Meds to have on hand

[guggas]

So, what if any meds would it be a good idea to have on hand before I get my first shipment of discus? If its highly likely I'm going to wind up using a particular treatment at some point, I'd rather just have it on hand so I can treat them timely rather than waiting for something to ship. What is the favorite discus treatment for ich?

[walt]

If you use one of the sponsors on the forum your discus should arrive healthy I've got all my stock from discus hans and never had to medicate Fish upon arrival.

[Clawhammer]

Everyone will have different opinions on what to use or stock. I keep these on hand:

Potassium Permanganate - External parasites, bacteria, fungal infections (also useful for general disinfection of equipment)
Metronidazole - Internal parasite (flagellates)
Kanamycin - Internal bacterial infections
Levamisole - Dewormer
Praziquantel - Internal and external parasites

[John_Nicholson]

In the nut shell .....clean water.

More discus are killed but people throwing the wrong meds in their tanks than by disease. You should not treat your fish unless you get a real diagnosis from a fish pathologist.

The misuse of antibiotics is one of the biggest problems that we face.

-john

[Willie]

Following up on John's comment, my standard treatment for sick discus is as follows:

1. move immediately to a quarantine tank
2. add 1 tbsp of salt/gallon - a lot of salt
3. heat to 100F - you'll need a good or two average heaters
4. cull the fish if it doesn't respond within a week

Having kept these fish for 15+ years, if this doesn't cure them then just cut your losses. Spend your money on a quarantine tank. If you're fixed on the idea of medication, enroll in vet school. :p

Willie

[Filip]

Following up on John's comment, my standard treatment for sick discus is as follows:

1. move immediately to a quarantine tank
2. add 1 tbsp of salt/gallon - a lot of salt
3. heat to 100F - you'll need a good or two average heaters
4. cull the fish if it doesn't respond within a week

Having kept these fish for 15+ years, if this doesn't cure them then just cut your losses. Spend your money on a quarantine tank. If you're fixed on the idea of medication, enroll in vet school. :p

Willie

Wow Willie . You should name your method "Kill or cure" or better "cure or die" method :-) .
I'm curious about your experience and results with it.

What kind of problems have you successfully treated with this method , and what's the surviving or better said dying rate of discus during the process?
TFS.

[tonytheboss1]

In the nut shell .....clean water.

More discus are killed but people throwing the wrong meds in their tanks than by disease. You should not treat your fish unless you get a real diagnosis from a fish pathologist.

The misuse of antibiotics is one of the biggest problems that we face.

-john

:computer: AGREED!! Hey, I'm no expert but quite a while back I got some advice from one. He said 'isolation in a sick tank, raise the temp. to 88/90 & clean water change after clean water change after clean water change'! "T"

[LizStreithorst]

I like to have PP and metro on hand but I've been out of both for months on end now. Just ordered some PP. I need to order some stuff from Jehmco so I guess I'll grab some Metro and stick in in the freezer.

[bluelagoon]

Metronidazole and Furan 2 are good to have on hand.Just in case.Some bacterial diseases can kill fish while you 're waiting for meds to arrive from a shipper.You might bring in something from another species and have to treat it in the QT.Best to have something on hand even if it's just Malachite green & formalin mix.

[DISCUS STU]

Metro and Kanamycin Sulfate for both internal parasites (protozoans) and internal infections (Kanamycin Sulfate).