Is it possible to feed fish medicated live food?

[jasonrusso]

Back in November, my puffer starting acting weird. He normally ate like a horse, but starting getting much more picky. This happened quickly. My gut feeling is he had internal parasites, but he didn't like the medicated food. He has a few spots on his fins, but they haven't changed for months and all the other fish are fine so I chalk them up to stress.

Someone suggested that he may be getting too much light and getting stressed, so I made him an overhang so he can sleep in the dark which he loves. I also started experimenting with different foods. He can't resist live fiddler crabs. I also give him his nightly oyster. For a while he was eager to eat his oyster, and still does but sometimes he spits it out a few times. I'd feed him more live crabs, but that would start to get very expensive (they need to be overnighted in the winter) and I also want to give him a more varied diet. He does eat mussels and clams as well. I would assume he would eat live ghost shrimp too, but I haven't bought any for a while.

He's getting kind of thin now, so I want to re-investigate the internal parasite theory. Can I mix up some GC and Focus w/ selcon and paste it on the outside of the crabs? Would it stick? I also remember reading somewhere that shrimp absorb medications. Is that accurate?

I'd put the medication on a clam or something, but I think he would spit it out until it's cleaned off. He's really smart. Any other suggestions??

 

[Flippers4pups]

Are there any signs of internal parasites like stringy white poop?

 

[jasonrusso]

Are there any signs of internal parasites like stringy white poop?

Not really. When he does go he lets loose on the tank pretty good.

 

[Flippers4pups]

Not sure about focus sticking to the live Crabs. You could try it and see. I don't think it would hurt anything trying GC and focus even if there's nothing there.

 

[Reefer40b]

the selcon/GC/focus/masstick probably would stick, just have to make it nice and pasty, and fresh. If its old it wont stick for sheit.

I use masstick to gut load my fish with meds, mix in galic if needed

 

[Nathan Milender]

Nice puffer. I have always liked that fish on dives because they are so curious but I have never had one. In your video he looks like he is eating and I do not see any outside evidence of disease. He also appears to rule the tank as the other fish wait for his scraps. Also, this class of fish can release toxins that can hurt your other fish when stressed. Your other fish look good so maybe he is not stressed? Not having had or ever been involved in treating a puffer myself, is it possible that he is just more relaxed than ever and just not as big because he is not in a semi alert status? He looked to be aggressively eating.

That being said I would think your best bet would be to hide the food in clam mash if you are convinced of an internal parasite or infection. Some people report garlic increases eating response with medication by hiding the flavor, I have never tried it. Live food can be intermediary hosts for many things since it is not cooked and that could be going on. You know that fish better than me after a 40 sec video. Might be worth a research search into puffer husbandry. I suspect people have published problem solving with puffer husbandry as they test uses for their toxin. Be careful with your bio filter depending on what you choose. I hope he makes it.

 

[jasonrusso]

the selcon/GC/focus/masstick probably would stick, just have to make it nice and pasty, and fresh. If its old it wont stick for sheit.

I use masstick to gut load my fish with meds, mix in galic if needed

I had to look up what masstick was. That's a possibility. I think that without something like that, it will just fall of whatever I am putting it on. The crab's shells seem to be waterproof, lol.

 

[jasonrusso]

Nice puffer. I have always liked that fish on dives because they are so curious but I have never had one. In your video he looks like he is eating and I do not see any outside evidence of disease. He also appears to rule the tank as the other fish wait for his scraps. Also, this class of fish can release toxins that can hurt your other fish when stressed. Your other fish look good so maybe he is not stressed? Not having had or ever been involved in treating a puffer myself, is it possible that he is just more relaxed than ever and just not as big because he is not in a semi alert status? He looked to be aggressively eating.

That being said I would think your best bet would be to hide the food in clam mash if you are convinced of an internal parasite or infection. Some people report garlic increases eating response with medication by hiding the flavor, I have never tried it. Live food can be intermediary hosts for many things since it is not cooked and that could be going on. You know that fish better than me after a 40 sec video. Might be worth a research search into puffer husbandry. I suspect people have published problem solving with puffer husbandry as they test uses for their toxin. Be careful with your bio filter depending on what you choose. I hope he makes it.

Thanks, he's my aquapet. This video was in November when he first started acting weird and he is a bit thinner than that now. That's why I am getting a bit concerned. I like to see him shaped like a blimp. I know someone will look at that video and wonder what I am talking about, but he used to see his food cup and start biting at it through the glass and spitting water at me. He doesn't do that anymore for the regular food, but does do it for crabs (i put the crabs in a clear jar). He learned the difference very fast.

