Life Bearer 4 Flukes

[DonMD]

I've followed some discussion here on the use of Life Bearer for treating flukes. I've had moderate success with PraziPro in the past, but it seems that I can not entirely rid the system of flukes. And, PraziPro gums up my filters and hoses terribly, so I'm looking for an alternative.

I have used pure Praziquantel in the past, but it wasn't successful. That may be because of other issues I had going on, but also it's difficult to get it to suspend completely in water without using a solvent of some kind.

I know that basshead (Eddie) has written a couple of places about Life Bearer, but he says it's Life Bearer for Flukes. I've got just a small bottle of Life Bearer, ingredients are: 0,0 Dimethyl, 1-Hydroxy, and 2-Trichloromethyl Phosphate. Is this the same product?

Does anyone else have experience using this product for treating flukes? Doses? Reactions? Adverse effects?

-Don in Virginia

[Rod]

Yes that is the one.

I have tried it and works well for me, but i do not think it is a eradication method, more a control method. From my understanding of flukes the eggs are unaffected by meds, that is why 3 follow up courses are recomended, to try and kill the newly emerging flukes before they have a chance to breed.

[DonMD]

Thanks, Rod.

Did you notice any adverse effects on the fish? What temp did you keep the water?

[Big Tuck]

Ive had fluke problems now for several months.I treated fo 21 days twice with 2 different products.I thought prazzi powder had done the job,but they were back shortley.I decided to cure them or kill them and treated with P/P.It was hard on the fish,i could tell,but its been about 10 days and i cant find a single fluke after 5 scrapings under the microscope.I had to rescue 1 tank with H/P.It was a wood tank that had quite a bit of algi,so the P/P over reacted.All fish survived and are doing fine. Tuck

[April]

ive used the life bearer on tiny fry after being coached by rod..and no issues.
prazzipro ive been told that you need to double it for discus to work well for tapeworm anyhow..not sure about flukes. i got no success wiht prazzipro till i doubled it then i got worms out. the way i was told..is most fish carry gill flukes. its when they get stressed they go out of control and cause problems. especially with fry.

[Eddie]

Thanks, Rod.

Did you notice any adverse effects on the fish? What temp did you keep the water?

Don, Rod recommended a lower temp with the med. I kept the temp between 78-80F. The med is pretty hard on the fish IMO but they spring back to normal after a few days. If you look under Martha's post about Fluke-Tabs, I mentioned the affects of the med.

Here is the link

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?t=69623

Eddie

[DonMD]

Thanks, all. I have also thought of using PP, but hesitate.

Tuck, what is a wood tank? Is it a tank with lots of driftwood in it? If I decide to use PP, I will remove the wood first in any case.

I think I will give the Life Bearer a go.

[MostlyDiscus]

Hey Don, if you need help with the PP let me know. I have never had good results with Prozi. The good thing about PP is that it also burns organics and other little nasties in the water besides flukes. I will sometimes do a 9 day treatment which includes PP,QC rotating. PM if you wish.

Ed

[MSD]

Find someone who knows how to use PP and get it. Jungle sells Oxy pond clear, its the best way to go. Much less hard on your fish then Life Bearer. I have used it thanks to a forum sponsor taking the time to advise me.

[Big Tuck]

Hi Don,i have several plywood tonks that i built (100 gal) FOR GROW OUT.They work great but tend to grow algi faster than glass.Im sold on PP,i took another scraping today and still not a single fluke.I would suggest a large water change,and remove as much algi and any foreign matter prior to treatment.Try to leave it in at least 4 hours,by then the water should go from purple to brown.If the fish go to the top and are gasping i kill the pp with hp,back off a little on the pp and treat them again the next day.I treated 3 days in a row and will hit them again tomorrow,for 3 days.Want to get the 21 day cycle completed. Tuck

[kaceyo]

Hi BT,
What is your dosing schedule for using PP on a 21 day treatment. How many days in a row do you add PP and how many days in between without PP etc. I've always been reluctant to use PP long term like that for fear of causing gill damage.

Kacey

[Big Tuck]

Hi Kaceyo im not 100% sure this is the right way to dose but heres what i did with excellent resluts (so far). I dosed every other day for 3 days then rested 2 days.90% water change after 8 hrs every day.Same dosing for a total of 3 weeks.Only had 1 problem on the first dosing,to much algi.My fish look better and act better than they have in a long time.Flukes have been a re-acuring problem for me for a long time.I just took another scraping off of 3 fish,and i cant find even 1 fluke under the microscope.Ive NEVER had this happen before,i always could find 1 or 2 per slide,so im hoping this will solve my fluke problems of the past.Hope this helps. Tuck

[Eddie]

Hi Kaceyo im not 100% sure this is the right way to dose but heres what i did with excellent resluts (so far). I dosed every other day for 3 days then rested 2 days.90% water change after 8 hrs every day.Same dosing for a total of 3 weeks.Only had 1 problem on the first dosing,to much algi.My fish look better and act better than they have in a long time.Flukes have been a re-acuring problem for me for a long time.I just took another scraping off of 3 fish,and i cant find even 1 fluke under the microscope.Ive NEVER had this happen before,i always could find 1 or 2 per slide,so im hoping this will solve my fluke problems of the past.Hope this helps. Tuck

Good to hear about the success BT. I HATE flukes, those pesky bugs. It pretty much takes a nuclear detonation to knock them out and it won't even kill their eggs. LOL

Sounds like PP worked well for you. I rarely ever see PP recommended for flukes. Thats good to know.


