# Ghost Shrimp parasite?



## dazydaizee

One of my ghost shrimp has a very thin white line going through it. It seems to change position and has been there for at least 3 days. I've tried to look up what it may be and learned that ghost shrimp can carry a nematode parasite? I can't seem to find any real extensive info, but some said it would pass without harming the shrimp, but it should be removed from the tank. 
I'm hoping to find out if that's what's going on with my shrimp and if so, whether it's something that can harm the other shrimp or any other creatures that may eventually share the tank. I removed the shrimp tonight and put it into its own one gallon tank to monitor it and as a precaution in case it's something harmful. All of the shrimp seem healthy, they're eating, they're a good color, they're active... the snails and plants in the tank are also all doing well right now...

I tried to get a picture of the white thing this morning, but couldn't get a very good shot.. maybe it will help anyway.. The shrimp's eyes are not actually blue, and the line is thinner than it appears in the picture.









Thanks


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## neilshieh

nice flourite... just saying. it's possible, and i'd observe it for a couple of days but you could just dispose of it... after all they are feeder shrimp that cost next to nothing. and feeder animals usually carry bad things. although for some reason i sometimes get shrimp that have a white body but is not dead...


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## dazydaizee

I've been researching a little more and found some information about Horsehair Worms, which sounds most like what I'm seeing.. but from what I've read it's very difficult to treat invertebrates for parasites.. and it seems that treating & letting the shrimp be both have their risks...
Anyone have experience with horsehair worms and ghost shrimp??

And yes, I do realize this is a 33 cent "feeder" shrimp. I don't have a ton of money to sink into it, but these guys are the life of my little tank and I enjoy them just as much as any fish I've had regardless of price. I don't feel right about disregarding a life based on cost. My dog was free, but I don't value her less for that fact. If there's something I can do to help the little shrimp and also to prevent my others from contracting it, I'd like to try it.


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## neilshieh

sorry... but to me it hurts more to have a 2 dollar yellow shrimp die than a 33 cent ghost shrimp. because the way i see it is either its going to die in the store, be fed to something else, or live a happier life in an aquarium. but it's still a feeder nonetheless. you can try using garlic. slightly blanch a piece of garlic and drop it in the tank.


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## Gordonrichards

It could just be some poop? My cherry shrimp usually have a line of light or dark brown poop. Just a thought...

hehe, just a reason for me to say poop is great!


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## JohnPaul

If it is indeed some sort of parasite/worm, and you feel you would rather try to treat the shrimp than just let it die or euthanize it, then probably your best bet would be to treat the tank with fenbendazole. Fenbendazole (that's its scientific name) is a commercial de-wormer that is used to treat dogs and other mammals. It comes in a liquid form (usually you can only get it from a vet) or else in a powdered form, that most general pet stores would have on hand (under several brand names, one of the common ones is Panacur). Just ask an employee where the dog de-wormer is and you'll almost certainly find something with fenbendazole. If you can't find it in the pet store, just do a search for "panacur" on ebay and you will find plenty of listings for cheap, under $10. It is commonly used by us in the dwarf shrimp hobby when we have a tank that is infested with planaria, nematodes, hydra, etc. I don't know for a fact whether or not it would work on an internal worm inside a shrimp but it is probably the best shot you have. When dosed at recommended levels it is 100% safe for shrimp and most other inverts--the only issues I have ever heard about is that for some reason nerite snails seem to be unable to handle it. In fact when I put it in my tank I observed some of the shrimp picking up and eating pieces of it! And they seemed completely unharmed by doing so. I've used it in dwarf shrimp tanks that had Yellow Shrimp and CRS, as well as a variety of snail species, and everything was fine. 

Normally in a shrimp tank you dose it at the rate of 1 gram per 100g of water, and do two doses 48 hours apart (no water change between them). The smallest size packets it comes in are 1 gram packets, so if you have the shrimp in a 1g tank, you are looking at dosing 1/100th of a packet though you don't need to be absolutely precise, and if you dose a bit too much it shouldn't hurt anything. It doesn't dissolve very well in water so don't be surprised if you can still see bits & pieces of it lying on the surface even 24 hours later--that's okay, eventually over the course of several days it will dissolve.

Hope that helps.


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## dazydaizee

JohnPaul: Thanks for the suggestion! I used to work as a vet tech, so I'm very familiar with Panacur/fenbendazole. I will try to pick some up tomorrow. I'll probably try dosing the isolated shrimp and see if it works, then perhaps just watch the others rather than dose the entire tank since nobody else is showing any signs... but I guess we'll see, I know how parasites can be.

GordonRichards: I do know that it's not poop. It's been there for at least 4 days now and does change position, but does not leave the body. I actually saw the shrimp poop when I first moved it into the separate tank and it was not the same color or along the same line as the white line is. I'm pretty positive that this is a parasite, and very likely the horsehair worm I've found pictures and information about. I wish it were just poo, but I'm certain it's not.


