com/Products/Product.aspx?ProductID=65

I've had the most experience with the Terramycin, it seems to work well if the fish isn't too far gone, it just takes some time for any antibiotic to work and sometimes you just can't keep the fish alive long enough until the antibiotic works. That's where the salt comes in. Anyway the Terramycin doesn't seem to mess up your filtration so you don't cure the disease only to lose them to an ammonia spike. That's what I'd try.

Marv
 

beblondie

grand high exhalted poobah
Mar 25, 2005
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Melafix/pimafix are best used as a preventive not a cure.They are best used at the first sign of injury once signs of infection have occured its best to turn to real meds for a cure-Anne
 

KIM_TMA

AC Members
Apr 2, 2008
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Arkansas
I so agree with Blondie, they are just a preventive. Most of my lfs uses it when they get new shipments in for those just incases.

When my guppies had columnaris I used API E.M. Erythromycin. I had the best of luck with it. I had already tried the T.C. Tetracycline and they kept dying so when I finished the corse of meds, I added carbon for 1 day and went into the Erythromycin. Within 2 days I could see a huge change in behavior (everybody getting better).

As for your other occupiants in the tank I can't say whether they would be safe or not but I had briggs, columbian ramshorns, crayfish and none of them suffered ill effects from the meds.

Good Luck!
 

Fishstix3000

Beware the Caerbannog Rabbit!
Nov 23, 2008
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Marv, you are so right, it is hard to find the good stuff at the fish stores. Very odd. I ran out and got Maracin after an earlier post, and it says it is for columnaris (but it doesn't mention gram negative). The active ingredient is erythromycin, so I'm going to try it while I am waiting for Terramycin or Furan to arrive. It actually says on the back to continue filtration as normal. That is a first. I always take the charcoal out. I think I'll keep it out anyway.

My three favorite guppies went first. Isn't that the way it goes?

Dang fish store people. Said Pimafix and Melafix would fix anything. And I so wanted to believe it. Grrrrr. Not the first time I blindly followed where the fish store people led me.

I have been doing water changes, and I have the charcoal out of the filter. I have added salt up to about a teaspoon for every 2 gallons. After doing an increased salt treatment, do you stop adding salt with the water changes, or just decrease how much you add?

I did not quarantine the new fish. I don't have another tank, and so I just hoped for the best. Next time I guess I'll do a pima/melafix treatment with the addition of the new fish, since I have a ton of it and that apparently is all it is good for. Or get a little 2 gallon or something that can be used for a week or so when I get a new one. Sigh.

Thanks for all the input. I'll let you know how it goes.....
 
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