Internal Parasites, maybe?

[LebronTheBetta]

My new female betta Moltres, seems to have "internal parasites". She lives with 5 other females. The tank is a 20G, cycled and heated to 76. Other inhabitants are 4 Cories and 2 mystery snails. The weird thing is, her poo is half white and half normal color; brownish red. Do I feed her NLS Medicated fish food? I think it's in my Petco, but I can always buy it online.

Are internal parasites contagious? Does she even have internal parasites? Maybe it's because of a sudden diet change? I have Epsom salt so I can treat her for a few days if needed. I always thought internal parasites made the poo fully white. She isn't darting, and not really bloated. Maybe a little, but it's due to being a CT. Her belly is a little cloudy white looking, too.

Any thoughts?

[callistra]

NLS doesn't make medicated fish food. They have a non medicated anti parasite feed.. basically it's full of garlic which has some natural tendencies to be antiparasidic. There is no actual medication it is and it will help keep a fish healthy enough to hopefully prevent (just like any good food) but it won't cure an infection. Seems to be a common misconception.

The white could also be a bacterial infection. I would use Epsom salts and I would either use Kanaplex in the water for 2 weeks or you could mix up your own feed using a source of metrodazinole. That would need to be fed for 3 weeks to a month and at a minimum of a full week after it appears the infection is gone or the likelihood of a relapse is high.

[LebronTheBetta]

So ES and Metro will be sufficient? Is there any risk for the other stock or should I just take caution? Where can I find the Metro?

[callistra]

It will probably be sufficient. Metro isn't the strongest antibiotic but it's good for parasites. I'd give it at least two weeks to know if it's working. Kanaplex as a bath would be better for bacterial infection but it's kind of a crap shoot at this point knowing what's the underlying issue unless you can find evidence it's one or the other. Like if you feed live food I'd assume it's parasite.. or whatever else you can come up with. You can also feed metro and bathe in kanaplex at the same time but it can be pretty stressful on the fish, so I don't know if I'd go that route unless I was feeling desperate.

If you're feeding the metro then make sure that your infected female is the only one that gets it, or if you suspect others may have an infection you can just feed the whole stock. It wouldn't hurt but I wouldn't feed fish that are fine because you don't want it to be ineffective because of overuse if you actually run into a problem later on down the line. I wouldn't medicate the whole tank with Kanaplex unless again you feel the rest have the same problem. You can get a gallon or two acrylic container, fill it half full and it should float in the larger tank or if you have a hospital tank you can keep warm another way that'd work too.

Seachem makes some: http://www.petmountain.com/product/m...le-5-gram.html

You can get it any place that sells Seachem products. What I do when I mix it up is also get a tube of focus http://www.petmountain.com/product/b...hem-focus.html , which is a binding agent and helps the feed be more effective: It isn't necessary but it should help.

I use garlic guard http://www.petmountain.com/product/a...lic-guard.html (it's garlic juice extract with no extra additives or preservatives) but you can also use a little tank/dechlorinated water. Put a little of the liquid of your choice in a cup along with one scoop each of the metro and focus. Mix it up really good then add few good soaker pellets in them (wheat based ones you wouldn't usually feed your fish like Hikari) and mix that all around. Let it soak 10-15minutes then feed two twice a day. I mix it up fresh every time I feed but you'll have to mix it up fresh at least daily. If you choose to only mix up once, cover it and place the rest in the fridge. Before you feed a second time in the evening, bring it out and let the mixture come back to room temp. At this point they will no longer float so make sure to remove any uneaten from the tank.

The Gold Fish connection also sells some medicated feed but they're large so you would have to crush them and my fish didn't like the taste: http://www.goldfishconnection.com/sh...php?parentId=5 The medi gold is for bacterial infections and contains Ormetoprim, Sulfadimethoxine, Kanamycin and Oxolinic Acid. Metromeds has Metronidazole, Ormetoprim-sulfa and Oxytetracycline - that's the one you'd want if you wanted to try. It has some antibiotics and metro which could work on parasite.

[LebronTheBetta]

Okay, so the true treatment for Moltres is the ES and Metro, got it. Kanaplex will be the last resort then. I feed FD foods before, but I really trust the brand. I'll buy the Metro once my parents are up. Thank you so much! :)

If it was a bacterial infection, would she act lethargic and lazy and stop eating? And when she poos and it's not white anymore, can I discontinue the treatment? I still need to buy the Metro and it might take a while.

[callistra]

FD foods are ok as long as you're soaking them to soft before feeding or else you can end up with constipation leading to internal infections of bacterial in nature.

Well, metro has a chance to help with bacterial or parasite but it is best for parasite and the treatment takes longer. Kanaplex is just for bacterial but treatment is shorter. Also in the water vs. fed.. it's sort of your choice which to go for first. Generally speaking from my experience if it's parasite you tend to see a weight loss despite eating well, and they tend to be actually overactive, darting, zig zagging, etc (I guess the wiggles in the gut.. ew).. But bacterial they tend to be more sluggish and more likely to refuse food..

If you're feeding metro you want to feed a minimum of 2 weeks and a minimum of one full week past when her poo clears up and she's acting normal. So, if after a week it seems to be clear, treat one more week. If she's okay after two weeks, treat one more for a total of three. Most people I know will feed a full month because relapse seems to be kinda high if you quit too early. If it were my fish I'd do 3 weeks and feel okay stopping as long as she appears to be clear a week at that point. Premedicated feed tends to say right on the bottle feed 3-4 weeks. If you're bathing in Kanaplex treat two weeks and give a week of rest, reevaluate.

Hope that's more clear.. sorry if I ramble.

[LebronTheBetta]

She isn't sluggish so I guess it might be internal parasites then. She seems to be a tad bit bloated, but it might be due to being a CT. Metro is so helpful! Thank you so much again. :)

[Tikibirds]

You can also find them on ebay or amazon.