I discovered the dreaded 'little red worms' protruding from my Bolivian Ram last night. Camallanus......
If I lived in the US - no problem. There are medications that will take care of the problem and don't even upset your cycle. But this is Canada....Home of the paranoid when it comes to some things.
I researched for about 3 hours last night and found that some people recommended de-wormer meant for cattle/sheep/etc, and according to their posts - they worked.
So this morning I called every feed/grain dealer around. I found one less than 10 minutes from me - sure they had de-wormer - lots of kinds. Well, yes and no...they had lots of 'pastes' - no power or liquid for the products I recognized. The only powered version they had was for chickens/turkeys - water soluible to put into their drinking water. Since I had nothing else - I thought - well at least it is something - better than just watching them die.
The infected fish is still in my QT - and for all of you who don't think a QT is important - think again. I have had the ram for about 3 months now and this is the first outward sign of a problem. I originally bought 4. They seemed to die off about 1 a week - starting about 2 weeks after a got them home...only one is left. Each time I checked the water parms - 0,0, >5. I checked the first two for signs of problems but did not see any - of course I did not know to look for 'little red worms' and since the Rams were shy and good at hiding...it could have been a little while before I found them - perhaps the worms leave if the fish dies...just guessing.
So - now one lonely Bolivan Ram - seemed healthy - all by himself in a 30 Gal QT. Just before Christmas I bought 3 very small Angel fish (only about a big as a dime) and put them in the same tank. I was curious about the 3 Rams dying, but it seemed like they just stopped eating and wasted away. No signs of problems that I could see and the last one seemed healthy - good appetite, etc.
Now - the moment of truth!
So I took a cup of tank water and dissolved 2 tablespoons of the power in it. I have no idea of the correct dose...just winging it all the way
I put it in the tank about an hour and a half ago. The first reaction was for the fish to all go to the top. That only lasted a minute and then they seemed fine. Then they looked like they were having trouble breathing so I got a small tank ready - took water from one of my other tanks - running the whole time - got back to the QT - everyone seemed fine. I noticed that their breathing was still a little labored - so I added an air stone to the tank. This seems to have worked - no one is at the surface and the Angel fish are checking the bottom of the tank for food.
Another interesting fact - within 10 minutes of putting the meds in the tank - the Ram was no longer clamping his fins. He did seem a little agitiated - but that could just be the worms reacting to the meds - I hope.
They all seem to be going about their business as normal now. I pray that this works and tomorrow I see some positive progress.
I have spent hours on the phone and on the Internet trying to find a way to buy the medications I knew would work - only to be stopped every time. Apparently in Canada only Vets have access to this stuff - and without a Cow with worms - you can't get a prescription for it. The lady at the feed store said that the Vets had been upset about people treating their animals on their own and not involving a vet - so they made enough noise that the medications were taken off the open market. I thought about bagging up my fish and heading to the vet - but the only one who would see me was an emergency office - $65 for walking through the door and they did not have anyone who would feel competant to write a presciption for a fish. Even if I provided the backup info.
So - rock and a hard place - time to get creative. I figure that at this point even if this does not work - atleast I tried. It is so frustrating to know that the medication I need is less than 2 hours away - just across the border and I can't get any.
Perhaps a 'Border Run' is in order - at some point. It would be just my luck to get caught trying to smuggle fish medication. I could be sort a little difficult trying to explain to a border guard - unless he is in the hobby.
Anyway - I will keep you updated as to the progress.
The medication I used is:
Piperazine 52
Vanilla flavored - didn't have a choice.
The active ingredient is "Piperaxine dihydrochloride" 97%
The bags says:
For veterinary use only.
For poultry, swine, and horses.
A complete worming treatment for the removal of large roundworms, nodular worms, and parasitic worms
(Ascaris, Oesophagostomum, parascaris equorum, Oxyuris equi, triodontophorus tenuicollis and trichonema.)
