Treating Nerites For Callamanus

BDP603

New Member
Dec 8, 2017
12
2
3
35
NH
Long story short, I picked up a couple new discus around a month ago and didnt quarantine them long enough. Put them into my display tank after a couple weeks as thought they were healthy. One definitely was and the other I was thinking was just being shy from being picked on by the other(didn't see any odd poop or anything abnormal in qt). Then a week or so ago I noticed a dreadful looking long white poop coming from the "shy" one.Since then I've found several callamanus worms in the tank while messing around in there. I already have fenbendazole and am planning on treating the display tank with this as read it is one of the only things that works on them besides levamisole. I've pulled that discus out that was originally infected to treat her in a separate tank(with some plant trimmings to see how they handle the med too). The damage has clearly already been done in the main tank but shes not looking too hot atm so want to keep her separate and see how she does with the med.

I've read that when the callamanus eggs hatch the young worms will often live in snails. I have 4 of the striped(zebra?) nerites in the discus tank and know the fenbendazole would kill them. So intend to remove them before treating the main tank. Will most likely put them in a small rubbermaid temporarily so they aren't exposing anything else. Can they safely be treated with levamisole or something else to get rid of any potential worms they may have got in them? Im certainly not going to add the nerites to another tank with these potentially in them or add them back to the discus tank unless Im certain they are clean.

thanks
 

Fishfur

Subscriber
Oct 16, 2016
13
3
3
Mississauga, On. Canada
Probably much too late to help you out now, but fwiw, Fenben is said to be toxic to Nerite snails. Levamisole, I have not used so I have no personal experience to rely on.

I've used Fenben in tanks with plants, fish, ramshorn and bladder snails, and shrimp, and it did none of them any harm at the dose I used, which was not much. I was treating green Hydra with it. So I took the snails out for the duration.
 

BDP603

New Member
Dec 8, 2017
12
2
3
35
NH
Yea ended up killing off the original nerites I had with fenbendazole. Used it to treat planaria and/ or hydra in other tanks and never had an issue with Any other critters including ramshorns and mts.
Thanks though