Red Bugs - Starting treatment.

Reefinny · Oct 16, 2015

Okay so yup, not if when and I got them. I dip every piece that goes in my tank. So about 6 months ago, I picked up some interceptor so I have it on hand.

Well getting ready to treat and reading some posts, looks like hermits, crabs and shrimp have to come out.

How do you get them out!!!! Have 2 huge cleaner shrimp I don't want to lose and a few emeralds but no shot on getting them out. whats the easiest way for the shrimp?

Will the interceptor definitely kill them?

ss95003 · Oct 17, 2015

Will it definitely kill the shirmps. Never had to treat myself but everything I've read says yes.
As for catching the. Try a fish trap with bait, not going to be easy. Good luck.

cmcoker · Oct 17, 2015

Reefinny said:
Okay so yup, not if when and I got them. I dip every piece that goes in my tank. So about 6 months ago, I picked up some interceptor so I have it on hand.

Well getting ready to treat and reading some posts, looks like hermits, crabs and shrimp have to come out.

How do you get them out!!!! Have 2 huge cleaner shrimp I don't want to lose and a few emeralds but no shot on getting them out. whats the easiest way for the shrimp?

Will the interceptor definitely kill them?

I caught emeralds before with piece of Nori. Used a claw thing I have for reaching the bottom of the tank. Waved the Nori around in front of the crab away from the rock. He would come out and lock on to the Nori (above sandbed, so no rock to cling to.) I could pull him up to net.. Kinda like crawdad fishing as a kid.[emoji3]

Vivid Aquariums · Oct 17, 2015

I have done many interceptor treatments over the years. I have lost Emerald Crabs and snails sometimes, however shrimp have been much more tolerant. I use one tablet of Interceptor per 200 gallons of total system volume and leave it in for 12 hours. I follow the treatment with a 20% water change and run carbon. Remove your filter socks and any carbon before beginning treatment. Make sure to turn your skimmer, media reactor, and UV off within 3-5 minutes of adding the interceptor. The idea is that you want medicated water inside the skimmer, UV, & media reactor however you don't want the UV, or media from your reactor to affect the Interceptor. You don't want the skimmer to remove the medicine either. You will notice good polyp extension on many corals during treatment - I think they like the meaty flavor

Dave

Oscaror · Oct 17, 2015

Dragon faced pipefish are a very aesthetically pleasing and natural way to remove redbugs

Singlefin · Oct 17, 2015

Where did you get the interceptor?

cmcoker · Oct 17, 2015

Singlefin said:
Where did you get the interceptor?

Interceptor is back on the market, so you need a sympathetic vet who carries it, or will give you a prescription to order online.

Singlefin · Oct 18, 2015

Ok. Thanks

Reefinny · Oct 18, 2015

thanks, Gonna try to catch the shrimp and put them in a holding tank.

twilliard · Oct 18, 2015

Any thought to fenbendazol ?
No special vet or prescription needed and much less harmful to the tank inhabitants

Reefinny · Oct 18, 2015

Never heard of it or read about treatments with it I'll look into it

twilliard · Oct 18, 2015

When interceptor came off the market for some time I found fenbendazol as a substitute .
It still requires the removal of snails, starfish, GSP's and flower pots
Harmless to shrimp, fish and most all other corals.
Also does not kill off your pod population when my directions are followed

anthonywesty · Oct 19, 2015

I use milbemax. This is a tablet with praziquantel and milbemicyn oxime . I used in my reef one time and no more red bugs since that. Praziquantel is the ingredient in prazipro and milbemicyn oxime in interceptor. The only thing you have to remove all your crabs.

Fishy Bizness Aquatics · Oct 22, 2015

anthonywesty said:
I use milbemax. This is a tablet with praziquantel and milbemicyn oxime . I used in my reef one time and no more red bugs since that. Praziquantel is the ingredient in prazipro and milbemicyn oxime in interceptor. The only thing you have to remove all your crabs.

What was your treatment duration and qnty/gal?

Djtonton · Oct 22, 2015

i was just talking to my vet and interceptor is back on the market.

[sorry didnt see this mentioned above]

anthonywesty · Oct 22, 2015

I use one tablet of 12.5 mg of MO for 100 gal. Dissolve completely in water. then turn off the skimmer and remove carbon. Remove all your crustaceous and then add the solution, wait 30 minutes and make a water change 25% to 30% turn on the skimmer and add new carbon . No more red bugs!!!!

anthonywesty · Oct 22, 2015

Fishy Bizness Aquatics said:
What was your treatment duration and qnty/gal?

30 minutes and 1 tablet of 12.5 mg milbemicin oxyme for 100 gal.

ahmed.boomer · Oct 22, 2015

I had Red Bugs in late July. They're pretty easy to treat. Then I found out I had flatworms a week later, after dipping to double check the corals for redbugs.

When I dosed interceptor, all my pods died, and I happened to have a mandarin in the tank. I bought live blackworms to feed it since all the pods died. The mandarin would not take to them even though every other fish did! Found a friend to to host my fish for about two weeks. Repopulated the pods and put my mandarin back in. Unfortunately, I wasn't paying close enough attention and I'm guessing my mandarin died of starvation within a week. Still think that interceptor lingered the system even after very heavy water changes. That's just a note in case you have a fish that does feed on pods only.

Reseeded the tank about three weeks after the mandarin died and the pods are still present. I removed all the snails, and hermits. I missed a few but most that I left behind made it. I think the thing that killed my cleaner shrimp was actually Bayer. I put my cleaner shrimp into my acro QT I had made to treat the AEFW. I'm guessing the Bayer accumulated over time even though I was rinsing each piece after dipping. I was not running carbon on the tank either at the time. Shrimp disappeared about two weeks after I started dipping.

Fishy Bizness Aquatics · Oct 23, 2015

anthonywesty said:
I use one tablet of 12.5 mg of MO for 100 gal. Dissolve completely in water. then turn off the skimmer and remove carbon. Remove all your crustaceous and then add the solution, wait 30 minutes and make a water change 25% to 30% turn on the skimmer and add new carbon . No more red bugs!!!!

Thank you for the info

Curious if anyone has tried this on AEFW yet??