melafix works....

[Ethan25]

Ethan did it cross your mind that fixing your water and maintaining decent water allowed the fish to fix itself. GF and Koi are quite capable of repairing them themselves when given a chance in decent water.

The ''fixes'' are one step above snake oil and can cause more problems than they'll ever fix.

hadn't thought about that. I had the issue before though where I had the issue, and then fixed the issue for a week or two, and they never had their fins grow back so well....



I dont know. I understand everyone's concerns though....

(I love starting controversial threads)

[lukef]

I have never heard one good thing about Melafix..Ethan's testimonial was the first. I am glad it worked for Ethan but I will never ever buy it.

well here is one good thing
"It Smells Good."

[premster]

might as well try. I'd put it in a solitary tank though with good filtration to give it a chance.

I will try it , why not . I have him with 2 goldies in a 30 g , The mouth rot has almost stopped and I did a tricide treatment . why not try melafix . Nothing to lose .

[lukef]

LISTEN AND LISTEN GOOD BUDDY
QUIT saying bad things about melafix out in the open where everyone can read it.
if you persist I will have to PM the Moderators because you are damaging the pleasure I get from "donating" large sums of money at Koi show raffles.
i win bottles of melafix everytime, and then i stand by the raffle table saying things like,
I'll trade ya three bottles of melafix for that equal sized bottle of dimlin. You see I need some dimlin right now and although mealfix smells great I really don't have any fish that are stressed right now. But I do have a couple in QT that might have an anchorworm...."

[tyco4357]

That was very well said. I am on the pro side of it, but one thing people have to remember when using it is to step up the areation if what you have is just adequate.

[tracey_shafer]

LISTEN AND LISTEN GOOD BUDDY
QUIT saying bad things about melafix out in the open where everyone can read it.
if you persist I will have to PM the Moderators because you are damaging the pleasure I get from "donating" large sums of money at Koi show raffles.
i win bottles of melafix everytime, and then i stand by the raffle table saying things like,
I'll trade ya three bottles of melafix for that equal sized bottle of dimlin. You see I need some dimlin right now and although mealfix smells great I really don't have any fish that are stressed right now. But I do have a couple in QT that might have an anchorworm...."

and how many fall for that one Luke

[lukef]

and how many fall for that one Luke

1 outta 3

[premster]

It's great stuff.

I keep pure tea tree oil (the active ingredient in melafix) on hand for personal use.

If I scape a knuckle or get a cut while working on fish it stops any infection and heals quickly.

Best fishes
David
www.goldfishgarage.com

This is a well known and tested treatment in ancient medicines .

[Rudy]

hadn't thought about that. I had the issue before though where I had the issue, and then fixed the issue for a week or two, and they never had their fins grow back so well....



I dont know. I understand everyone's concerns though....

(I love starting controversial threads)

And I thought you loved your koi

[Graham]

This is a well known and tested treatment in ancient medicines .

These are modern times and we have drugs and chems that don't irritate fish and are much more effective. The minor antiseptic and anti-bacterial
properties of tea oil and bay oil are just that minor. In ancient times they had nothing, so a little something went a long way.

Good clean water and maybe a swab of iodine along with an improved immune system will have the same effects as dumping expensive smelling stuff in the water.

When a problem requires an antibiotic or an anti-parasite solution then that's what should be used

G

[steveamy]

Dude . I got nothing to lose . No body believes his mouth will grow back .

It looks like the cartilage is gone from the mouth on your fish. Cartilage does not grow back in humans, though it may in fish.

The good thing is that you stopped further deterioration. Now you've got a shot.

[PhillyBill]

These are modern times and we have drugs and chems that don't irritate fish and are much more effective. The minor antiseptic and anti-bacterial
properties of tea oil and bay oil are just that minor. In ancient times they had nothing, so a little something went a long way.

Good clean water and maybe a swab of iodine along with an improved immune system will have the same effects as dumping expensive smelling stuff in the water.

When a problem requires an antibiotic or an anti-parasite solution then that's what should be used

G

I can agree that these are "modern" times. The fact remains that Chinese-Americans, who use traditional remedies first, and manufactured meds as a last resort, outlive the rest of the population.

The widespread confidence we have in patented pharmaceuticals arises largely from their successful marketing, which is not to say they have not done a great deal of good in some cases for some people. Their general over-application has, however, created a lot of problems. Widespread prescription of antibiotics has rendered all but a handful ineffective due to quickly evolving resistant bacteria. Using strong antibiotics in a closed system (like a pond) courts disaster unless they are needed to combat a widespread, serious infection.

The use of "minor" antiseptic and anti-bacterial remedies often turns out to be the right approach when the entire picture is taken into consideration. Given a clean stable pond and a fish with no diagnosable disease, letting nature take its course is often best. BTW, there is no evidence of irritation to fish using Melafix in the concentrations stated in the bottle instructions. One would have to overdose 5X.

You are absolutely right that clean water and strong immune systems are the keys to healthy fish. Medication is frequently guesswork, unless the malady is obvious, like anchor worms or ich. Just try finding a vet who will agree to treat fish!

[PhillyBill]

Any med with teatree oil is a great topical treatment but should NOT be in the water with our wet pets. It coats their gill covers and prevents 02 exchange. Ethan is very lucky his goldies healed, you would be better off with plain old salt.

Actually, it is the other way around. Studies have shown that topical applications may cause skin irritation (NIH) in a small number of cases, but the concentrations used in the water do not (pondrx, University of Bristol). The NIH tests were on animals and humans, the water experiments with fish.

