Re: Deworming plecos who are not eating
Posted: 07 Dec 2017, 09:03
Sorry to hear they didn't make it, I have lost smaller fish, tetras etc. without finding bodies but they would get eaten pretty quickly, with a large fish its more surprising.
I think the only way to ensure that any parasites are gone is to know what parasites they are, so you can treat appropriately. You could bleach the tank, substrate, filter media, etc. but they could still survive in a fish being moved to another tank.
When I have lost newly imported fish like this I haven't added any treatment and if there have been other inhabitants they seem to survive fine. I think there are a few explanations for this:
Either there were no parasites and the new fish didn't adjust well to captivity so wasted away.
There were internal parasites, but they didn't leave their hosts (I guess that when a host dies the parasites would leave, but I'm not sure how long that would take, the bodies could be removed before they leave the fish).
The parasites may not be able to find a suitable alternative host.
Or your other healthy fish haven't endured shipping/acclimatisation stress, so can cope with the parasites, and continue living normally.
I think the only way to ensure that any parasites are gone is to know what parasites they are, so you can treat appropriately. You could bleach the tank, substrate, filter media, etc. but they could still survive in a fish being moved to another tank.
When I have lost newly imported fish like this I haven't added any treatment and if there have been other inhabitants they seem to survive fine. I think there are a few explanations for this:
Either there were no parasites and the new fish didn't adjust well to captivity so wasted away.
There were internal parasites, but they didn't leave their hosts (I guess that when a host dies the parasites would leave, but I'm not sure how long that would take, the bodies could be removed before they leave the fish).
The parasites may not be able to find a suitable alternative host.
Or your other healthy fish haven't endured shipping/acclimatisation stress, so can cope with the parasites, and continue living normally.