September 1, 2011 in Diagnosing the Problem
Mr. Harrison, I wondered if you’d be willing to provide some more detailed information about the Levamisole treatment for Camallanus than appears on your web pages – specifically, the kind of information based more on your observation and experience than on scientifically researched data. Here are my questions: 1. I’ve noticed that the fish seem most agitated during the first few hours of the treatment, as the worms inside them react to the medication. However, one or two of the fish are still reluctant to eat after day two of the treatment, while all the other fish have regained or maintained their normal appetites. Assuming I’ve caught it early enough to prevent extensive intestinal damage to the fish, does it sometimes take the full three days for the medication to kill the worms inside the fish? 2. For those couple of fish, if the worms are stubborn, and the fish do not get their appetite back after the 3 day treatment, can they safely be put into a more concentrated Levamisole bath for a short period of time to insure the worms die? (An angelfish and a Siamese Algae Eater are two that have not regained their appetite.) 3. The instructions say to change the water on the third day. Does that indicate the water should be changed 72 hours after the medication was administered, or longer? Is there any harm in letting it go a day longer than recommended before changing the water? 4. The municipality in which I live uses chloramines in the water, which do not dissipate by letting it stand for a couple of days. Additionally, the water company chooses to leave its nitrate and nitrite readings at the high end of the legal allowable limits before taking any corrective measures. So, I must use a dechlorinator that also neutralizes nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia. Given the poor quality of water available, I have not been able to change more than 35% of my tank water at a time without killing fish either from having to use enough Prime or AmQuel to render the water safe, or from keeping the additives at a safe level, but still subjecting the fish to as much as 2.0ppm NH3 and similarly unreasonable levels of NO2. In light of this limitation, would you recommend using a stronger than 13ppm concentration of Levamisole, or repeating the treatment not just at three weeks, but also again at six weeks, since I cannot change a larger portion of the water before or after the treatment? 5. I generally quarantine new fish before adding them to my main tank, but I would have to keep them quarantined for up to 3 months to be 100% certain they’re free of any worms. Can I use a less-concentrated dose of Levamisole to treat the quarantine tank whenever I bring home a new animal to shorten the quarantine time and still be assured they won’t bring worms into the main tank? Or should I just treat it with the “standard killing dose” of 13ppm? 6. At what concentration does the Levamisole become harmful to the fish? Asked another way, how much stronger a dose can I safely use to treat my tank? I realize you have other things pressing you for your time besides answering random email inquiries about one specific problem related to one specific hobby. You have, however, achieved a sort of status as “the guru” of treatment for Camallanus. I’m sure I speak for others when I say we’re indebted to you for your research and your contributions to the hobby. Lastly, I would like to purchase a couple of additional 5-gram packages of Levamisole HCl to have on hand, as I fear this may not be the last I see of this abhorrent creature. Please advise as to your current prices. I believe your address is still the same as I sent to you last time.