Let's not open the salt can of worms.

[Graham]

I can agree that these are "modern" times. The fact remains that Chinese-Americans, who use traditional remedies first, and manufactured meds as a last resort, outlive the rest of the population

.

Bill that Orientals out live Caucasians doesn't have a whole lot to do with the medicines that they use, but has everything to do with diet, mainly and lifestyle. I've seen news reports where they are starting to have the same health problems North Americans have since they are now starting to eat a lot of the same junk and fat that we do.

While I'll agree that antibiotics are over used, you also don't use a BB gun to kill a moose. Melafix has very minor bacterial properties so should be used on very minor problems....the catch is, that with clean water, low organic loads resulting in low bacterial levels in the water, the fish is quite capable of healing itself.

As to it being an gill and skin irritant; ever since the product came on the market there have been anecdotal reports, in both the koi hobby and the aquarium hobby of it bugging fish. That Pond Rx says that it doesn't;.... doesn't mean a thing.

G

[PhillyBill]

.

As to it being an gill and skin irritant; ever since the product came on the market there have been anecdotal reports, in both the koi hobby and the aquarium hobby of it bugging fish. That Pond Rx says that it doesn't;.... doesn't mean a thing.

G

PondRX gives balanced and thorough reviews of medications, just like any good pharmacist. I can see your distrusting them since they also sell meds. You neglect to mention the University of Bristol - they found TTO had potent piscine medicinal qualities and mention no side effects. There is no doubt that putting anything organic in the pond might indirectly compromise oxygenation, but it is a stretch to ascribe the respiratory difficulties to gill irritation from a medicine, especially when there might be an infection running around in the water.

We could probably go round and round on this (or salt or a dozen other topics) because neither the science nor the anecdotes covers all the different situations we encounter - big ponds, small ponds, hot ponds, cold ponds, frogs, sun, shade. A lively discussion illuminates - I don't think anyone reading this thread will neglect their water or oxygen regardless of whether they believe Melafix is junk or an essential part of the medicine kit. I agree with you that it is for minor or unidentified problems. I would rather discharge a bb into my pond first before a .30-06 if in doubt.

Hobbies are a lot like politics - anecdotes persuade more people than science. I just like a healthy balance.

[Blammo]

That chit werks for a few little things but other chit werkz better.
,,,,,,,,, I won't detail but it KILLS the taste budz.. OK
Over and Out.''''''''

[premster]

I cannot see any harm that can come from using melafix at this point . the fish is eating well no difficulty breathing and infection has stopped .

Why not give it a chance instead of just waiting . If they show any respiratory difficulty I can reverse the situ pronto .

Having grown up with a lot of natural remedies I have more trust in that stuff than the junk big pharma peddles in the name of science . lol

[premster]

That chit werks for a few little things but other chit werkz better.
,,,,,,,,, I won't detail but it KILLS the taste budz.. OK
Over and Out.''''''''

what does a hot chick have to do with melafix . lol

[Graham]

PondRX gives balanced and thorough reviews of medications, just like any good pharmacist. I can see your distrusting them since they also sell meds. You neglect to mention the University of Bristol - they found TTO had potent piscine medicinal qualities and mention no side effects. There is no doubt that putting anything organic in the pond might indirectly compromise oxygenation, but it is a stretch to ascribe the respiratory difficulties to gill irritation from a medicine, especially when there might be an infection running around in the water.

We could probably go round and round on this (or salt or a dozen other topics) because neither the science nor the anecdotes covers all the different situations we encounter - big ponds, small ponds, hot ponds, cold ponds, frogs, sun, shade. A lively discussion illuminates - I don't think anyone reading this thread will neglect their water or oxygen regardless of whether they believe Melafix is junk or an essential part of the medicine kit. I agree with you that it is for minor or unidentified problems. I would rather discharge a bb into my pond first before a .30-06 if in doubt.

Hobbies are a lot like politics - anecdotes persuade more people than science. I just like a healthy balance.

Are you telling me that the owner of Pond Rx, Ted McConnell is a pharmacist?........I think all his reveiws come from Johnson and he doesn't hold much credibility....he believes in Cheerios

If you would like to post the Bristol paper or a link to it, I'd love to read it. ...But at this point in time I've seen no evidence, personal, in conservations with other hobbyists or posted on the net, in any aspect of this hobby, that melafix is good for anything more than the simplest of problems.........and in the vast majority of those cases, decent water and good husbandry probably cleared the problem.

People like magic bullets and API got on the bandwagon when Melaleuca
became the cure all for the tree huggers......good marketing!

I have not mentioned anything about O2 levels but being an irritant has nothing to do with that. I've watched pond fish and aquarium fish flash and change breathing habits the second it was added to the water...it wasn't a good thing

Un-identified problems need to be identified before anything is ever used in our puddle and then there are much better shotguns than Melaleuca.

I'll stand by my initial statement...junk

G

Hi Doug...

[Graham]

I cannot see any harm that can come from using melafix at this point . the fish is eating well no difficulty breathing and infection has stopped .

Why not give it a chance instead of just waiting . If they show any respiratory difficulty I can reverse the situ pronto .

Having grown up with a lot of natural remedies I have more trust in that stuff than the junk big pharma peddles in the name of science . lol

If the infection has healed why would you use another chemical on the fish...makes no sense

That maybe Doug's daughter.....