Heat Treatment for Internal Parasite/Worm Issues

[YSS]

Just wanted to share my experiences using heat treatment to deal with internal issues for discus.

I've always had at least one picky eater in my tank that eventually stops eating and dies over a period of several months. Last year, one of wilds I got from Han earlier that spring started to lose its appetite and eventually stopped eating. He went on almost two months without eating. I tried metro and levamisole treatment, but no improvement. I talked to Hans and he recommended heat treatment for the fish.

Slowly bring up the temp to at least 96 to 98, leave the fish in the tank for 5 days, bring the temp down slowly, and put it back in the main tank. I tried this method on the sick fish and it regained it's appetite and now eating like it never did. It's been over six months since the treatment, and he is doing very well.

Since then, I tried the same method on three more fish. I lost one fish because I only left the fish in the heated tank for barely three days. Hans told me the fish must be in the tank for at least four days and really five days to be safe. When fish is in the heated tank, the fish gets weaker, and when you stop the heat treatment and parasites/worms are not completed dead, they will attack the fish in weakened state and fish could suffer from it. Two other fish have completely recovered and eating really well. Now, I don't even bother with the medication when I am dealing with issues that appear to be internal parasites/worms.

If you have treated your fish with medication and didn't work, might as well try the heat treatment and see how it goes.

[DLock3d]

Awesome info YSS. Thanks for the read.

[jimg]

Thanks, always good to hear others ways and treatments that work

[PAR23]

Good to know. The challenge is to find a heater that can get the water temp up that high.

[ShinShin]

YSS,

Do you know what internal parasites you had, if any, and how so? Did you look at them under a microscope?

Mat

[YSS]

YSS,

Do you know what internal parasites you had, if any, and how so? Did you look at them under a microscope?

Mat

I do not have a microscope so I do not know what internal parasites I had.

[ShinShin]

That's interesting. The only research I have ever read about regarding heat treatments alone to kill internal parasites was for hex. There seemed to be a higher success rate treating with heat in the lab invetro than invivo. Heat to kill worms, whether nematodes or cestodes, seems unlikely.

Has anyone read and scientific data on such testing?

Mat

[atitagain]

I'm just curious but what heater did you use to get the temp that high. Most of the one's I have cap out at 90

[TURQ64]

I use high heat on occasion, but not for this specifically..I use two heaters on a controller in a small tank....get's wicked hot...Gary

[YSS]

That's interesting. The only research I have ever read about regarding heat treatments alone to kill internal parasites was for hex. There seemed to be a higher success rate treating with heat in the lab invetro than invivo. Heat to kill worms, whether nematodes or cestodes, seems unlikely.

Has anyone read and scientific data on such testing?

Mat

It could be that what I had was Hex and not worms. I can't be sure. What I can say is when my fish stops eating and doesn't start eating in three weeks, heat treatment seems to fix the problem. As I said with the first fish, metro treatment didn't work. Levamisole treatment didnt' work. I actually was going to try prazi pro treatment next, but I decided to go with the heat and it worked. I still have the bottle of unopened prazi pro.

I'm just curious but what heater did you use to get the temp that high. Most of the one's I have cap out at 90

I used 350W titanium heater by via aqua I got from David Rose. It has the external temp controller that goes up to 96.

[roundfishross]

heat treatment has worked for me in the past whan I had a fish excreting the thick white feces(looked like toothpaste) this fish had already been dewormed and metroed with no results, the heat was a last resort before retiring the fish to the azaleas! in the high heat the discus regained it's appetite and began to eat normally and the feces became normal once again, the fish fully recovered!

[atitagain]

I used 350W titanium heater by via aqua I got from David Rose. It has the external temp controller that goes up to 96.

Sorry to ask but is David an advertiser on the site?

Website?

[roundfishross]

Sorry to ask but is David an advertiser on the site?

Website?

yep! right here!

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/forumd...g-Pennsylvania

[ShinShin]

Okay. Thanks, YSS. BTW, the Prazi would not have been a choice I would have made because a discus with cestodes eats way more than normal, and I doubt that flukes were your problem.

Mat

[YSS]

Okay. Thanks, YSS. BTW, the Prazi would not have been a choice I would have made because a discus with cestodes eats way more than normal, and I doubt that flukes were your problem.

Mat

I am glad I moved on with the heat treatment rather than Prazi Pro. :-)