melafix!

[corycatwoman]

hey everyone. i was reading through the fish illness thread and couldnt find anything on melafix i just purchased a bottle for my loach and cory cat but then realized they are both scaleless is it still safe on scaleless fish.

my loach has gotten his tail nipped into an arrow shape instead of it being rounded. and my cory cat has half of his tale ripped off aswell. i was meaning to get this fixed as soon as possible and knew melafix would help fix it the fastest but i didnt have the stuff so i just transfered them as soon as i noticed there injuries knowing that most of it would grow back on its own over time but i finally got a little bit of extra cash i could spend so i got a bottle of melafix. i was planning on using it as directed on the bottle after my next waterchange but before i do that i was wondering if its safe for cory cats and loaches being scaleless fish?

[Carl]

Yes, Melafix is safe for scaleless fish.

As well it is often a good and safe first choice for such injuries.
Where Melafix gets abused is the use for treatment of gram negative diseases such as Columnaris.

We do have an article (actually a few about Melafix)

The main one which is linked from the Aquarium Information page or the Illness Board reference sticky is this one:
Aquarium Medications page 3; Organic Treatments

As well there is a Fish as Pets article:
Fish as Pets; possible Melafix dangers

Carl

[corycatwoman]

awesome thank you carl i was looking in the sticky for it but had no luck! ill let you know how it works. the bottle says to use the dosage for 1 week and if theres no improvement do a waterchange and dose the tank again for another week. so im hoping it only takes 1 or 2 doses. your thaughts would be much apreciated.

[Carl]

Apr 21, 2009 14:50:03 GMT -5 corycatwoman said:

awesome thank you carl i was looking in the sticky for it but had no luck! ill let you know how it works. the bottle says to use the dosage for 1 week and if theres no improvement do a waterchange and dose the tank again for another week. so im hoping it only takes 1 or 2 doses. your thaughts would be much apreciated.

The effectiveness will be improved by small water changes before each dose.
As well it is usually best to treat at least 4-5 times, even if improvement is noted quickly.
If no improvement is noted after 5 days I would cease treatment and switch to a stronger medication such as its cousin Pimafix or stronger yet with an antibiotic such as Triple Sulfa

BTW, I moved this thread to this board where you can find the correct sticky, however you may find it easier to simply go to the Aquarium Information or Aquarium Answers box at the top of every page here on the board to find an article (or check the EA Home page for links as well)

Good Luck
Carl

[corycatwoman]

the bottle said to dose 5 ml per 10 gallons. so i have all my injuries in my 10 gallon tank so i dosed it 5 ml after i did a 25% water change should i wait for my next water change to dose again or wait until tomorrow to dose again? i normaly do water changes every weekend either saturday or sunday but i had busy weekend and am just now getting to them today on tuesday. would it be best to wait until the weekend to do a water change and 2nd dosage. or dose every day until the next water change and repeat the process. im not meaning to argue or second guess you carl but i think what you were saying is to dose them daily after a minor water change each day?

would it be just as practical and logical to just dose it every normal water change as the directions say?

[Carl]

The simplest way to use Melafix is to add the first dose, then treat daily as per the instructions, however a 10-20% water change before each dose improves results.

Changing water afterwords lowers the amount of treatment in the water.

Treating any medication on an occasional basis such as to coincide with a water change regime will result in an ineffective treatment or worse; immunity of this treatment by pathogens.

See this article: Aquarium Medications; Overview

Read the section titled Important, Finish Treatment! in particular.

Carl

[corycatwoman]

ok thank you carl. ill do a 10 percent water change each day i add 5 ml to the tank. i must have misread the bottle where it said after 7 days do a water change and if no improvements repeat process.

my brain took that as do a dose and then a week later after your standard water change dose it again if there isnt any improvement. but after re reading the bottle it states to do a dose daily for 7 days and then do a 25 percent water change.

but i have always used your advise and found that it is untouchable in the aquarium industry as the right thing to do.

i will do 10 percent water change 2 hours after there morning feeding and then add the 5 ml dosage for the next week.

thank you again!

