BN Pleco poo

[poconogal]

I just got two 2 inch Albino BN Plecos to put in my Discus tank. They have been in my LFS tank since Nov. 05. They look very healthy, but I do have them in QT. Can anybody tell me what their normal poo looks like? These guys seem to produce a very long string of green and clear poo. Is this normal? Or do they maybe have some internal parasites?

Thanks, Connie

[pcsb23]

Connie, if they have been eating a lot of algae and other greens then there will be a green colouration in the poop. It should be long and thin too and an awful lot of it as well :). It sounds normal to me.

[poconogal]

Hi Paul. Thanks for the poo info - there really is a LOT of it, like you said. These guys are definitely poo factories. :D

How long do you think I should QT them for? (I'm figuring about 4 weeks??) Their tankmates at the LFS all looked healthy, and all the fish left in that tank were in there since Feb. 06 or before.

Connie

[pcsb23]

4 weeks sounds good.

[brewmaster15]

Connie,
be sure you have some driftwood in there...The wood fibers may help.

-al

[poconogal]

Al, I definitely will be putting a piece of driftwood with them. I was kind of surprised :shocked: that the guy at the LFS, who seems really knowledgeable, told me that they didn't need it, and he's had them since Nov. 05 without any. Oh well...
Connie

[poconogal]

:( Uh oh. While netting out the poo and uneaten food from the QT, besides long, very thin, thread like poo, I found something much thicker, definitely white, about 3/4" long, and it was curled up the way one would wind a garden hose. Looked like some sort of worm to me, but I didn't notice any segments. I touched it and it had a solid, squishy feel to me. Anybody have any ideas?

[pcsb23]

Connie, for now I wouldn't worry, I know easier said than done. But just keep an eye out in cas emore turns up. Hopefully its nothing yet, but if you see more see if there are segments or an obvious 'head' or similar. They may have worms - sounds as though it may be a tapeworm - and if so its easy and safe to treat with prazi. But watch them for a day or 2.

[poconogal]

Thanks Paul. I actually put some Prazi Pro into the tank -- I figured better safe than sorry. But I am keeping a close eye on them also. What better example for QT any new fish or plant than this?
Thanks, Connie