# Do shrimp get internal parasites?



## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Hey just wondering, do shrimp get IP's just like fish can? Cause I wanna feed extras to my puffer, and I don't want to transmit anything, after I've gotten my puff de wormed. So can I? I was told not, but I use GelTek and/or PraziPro.


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## Eden Marel (Jan 28, 2010)

Well I know Ghost Shrimp can, not sure about the others.


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## Sharkfood (May 2, 2010)

I've often wondered if internal parasites can get internal parasites.:confused1:


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

You want to feed your cherry shrimp to your puffer? Sell them instead.


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## mordalphus (Jun 23, 2010)

Yes, they can carry a host of different worms (lol).

Camallanus worms for one!


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## steak (Sep 3, 2007)

Sharkfood said:


> I've often wondered if internal parasites can get internal parasites.:confused1:


^^^^Awesome-ness. I'm a fan the, "everything can get parasites" club...I mean...even single-celled organisms have to deal with viruses.


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## Jaggedfury (Sep 11, 2010)

I believed shrimps do have parasites in them. You can always use "Flubenol" or "No Planeria" to treat them beforehand for long term keeping. "No Planaria" is actually a natural product (palm extract) that is used for Planaria but also kill other worms too. Follow directions on the use of "Flubenol" dosing.


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Yes, my puffer loves eating live food. I'm just worried because last time my puffer got some nasty worms from a cherry. I would sell them, but I love my puffer too much 

Same with snails? They get them too I suppose. Puffers need those, the hard shell prevents their teeth from overgrowing.

Okay, I'll look for No Planaria. Thanks Jaggedfury, and everyone too


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

Raise the shrimps and snails by themselves, absolutely no fish in the tank. That lowers the risk of the inverts carrying a fish parasite.


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## Sharkfood (May 2, 2010)

Snails often play the role of intermediate host for parasites, so you may want to keep those out of the shrimp tank. I don't know about about parasites that would affect fish, but out in the real world, they often carry flukes which can infect humans.


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

oooo gasp. I've had two ottos in with em for a month now already. The snails are all home grown, but still. I will look for no Planiara, but can I use GelTek?


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## Captivate05 (Feb 23, 2010)

I'm wondering if a fenbendazol (SafeGuard) treatment at the rate for hydra will de-worm shrimps as well. Makes sense to me, but I'm not sure it would be enough to thoroughly de-worm inverts.


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Okay, maybe from now on I'll just have to freeze snails or shrimp, but puffs love the stimilus from live, maybe IDK, maybe I'll set up a hospital and try GelTek and PraziPro with snails and a couple shrimp, to see if they survive it, and if it goes threw its system its gonna get most of them out, acouple treatments and they should be great.


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## DevonCloud (May 9, 2010)

I've had very good luck with the GelTek product for IP's with my fish in the past. In fact it was the only thing my Angelfish would eat when he had a bad case of IP's. The gel never seemed to maintain its form in the water for long, so I'm not sure about the shrimps or snails getting to it.


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Do you think GelTek would be effective and safe for shrimp AND snails??

I have some, limited supply, like an eyedropper maybe. I actually always soak my food in the GelTek for 4 hours with 5 drops, and it does well. I'd probably soak an algae wafers and bloodworms, and feed those for a week. Would that work?


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Geltek Active ingrediants:

Praziquantel 0.0057%
Flubenol 0.03%
Metronidazole 0.30% 

And I read something, somewhere, that GelTek would be safe aslong as baby shrimp aren't ingesting it, or something. Would pregnant shrimp be safe?


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

I'm sorry but this is a strange conversation. Usually you can see a parasite if it is on a shrimp you raise, and in my experience most parasites come in on WC shrimp.

With that said, you shouldn't worry about parasites in cherry shrimp whatsoever. 

Snails can be a problem, but I've never heard of anyone who had snails in their tanks for a while (I'm talking common pest snails mts etc) that reproduce in their tanks ever transferring parasites, have you?

I usually see/hear about this from live foods bought from the pet store or something like that. Not someone feeding fish live food they've produced themselves.

I wouldn't worry about anything is what I'm trying to say.
-Andrew


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## mordalphus (Jun 23, 2010)

Shrimp most certainly do serve as an intermediary for internal parasites... Camallanus worms come to mind, which will take up shop in just about anything alive until they're ready to find a fishy host.


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## Eden Marel (Jan 28, 2010)

Don't worry too much, life can't come without risks!






Oh yes, how I wish I can follow my own advice silly silly me.


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## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

mordalphus said:


> Shrimp most certainly do serve as an intermediary for internal parasites... Camallanus worms come to mind, which will take up shop in just about anything alive until they're ready to find a fishy host.


The thing is, they have to become infected.

As far as I know, ghost shrimp aka american glass shrimp are usually what they're seen in. They are usually visible to the naked eye and only found in these shrimp when they're WC, which is basically all of them. I've NEVER and this is five years later heard of a cherry shrimp giving anything a parasite. 

Most people would sell the shrimp and buy something more economical though. There really isn't anything to worry about.

-Andrew


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

Hahah I'm not like most people, my puff loves live shrimp 

The tank originally had ottos, just rummynose, and snails, which were hitchikers, but I wanted to breed those anyway. Then I took back the rummies and got ottos and cherries shrimp and some crystals. So they've been exposed, I'm sure. I think an ottos as a worm of some sort, IDK maybe not, but there's a tiny white tube sticking out of his anus.


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## Lil' Swimz$ (Jul 24, 2010)

I usually feed my puff a snail each day, and then a full meal of snails once a week-ish.


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