He still does eat agressively, but ONLY for crabs. I MAY be over-reacting a bit as well. It is possible that he now just has a caviar taste for crabs, when before he would eat whatever krill, LRS, squid, etc I would throw in. Now that he has had the good stuff, and he knows if he holds out he will get the good stuff that may be all he wants. They really are intelligent, as smart as dogs if not more. My dogs play the same game and I'm always a sucker, lol.

I'd put it on a clam, but he will keep spitting it out until all the medication is gone. As far as I know, they don't release any toxin. Their livers are toxic only if eaten.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Only thing I could think of is with reptiles theres a thing called gut loading. Basically you load crickets up with nutrients in their food, then the reptile eats the crickets which in turn gives the nutrients to the reptile. Not sure if similar can be achieved in this case.

 

[jasonrusso]

Only thing I could think of is with reptiles theres a thing called gut loading. Basically you load crickets up with nutrients in their food, then the reptile eats the crickets which in turn gives the nutrients to the reptile. Not sure if similar can be achieved in this case.

Right, that's what I do with the crabs, ghost shrimp, and gambusia for the lion. I don't think that the crabs are going to eat medication, and they did, it might kill them.

 

[Nathan Milender]

Only thing I could think of is with reptiles theres a thing called gut loading. Basically you load crickets up with nutrients in their food, then the reptile eats the crickets which in turn gives the nutrients to the reptile. Not sure if similar can be achieved in this case.

Some advocate for that with live brine shrimp sales "loaded with vitamins', I am not sure about the truth of it.

 

[Nathan Milender]

Maybe he is just being a dink and holding out for crabs. Why eat hamburger helper when I know the fillet is out there. "Do you like me? Do you want me die? Do you like my water spitting awesome trick? GET ME THE CRABS SUCKA!"

I have had this happen when using multiple foods thinking I had to make everyone happy. This one likes flake, this one likes pellets, this one likes frozen. Well, here's frozen, they pout for a while then start eating it. I am not sure what happens when I go out of town and use the auto feeder pellet but many of them really like pellets. Maybe puffers are just stubborn. They are strange fish on a reef. Few fish will swim with you happy to see what you are doing from rock to rock but these ones consistently do that for no apparent benefit.

 

[jasonrusso]

Some advocate for that with live brine shrimp sales "loaded with vitamins', I am not sure about the truth of it.

I think the theory is that the brine absorb vitamins in the water. Not sure if I buy it. Brine shrimp are quite useless after the egg sac is gone.

Maybe he is just being a dink and holding out for crabs. Why eat hamburger helper when I know the fillet is out there. "Do you like me? Do you want me die? Do you like my water spitting awesome trick? GET ME THE CRABS SUCKA!"

I have had this happen when using multiple foods thinking I had to make everyone happy. This one likes flake, this one likes pellets, this one likes frozen. Well, here's frozen, they pout for a while then start eating it. I am not sure what happens when I go out of town and use the auto feeder pellet but many of them really like pellets. Maybe puffers are just stubborn. They are strange fish on a reef. Few fish will swim with you happy to see what you are doing from rock to rock but these ones consistently do that for no apparent benefit.

This may very well be the case, and I fall for it because of those big eyes.

 

[jasonrusso]

I may be overthinking this. I did make a thick paste out of focus, GC, and entice (I ordered masstick) and it actually stuck pretty good. When he eats, he is so sloppy and it makes a cloud in the water so I don't know how much he is actually ingesting.

 

[jasonrusso]

the selcon/GC/focus/masstick probably would stick, just have to make it nice and pasty, and fresh. If its old it wont stick for sheit.

I use masstick to gut load my fish with meds, mix in galic if needed

Do I mix the medication in with the masstick? If I understand, the masstick is a powder you add water to. Do I add the meds to the masstick powder then add water?

 

[Reefer40b]

Do I mix the medication in with the masstick? If I understand, the masstick is a powder you add water to. Do I add the meds to the masstick powder then add water?

yes add your powder meds or whatever kind of meds to the masstick powderd food. I don't use water to mix, I use selcon for the liquid part so they also get gut loaded with vitamins

 

[jasonrusso]

yes add your powder meds or whatever kind of meds to the masstick powderd food. I don't use water to mix, I use selcon for the liquid part so they also get gut loaded with vitamins

OK, so I'm just going to make a little at a time. As far as I can tell, it doesn't go bad in the powdered form.

I didn't see this response until now and I started a new thread.

 

[Reefer40b]

no worries, I make it fresh each time I feed it. Keep powder in the fridge to make it last longer if your worried about it. It does go bad eventually turns more of a brown color when it does, and will no longer stick to the glass, easily falls apart.