CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

here is some info
"Metronidazole is the preferred medication. It is the same medication found in Hexamit. It is also found as one of the ingredients in Paragon II. Dr. Axelrods Mini Atlas recommends 100mg metronidazole per 10 gallons every other day for 3 treatments (and the dose can be safely doubled). Hexamit recommends 250mg per 10 gallons with the same time schedule. I found that the 100mg was not effective but the 250 was. Some recommend 3 consecutive treaments rather than every other day (have not tried it).

Metronidazole is a commonly available medication at any pharmacy or vet, so contact your vet (if you have one) and get a prescription--it will be a fraction of the price than buying it mail order or from the local aquarium shop. 250 mg Capsules or tablets work fine (Capsules--empty them; tablets--simply dissolve in warm water).

Metronidazole in food. The Axelrod mini atlas recommends 100mg of metronidazole mixed with 1 tablespoon of food. The food could be beefheart (then refrozen in small servings) or a paste of dry food and water (then frozen into small servings).

Treatment should include both food (if they are eating) and in the water. I feed them the food for 7 days.

Paragon II is also effective and expensive. Follow the directions on the package--it recommends the "every other day for 3 treatments" method. I found that it disturbed the biological balance in the tank (even though it claims it won't) resulting in elevated ammonia levels and sluggishnish in the fish. It does work quite effectively against HLLE, but be careful with this medication--reduce feeding and check ammonia levels daily

--edit-byJoe-to-add-two-links:
http://www.cichlidfish.com/Adam/hith.html
http://www.cichlidfish.com/oscar2001/ich.html

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TONY The Proud Aussie
Duboisi.com

Got an emergency? Email Me
oscar2001@cichlidfish.com


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Hole in the head and lateral line erossion is a scurvey type disease which in my opinion is mainly due to lack of vitamins in the food oscars and cichlids are fed. There are many other suspected causes in which I will go into more detail later down the page.

The best way to avoid HITH is to keep water paramaters perfect and feed a variety of vitamin rich food.To keep water perfect all is needed is to do weekly water changes,clean filters before becoming clogged and vaccuming gravel at least once a fortnight.Feeding is easier by feeding mainley good quality pellets for cichlids. You can also feed insects,beefheart(processed and frozen into small blocks),worms(washed),crickets,bloodworms and a lot of others.
Avoid the temptation to feed feeder fish especially gold fish due to the high risk of disease transmitted by them. Feeding feeders all time is also one of the main suspected causes of hith due to lack of vitamins in the feeders themselves.


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TONY The Proud Aussie
Duboisi.com

Got an emergency? Email Me
oscar2001@cichlidfish.com


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THE CARBON THEORIES: There are several theories that the use of activated carbon in tanks may cause HLLE.

One version of this theory is that the carbon could be causing nutritional deficiencies by adsorbing vitamins or trace minerals either directly from the water, or by adsorbing molecules that the needed nutrients could then bind to. This theory, however, has several problems: There aren't any vitamins in tap water to begin with, and minerals like calcium, phosphorus, and iron should be available in large quantities in most prepared fish foods. Additionally, it is reported that fish rely on food for nutrients, trace and otherwise, making the presence of nutrients in the water irrelevant (4) although fish have been shown to be able to extract various minerals from the water (calcium, iron, zinc, etc.)

A second carbon theory is that some types of carbon may release toxins which cause HLLE. Perhaps a more specific variant of this theory is that some poorly manufactured carbons might release chemicals that cause stress to the fish. Another theory is that loose particles of carbon dust in the water have some caustic affect.

All carbon-related theories regarding the cause of HLLE suffer from one other significant shortcoming: HLLE can be found in tanks which have never had carbon of any sort used in them, yet is NOT found in many tanks using carbon. While it remains possible that carbon may be involved in some cases, there is no reason to believe it is a factor in most cases, if any. There is no sound evidence for a link, or even a logical specific theory--at best, the carbon-HLLE theories amount to a handful of individual cases where HLLE was seen in tanks using carbon, but appeared to improve after the carbon was removed. Since there is little to no information on what other steps where taken in the treatment of the HLLE, the association with carbon is rather suspect.


------------------
TONY The Proud Aussie
Duboisi.com

Got an emergency? Email Me
oscar2001@cichlidfish.com


My Cichlidfish.com Home page