Guppies are beautiful to behold, it is difficult to believe their body can host any parasite, it can be very scary if your fish is unwell because of an internal parasite infection.
In this article I will show you how to spot an internal parasite in your guppy and how to treat your guppy.
Guppy Internal Parasite Symptoms
The most common parasite symptoms in guppy fish are, Stress, Whitish Spot, Velvet disease, Bloating, Worms in tank, It is important to identify these symptoms and act on them as soon as you can.
I will now give you a bit more information about each symptom below
- Stress : This can affect guppies in many ways; it weakens their immune system while permitting infections and parasites. There are many reasons guppies can be stressed, they range from environmental and other factors.
- Whitish Spot : This is popularly known as ich or ick. It is the symptom of the most prevalent parasite that affects guppies, the white spot is caused by ciliate protozoan Ichthyophthirius multifiliis which is an ectoparasite and it is easy to discover due to the spot it leaves on the fish. Below is what you should do if you notice this ailment among your guppies.
- White Poop : White poop is a clear signal that there is something wrong with your guppies insides
- Velvet Disease : This disease is almost the same as ich though it leaves guppies with gold-colored dots, and it is contagious. It can wipe out your aquarium within few days if urgent steps are not taken. One of the reasons you have to pay close attention to your aquarium is because of internal parasite, velvet disease makes fish bleed and later peel their skin.
- Bloating : This is the most obvious sign, your guppies belly will appear bloated or swollen
- Worms In Tank : If you have worms in your tank they will carry bad bacteria. For more information on this take a look at this article I wrote about this
How Do You Treat Internal Parasites In Guppies?
To treat internal parasites in guppies you need to add aquarium salt to the water as well as a bacterial medications such as Methylene Blue. This will slowly kill any parasites in the tank.
To cure internal parasites in your guppy fish follow these steps
- Change 50% Of The Aquariums Water
- Add Aquarium Salt To The Water
- Add A Bacterial Medication To The Water
- Raise The Temperature In The Aquarium
- Repeat
Change 50% Of The Aquariums Water
This will remove some of the parasites from the water and will introduce fresh clean water to the aquarium. Also make sure the filters in your pump are clean as bad bacteria could also be in there.
Add Aquarium Salt To The Water
Adding aquarium salt (Available on amazon) to the water will help to kill any bad bacteria and parasites that are in the water. It will also help to calm and de-stress the guppies. It also helps to promote a healthy guppy system.
Add A Bacterial Medication To The Water
After adding the salt to the water I recommend to wait at least an hour then add a bacterial medication to the water, I recommend you use a product called Methylene Blue (Available on amazon) which will help to kill any bad bacteria or parasites in the water.
Raise The Temperature In The Aquarium
By raising the temperature in the aquarium this can also help to kill the bad bacteria and parasites in your tank. You should raise the temperature to 78°F – 80°F in the tank, you will need an aquarium heater for this.
Repeat
I recommend to repeat the above steps after three days, this way we will be certain to have killed all the bad parasites in our tank.
How To Prevent Internal Parasites In Guppies?
There are a few things that we can do to prevent internal parasites in guppies which include
1. Don’t Over Feed Your Guppies
If you overfeed your guppies the uneaten food will fall to the bottom of the tank and will rot, this will cause bad bacteria to grow and will reduce the quality of the water.
You should feed your guppies twice a day by giving them enough food that they can eat in 2 minutes, if it takes them longer than 2 minutes to eat all the food you are overfeeding them.
2. Perform Regular Water Changes
By performing regular water changes this helps to keep the water condition healthy.
3. Frequently Clean The Tank
Give the tank a good clean every other week, scrub the glass and clean the gravel and make sure to clean the filters in your pump.
4. Add Aquarium Salt
Adding aquarium salt to the tank is a good idea as this will improve the general health of your guppies
Does Aquarium Salt Kill Internal Parasites In Guppies?
Aquarium will do a good job killing the internal parasites, including ich in your guppies. Aquarium salt also increases the guppies ability to produce a protective slime coat.
This slime coat is important to aid the guppy in recovery from internal parasites.
The salt will also improve the guppies gill function which will help them to breate easier.
Conclusion
Above are symptoms of internal parasites in guppies while protozoan is also a known disease of guppies that also comes with symptoms.
It attacks the fish skin then move to their muscle and then bloodstream though this is caused when an aquarium is consistently dirty. Introduce Malachite Green or Formalin to your aquarium immediately you notice they are diagnosed with protozoan, and it is advisable to change the water regularly.
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