Eddie

[MostlyDiscus]

PP works great for flukes. It can also be used for breeding purposes ie big time tank cleaning b4 spawning. The fact that you dont find flukes BT is testement not only to killing the little buggers but also that the fish have a better chance to resist all pathogens due to better water quaility and general health. It would be hard to completly eliminate the flukes without using DMSO or some other solvent to kill winter eggs(flukes).

Ed

[seanyuki]

Hi Master April,

I got three bottles of Live Bearer as requested by you today.....took me two hrs to get there....you owe me coffee.:D


Cheers
Francis:)




ive used the life bearer on tiny fry after being coached by rod..and no issues.
prazzipro ive been told that you need to double it for discus to work well for tapeworm anyhow..not sure about flukes. i got no success wiht prazzipro till i doubled it then i got worms out. the way i was told..is most fish carry gill flukes. its when they get stressed they go out of control and cause problems. especially with fry.

[kaceyo]

So you dosed every other day (on days 1, 3, and 5) then skiped days 6 &7. Then started the cycle again on day 8. Is that right?
Just today I put one tank of fish in a temporary "sterile" tank after doing a combo of prazi-pur and PP on various days. I'm going to sterilize their usual tank and then move them back into it, hopefuly leaving the flukes behind. I've been fighting them off and on for a long time also.
Thanks,

Kacey


Hi Kaceyo im not 100% sure this is the right way to dose but heres what i did with excellent resluts (so far). I dosed every other day for 3 days then rested 2 days.90% water change after 8 hrs every day.Same dosing for a total of 3 weeks.Only had 1 problem on the first dosing,to much algi.My fish look better and act better than they have in a long time.Flukes have been a re-acuring problem for me for a long time.I just took another scraping off of 3 fish,and i cant find even 1 fluke under the microscope.Ive NEVER had this happen before,i always could find 1 or 2 per slide,so im hoping this will solve my fluke problems of the past.Hope this helps. Tuck

[DonMD]

So you dosed every other day (on days 1, 3, and 5) then skiped days 6 &7. Then started the cycle again on day 8. Is that right?
Just today I put one tank of fish in a temporary "sterile" tank after doing a combo of prazi-pur and PP on various days. I'm going to sterilize their usual tank and then move them back into it, hopefuly leaving the flukes behind. I've been fighting them off and on for a long time also.
Thanks,

Kacey

Hi, Kacey,

I have also thought of sterilizing my tank while the fish were in a QT. But then I'd have no cycled filter. And, I couldn't use filter media from the QT because it would have fluke eggs, right? How do you manage that? -Don

[Big Tuck]

Hi Kaceyo,Yep thats the way i did it,seems to have worked,still nothing showing but will continue to check. Tuck

[scottthomas]

Big Tuck
I am anxious to hear about your success at getting rid of flukes completely. I really hope that it works as seems. I have one tank that for two years the flukes keep coming back. Like you, I thought they were gone with PraziPro (double strength) and several formalin or fluke tab treatments etc. Ive tried everything. It just knocks them back a while. I hate that I cant move any of those fish to other tanks and have to be so careful not to cross contaminate other tanks. The fish survive and are full grown but I can tell they get uncomfortable from time to time scratching and such. Even with large adult fish I have to maintain large daily wc to keep them comfortable. I think I'll try the PP treatment as well. I was always a little afraid to use but I'm tired of the FLUKES.

Sorry if I stole this thread about life bearer 4 flukes.

Scott

[Big Tuck]

Hey Scott,i think flukes are like flees theyl always be there.My aim is to keep them low enough in number so as not to irritate my fish.I keep looking,and i just did find a fluke,but he was DEAD he he.All i can say is PP is my New favorite treatment for flukes.Just be careful with it and have a bottle of Peroxide handy in case you run into trouble.Good luck. Tuck

[shawnhu]

HP or Prime wil neutralize PP. Do not use PP right after a water change using Prime or any dechlorinator.

BT, thanks for sharing your experiences with Flukes and PP.

[Daniella]

Each time I used it with my fish they were revived and perked up after the treatment. They actualy seem to like it and were quite relaxed during the bath :)

I was thinking of doing a treatment as a preventive like 2 or 3 times a year.







Hey Scott,i think flukes are like flees theyl always be there.My aim is to keep them low enough in number so as not to irritate my fish.I keep looking,and i just did find a fluke,but he was DEAD he he.All i can say is PP is my New favorite treatment for flukes.Just be careful with it and have a bottle of Peroxide handy in case you run into trouble.Good luck. Tuck