# Treating Ich and other protozoans with Fenbendazole??



## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=89235


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## sketch804 (Mar 2, 2011)

OVT said:


> http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=89235


Thanks old friend! this is a nice article but he is using it to treat pests as opposed to disease/external parasites. I do not really like all the deaths reported but I am okay with losing snails of any type, I just need to make sure it doesn't kill my FW clam. We will see how this works I am going to keep posting my results. I appreciate OVT!


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

I see a number of write-ups on people treating internal parasites successfully, with some mixed results on treating Ich. The earliest reports I could find date to 2008.

I am interested in your results - the more ammunition we all have against undesirables  the better. I am also very much interested in de-bunking 'snake oil' and elements that do more harm then good in our tanks.

Thanks for taking the bullet for us.


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## sketch804 (Mar 2, 2011)

OVT said:


> I see a number of write-ups on people treating internal parasites successfully, with some mixed results on treating Ich. The earliest reports I could find date to 2008.
> 
> I am interested in your results - the more ammunition we all have against undesirables  the better. I am also very much interested in de-bunking 'snake oil' and elements that do more harm then good in our tanks.
> 
> Thanks for taking the bullet for us.


Eh, well seems to not be working for me, tired it yesterday and today things looked worse so I switched my chemical, and I'll save the other stuff for another day. Oh well, it was worth a try. :icon_conf


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## sketch804 (Mar 2, 2011)

Well, I will actually be trying this treatment again at some point. My tank was apparently pretty cold (62F +/-), hence the stress caused ick, so it was obvious that the chemical wouldn't work right until the temp is set right...but this is by far NOT case closed, just need another specimen.


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## CrypticLifeStyle (Jan 16, 2013)

Stress or cold water can't cause Ich, its a myth. Ich is a parasite


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## msawdey (Apr 6, 2009)

isnt fenben for parasites???? Ich is a bacterial infection. You are dealing with 2 different animals here. One that is more basic than the other doesnt mean that the treatment for the more complex bug will work on the more basic bug..... I would treat the one that is easily fixable first (ie imo the ich)


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## Monster Fish (Mar 15, 2011)

msawdey said:


> isnt fenben for parasites???? Ich is a bacterial infection. You are dealing with 2 different animals here. One that is more basic than the other doesnt mean that the treatment for the more complex bug will work on the more basic bug..... I would treat the one that is easily fixable first (ie imo the ich)


Fenbendazole is used to treat internal parasites which in most cases are parasitic nematodes. Ich is not a bacterial infection but instead caused by a protozoan called Ichthyophthirius multifiliis. The best way to treat ich is by heating up your tank to 88 degrees, while bumping it up a degree or two every day. Salt may be used as well but if using in a planted tank, care must be used to dissolve the salt before adding it to the tank while gradually increasing the salinity over the course of a few days.


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## msawdey (Apr 6, 2009)

Monster Fish said:


> Fenbendazole is used to treat internal parasites which in most cases are parasitic nematodes. Ich is not a bacterial infection but instead caused by a protozoan called Ichthyophthirius multifiliis. The best way to treat ich is by heating up your tank to 88 degrees, while bumping it up a degree or two every day. Salt may be used as well but if using in a planted tank, care must be used to dissolve the salt before adding it to the tank while gradually increasing the salinity over the course of a few days.



ahhh ok .... my mistake on the bacterial portion


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## CrypticLifeStyle (Jan 16, 2013)

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/ich.php


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## sketch804 (Mar 2, 2011)

CrypticLifeStyle said:


> Stress or cold water can't cause Ich, its a myth. Ich is a parasite


Thanks for the reference, but I dunno, I have not introduced a fish in that aquarium in 2-3 months or so. But it still begs the question of where it came from..but that is the unimportant thing, treating it is #1 at the moment. Understanding the disease falls in line with treating it in my book though. That site showed me something I didn't know about higher nitrate levels making treatments work less effectively! now that's crazy.




msawdey said:


> isnt fenben for parasites???? Ich is a bacterial infection. You are dealing with 2 different animals here. One that is more basic than the other doesnt mean that the treatment for the more complex bug will work on the more basic bug..... I would treat the one that is easily fixable first (ie imo the ich)



~thanks also to Monster Fish for the explanation of using this chemical for protozoans treatments. It really seems to be a wonder type of drug, it kills many parasitic worms it seems (internal and in the aquarium), even kills Hydra which is a PLUS, and as far as Ich..well jury is out on that one.



Well I stopped dosing with my store treatment because it didn't seem to be working well so I once again gave the Fenbendazole a try. And I have to say I am not sure if the other meds helped at all but after using this chemical the Ich seemed to die with in days. I have treated with it for four or five days in a row in small amounts, couple pinches. But this experiment for what its worth is also flawed due to my accidental huge dose of this chemical, it came out the package faster than I anticipated :angryfire. So once again, I will try this chemical with no other variables involved when I get another fish that has Ich.

So I say this is left undecided for me.


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## CrypticLifeStyle (Jan 16, 2013)

I went against all my rules about buying Petco/petsmart fish a couple months ago, and bought a school of tetras. I examined this one tank literally for 10-20 min. 2 weeks after buying them they had ICH. Treated them. Its been 1 1/2 months , and they just got it again. I haven't had ICH for 12+ years. Its been a nightmare. There used to be a argument they could lay dormant, which had been basically disproven, but the counter argument is it will appear to lay dormant because the health of the fish is so good it can fight it for what seems forever, then reappears when its health finally breaks down which I feel is happening to these tetras, and maybe your fish as well. 

I run a UV 24/7, deep substrate vacuums, high heat, salt, Mardel done it all. I'm starting to wonder if it has mutated itself to become more immune to treatments like so many of natures pita's


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