[Carl]

Thanks for the compliment!

I do want to clarify that I added the 10% (or more) water change before each dose or at least every other dose. this is not on the bottle.
I have found that most medications, even more inert organic ones such as Melafix, are more effective if water changes are performed prior to each treatment. This also helps cut down on any toxic side effects of the stronger medications as well, allowing for an easier recovery for the fish.

Carl

[kagome]

Also be warned that Melafix and Pimafix can make your water cloudy. They don't mention that on the bottle and when my tank got all cloudy I freaked out and thought something else was wrong. Just for clarity's sake I thought I would do a little treatment chart.

Day 1
add dose of Melafix

Day 2
do 10-20% water change
add dose of Melafix

Day 3
do 10-20% water change
add dose of Melafix

Continue dosing and water changes as listed above. If at five days no improvement is at all visible, discontinue treatment, do a 25% water change and begin treatment with a different medication. If visibly improved then continue for seven days. If you think another 7 day treatment cycle is necessary do a 25% water change and continue on same dosing and water change schedule as you did during the first treatment cycle.

I hope that's helpful and that your fish get better soon. It's really great that you have a small isolation tank, that makes things so much easier and less expensive. Treating an entire 38g and thus spending that amount of money for the medicine is a real pain. I wish you luck!

[corycatwoman]

i dont have an isolation tank. in my 10 gallon right now i just have my 2 albino cory cats 1 injured. and 1 julli cory cat not injured. my loach which is injured. and 2 glass cats not injured. the first batch of guppy fry not injured. and my remaining female guppy not injured and not pregnant.

leaving in my other tanks. the 30 tank. my 1 yellow lab cichlid. and in my 2 gallon my remaining second batch of fry that are still growing out.


the 10 gallon tank got a bit over crowded with the introduction of my albino cories and my loach. and i think having adult female guppies and the adult male guppy all trying to breed with my 2 glass cats stalking each female waiting for babies to pop out. turned it from a peaceful tank to a partially agressive tank and the guppies started attacking the 3 julli catfish already in there and 2 of them ended up dead and the other injuries i have were from the 2 assorted cichlids that i later took back to get the peaceful single yellow lab.

i also sold the male and 2 pregnant female guppies to a buddy. knowing that atleast 1 of these guppies out of the 2 batches will end up being a male to start my process all over again.


so i really dont have an isolation tank. but i definately transferd my harmless loach and cory cats into the crowded 10 gallon tank to give them a better chance at not getting eatin alive and also now that i uncrowded the tank a bit its just about right.


currently in the 10 gallon tank

3 cory catfish- 2 albino- 1 julli

1 golden dojo loach

1 female guppy

2 glass catfish

5 guppy fry about 1 cm long

[Carl]

The above fish mix looks better IMO.

Please keep in mind that stress is often the major factor in a VERY difficult to control Columnaris outbreak, so preventing this is important. As well if Columnaris gets a foothold in your aquarium, Melafix which is primarily gram positive will NOT work for this bacterial pathogen.

Columnaris

Carl

[corycatwoman]

thanks carl a few months back i had a fish from the petstore have that. i just got rid of it as soon as i seen it and all the other fish in the tank with the new infected fish havent shown signs of anything. and are still healthy and that suprised me because my 2 glass cats have been in the tank the longest and if there was any bacterial that would target the skin it would have happend to those first i was told they were the hardest fish to try and keep alive. and they have lived longer than i have suspected they would.

[corycatwoman]

im almost positive there isnt any columnaris in the tank unless its spiked up out of no where with the stress of all the breeding. and everyone seems really calm since i have gotten rid of the male guppy and 2 of the other females. leaving just 1 adult guppy in the schooling. the glass cats dont really do much but stick by eachothers sides. and my loach is as lazy as ever. and the cory cats seem to be doing fine maybe a little bit skittish but i figured thats just because they got used to the huge footprint of the 30 gallon.