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## Grathum

Instead of treating the entire population for something you aren't even sure of...why not just move the suspect to it's own little container for observation for a little while???


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## dazydaizee

Grathum: That's what I'm doing. I have the shrimp in a 1 gallon tank isolated from the others. I will attempt to treat with Panacur tomorrow. I'm watching everyone closely to make sure the shrimp in the regular tank don't show any signs of what the isolated shrimp has.


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## dazydaizee

By the way.. the shrimp has been isolated since yesterday and is still doing well but I can see that the little white "worm" inside is in a different position each time I check the shrimp.


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## LoraW

It might be easier to dose if you purchase the panacur in a paste form. I used it to treat my dwarf seahorse tank for hydriods and other nasties. If I'm not mistaken seahorsesource.com carries the liquid form. HTH


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## JohnPaul

LoraW said:


> It might be easier to dose if you purchase the panacur in a paste form. I used it to treat my dwarf seahorse tank for hydriods and other nasties. If I'm not mistaken seahorsesource.com carries the liquid form. HTH


Wow, thanks for the link to the liquid form. I wish I would have known about that, oh, about a month ago!


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## LoraW

You're welcome! Glad I could help.


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## Amazon_Replica

Yea I think the Ghost/Glass shrimp are not only entertaining to watch, but are quite beneficial to the entire system. they're no Amano's but they dig into the substrate and are constantly cleaning. Hopefully it works out for ya.


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## dazydaizee

Thanks.. I ended up picking up the powder today and added the first treatment. I'm hoping it works, but I'm not incredibly optimistic.. the more I read about horsehair worms, the worse it seems.. but I did see pictures and videos that look identical to what my shrimp has, so at least I know what it is.

Luckily I was able to count all 5 of the shrimp remaining in the regular tank tonight, confirming that the others are all still alive, doing well, and worm-free at this point.


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## dazydaizee

I got them from petsmart. I lost one this morning who did not have a worm, but I quarantined it when it was turning opaque and not acting right. I added iodide to the water (regular tank and quarantine) as recommended from what I read with possible problems molting. If that was this shrimp's problem then I hope it at least prevents the others from having molting issues.
The shrimp with the worm is still quarantined and the panacur did not work.. I can see that the worm has gotten bigger. The shrimp still looks good and is eating, so I decided to try another medication. This one is a medicated food with a dewormer that others had luck with (can't remember the name now, but I know it began with a P). I dropped a pellet in yesterday and the shrimp went right over and started eating it, so at least I know it's GETTING the meds... still alive and doing well this am, so hoping it will work without side effects...


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## Amazon_Replica

How did it work out for the shrimp?


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## dazydaizee

I'm starting to think that shrimp is invincible. I've been feeding the medicated food, the shrimp's been eating it, and still the worm & shrimp seem to be alive and well. At one point I thought the worm would pass, because it finally made its way down the length of the body, but then started to curl back at the end and is still in there. It seems a lot bigger, so I'm sure it's only a matter of time. But I believe I only have 2 ghost shrimp left. One giant one in the regular tank, and this one.


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## dazydaizee

The shrimp died today... looks like the worm is still inside it. The shrimp was getting a little more opaque the past day or 2 so I was expecting this. Too bad.. it survived a lot longer than I thought, and seemed to be doing just fine for the majority of it.


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## HeyPK

See if you can dissect out the worm and get a picture of it!


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## dazydaizee

Alright... so I'm a curious person. I wanted to see this worm. I use a lancet and pulled it out (maybe the shrimp had partially molted, but it seemed like it was right under the carapace. I didn't have to cut anything, just slipped the lancet under the worm and pulled it out.) It looks dead, but it's a good size in comparison to the shrimp. It also tied itself into 2 knots.

I took a few pictures if anyone else is curious. I still assume it's a horsehair worm based on what I've read, but maybe the pictures will help to come to a more definite conclusion. The first with the decease shrimp for size comparison.









This is one of the knots:









And this is one end:


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## dazydaizee

HeyPK said:


> See if you can dissect out the worm and get a picture of it!


Oh good, it's not just me... I've been wanting to pull that thing out for weeks. I didn't see your post before I put the pictures up, but there you go!


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## neilshieh

interesting... btw, why is the shrimp orangish? it should be white. i sometimes have shrimp that turn opaque but aren't dead... any explanation for this?


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## dazydaizee

Uh.. I don't know.. on this link someone said that it's normal and means they contain carotenes. http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=260541

A shrimp temporarily turning opaque could be ready to molt, as far as I know...


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## Gordonrichards

Wow! I swear I thought it was its poop! Poor shrimp. Wildness


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