Made by Vetoquinol - Quebec
I will update again tomorrow - hopefully with good news.
If I lived in the US - no problem. There are medications that will take care of the problem and don't even upset your cycle. But this is Canada....Home of the paranoid when it comes to some things.
I researched for about 3 hours last night and found that some people recommended de-wormer meant for cattle/sheep/etc, and according to their posts - they worked.
So this morning I called every feed/grain dealer around. I found one less than 10 minutes from me - sure they had de-wormer - lots of kinds. Well, yes and no...they had lots of 'pastes' - no power or liquid for the products I recognized. The only powered version they had was for chickens/turkeys - water soluible to put into their drinking water. Since I had nothing else - I thought - well at least it is something - better than just watching them die.
The infected fish is still in my QT - and for all of you who don't think a QT is important - think again. I have had the ram for about 3 months now and this is the first outward sign of a problem. I originally bought 4. They seemed to die off about 1 a week - starting about 2 weeks after a got them home...only one is left. Each time I checked the water parms - 0,0, >5. I checked the first two for signs of problems but did not see any - of course I did not know to look for 'little red worms' and since the Rams were shy and good at hiding...it could have been a little while before I found them - perhaps the worms leave if the fish dies...just guessing.
So - now one lonely Bolivan Ram - seemed healthy - all by himself in a 30 Gal QT. Just before Christmas I bought 3 very small Angel fish (only about a big as a dime) and put them in the same tank. I was curious about the 3 Rams dying, but it seemed like they just stopped eating and wasted away. No signs of problems that I could see and the last one seemed healthy - good appetite, etc.
Now - the moment of truth!
So I took a cup of tank water and dissolved 2 tablespoons of the power in it. I have no idea of the correct dose...just winging it all the way
I put it in the tank about an hour and a half ago. The first reaction was for the fish to all go to the top. That only lasted a minute and then they seemed fine. Then they looked like they were having trouble breathing so I got a small tank ready - took water from one of my other tanks - running the whole time - got back to the QT - everyone seemed fine. I noticed that their breathing was still a little labored - so I added an air stone to the tank. This seems to have worked - no one is at the surface and the Angel fish are checking the bottom of the tank for food.
Another interesting fact - within 10 minutes of putting the meds in the tank - the Ram was no longer clamping his fins. He did seem a little agitiated - but that could just be the worms reacting to the meds - I hope.
They all seem to be going about their business as normal now. I pray that this works and tomorrow I see some positive progress.
I have spent hours on the phone and on the Internet trying to find a way to buy the medications I knew would work - only to be stopped every time. Apparently in Canada only Vets have access to this stuff - and without a Cow with worms - you can't get a prescription for it. The lady at the feed store said that the Vets had been upset about people treating their animals on their own and not involving a vet - so they made enough noise that the medications were taken off the open market. I thought about bagging up my fish and heading to the vet - but the only one who would see me was an emergency office - $65 for walking through the door and they did not have anyone who would feel competant to write a presciption for a fish. Even if I provided the backup info.
So - rock and a hard place - time to get creative. I figure that at this point even if this does not work - atleast I tried. It is so frustrating to know that the medication I need is less than 2 hours away - just across the border and I can't get any.
Perhaps a 'Border Run' is in order - at some point. It would be just my luck to get caught trying to smuggle fish medication. I could be sort a little difficult trying to explain to a border guard - unless he is in the hobby.
Anyway - I will keep you updated as to the progress.
The medication I used is:
Piperazine 52
Vanilla flavored - didn't have a choice.
The active ingredient is "Piperaxine dihydrochloride" 97%
The bags says:
For veterinary use only.
For poultry, swine, and horses.
A complete worming treatment for the removal of large roundworms, nodular worms, and parasitic worms
(Ascaris, Oesophagostomum, parascaris equorum, Oxyuris equi, triodontophorus tenuicollis and trichonema.)
Made by Vetoquinol - Quebec
I will update again tomorrow - hopefully with good news.
