Intestinal Parasite?

[Siberwulf]

This is a new one for me. I've had Queso for almost two years now. She's eating quite well (Brine Shrimp daily)

I captured some video of him swimming. I don't *think* he's fast breathing



It looks like a parasite. Is the treatment just some general cure mixed in with the whole tanks' food?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

This is a new one for me. I've had Queso for almost two years now. She's eating quite well (Brine Shrimp daily)

I captured some video of him swimming. I don't *think* he's fast breathing



It looks like a parasite. Is the treatment just some general cure mixed in with the whole tanks' food?

I don't see any rapid breathing, but the mucus feces is apparent.

No - you cannot mix General Cure in the food! It has two different drugs in it and those are dosed orally at different rates. GC should only be used as a bath / water treatment.

Oral medications must be dosed properly, this article discusses that:

Proper Dosing of Medicated Foods

This article offers information about developing medicated foods for aquarium fish

www.reef2reef.com

In regards to mucus in clownfish feces, there are a number of different causes, some serious, some not. Having the fish for two years now tends to rule out some of the more serious issues. Have you added any new fish to the tank since then that might have brought a parasite into the tank?

What else do you feed other than brine shrimp? That is not a complete diet and must be augmented with other foods. In fact, I try not to feed brine at all, unless it is to get a new fish to accept food when it first arrives.

Here is some text that I wrote up here on mucus feces:

Excess mucus in fish feces[/B]: this will present as white or light colored, stringy fecal material that often hangs from the fish’s anus for a longer than normal period. There are a number of different causes for this, some benign, others very serious. Without access to a microscope, there is little that can be done to diagnose this issue effectively.

Idiopathic mucus feces: this fancy term is just to describe white mucoid bulky feces of no serious consequence, but of an unknown cause. Some suspicion is that this can be caused by changes in diet or diets high in fats.

Starvation: Fish that have no food moving through their bowels may excrete white mucoid feces with little bulk to them. The primary diagnostic for this issue is evident in that the fish won’t been seen to be eating. Resolving the anorexia is of course the prime focus to resolve this issue.

Bacterial infection: internal bacterial infections can cause stringy feces as well. While some of these may resolve on their own, medicated foods containing a broad spectrum, gram negative oral antibiotic may be required.

Metazoan infections: multicellular worms are often blamed for mucoid feces, but in reality, they are almost never the root cause for this, and really, can only be diagnosed through looking for their ova in fecal samples. Fish can harbor tapeworms and nematodes without producing mucoid feces.

Protozoan infection: Hexamita and related diplomonad flagellate protozoans very frequently cause white stringy feces, especially in newly acquired clownfish. Metronidazole is the most frequent treatment for this issue. It can be dosed orally at 25 mg per kg of fish body weight, or 5 g in a kg of food. However, it is a very bitter medication, and some fish will refuse to feed on food containing it. It can be dosed in the water at 25 mg/l, but this is more effective in treating marine fishes, as freshwater fish do not “drink” aquarium water.

Coccidia: These microscopic, spore-forming, single-celled parasites are common diseases in dogs and cats. In fish, they cause epithelial necrosis of the gut, enteritis and the copious production of mucus (Noga 2010). These cannot be diagnosed without microscopic examination, and there is no well researched cure for this in fishes, although Toltrazuril has been tested.

Constipation: This malady is often given as a cause for stringy feces, but it is not as common as one would think. When it is seen, the feces are usually dark, not light in color. Often touted as a “cure for constipation”, many aquarists add Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) to the aquarium’s water – do not do this in marine aquariums, its use is primarily as a tonic/dip for freshwater fish. Seawater formulas already contain between 7 and 19 grams of magnesium sulfate per gallon (depending on the recipe). NSW magnesium level is around 1200 ppm and sulfur is around 840 ppm. Some benefit might be seen using it as a dip in additional concentrations, but adding a small amount to a marine aquarium itself has no benefit. Epsom salts do have some possible benefit when mixed into the food as a 3% by weight adjunct. Another commonly heard remedy for constipation is; “feed fresh peas”. This is an effective cure for fancy goldfish and Malawi cichlids that develop constipation and bloating. Again, overextrapolation has marine aquarists trying to feed peas to carnivorous fish, etc. The best method to enhance gut motility in fish is to feed frozen adult brine shrimp – not as a permanent diet, just long enough to get the constipation resolved.

Jay

 

[reeftankdude]

I have the same fish. When just out the pet shop it had white stringy poop. I added 4 drops of garlic extract for every teasopn of flake food. It worked in less than a week. Continued the garlic treatment for an additional two weeks to be on the safe side. Create a separate container for the food treated with garlic.

 

[Siberwulf]

What else do you feed other than brine shrimp? That is not a complete diet and must be augmented with other foods. In fact, I try not to feed brine at all, unless it is to get a new fish to accept food when it first arrives.

Um, holy crap. The LFS said this was good stuff, so that's all I've been feeding...for two years. I also have a Filefish, three PJ Cardinals and the FoxFace. I'm going to have to look up what else these guys need...I feel like an idiot.

I added a Foxface Rabbit about a month ago, but it came from Dr. Reef, so I have pretty good reason to believe it's clean as can be (better than if I did it).

Should I just keep an eye on him for some rapid breathing?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Um, holy crap. The LFS said this was good stuff, so that's all I've been feeding...for two years. I also have a Filefish, three PJ Cardinals and the FoxFace. I'm going to have to look up what else these guys need...I feel like an idiot.

I added a Foxface Rabbit about a month ago, but it came from Dr. Reef, so I have pretty good reason to believe it's clean as can be (better than if I did it).

Should I just keep an eye on him for some rapid breathing?

I feed my clowns New Life Spectrum pellets, but a mix of pellets and chopped frozen mysids is good. You can feed brine shrimp, the fish sure love it, but it is lacking in some essential fatty acids and those must be supplied in other foods. Back in the 1970's all I ever fed was brine shrimp, and I had terrible long term sucess.

Jay

 

[Siberwulf]

I feed my clowns New Life Spectrum pellets, but a mix of pellets and chopped frozen mysids is good. You can feed brine shrimp, the fish sure love it, but it is lacking in some essential fatty acids and those must be supplied in other foods. Back in the 1970's all I ever fed was brine shrimp, and I had terrible long term sucess.

Jay

This is great info. I've been feeling the itch to mix up my own fish food and will for sure hit the threads here about it. Plus, it means I get to find a new blender

 

[Weeb]

The LFS said this was good stuff,

Adult brine shrimp isn't very nutritious. Clownfishes are omnivores. For food suggestions, read through the Fish Nutrition post. Be sure to use supplements noted in that post.