Michelle:

If you could get some pictures of your sick fish showing the problem areas it would help.

I have never used parasite guard but apart from two chemicals that should kill parasites, it also contains a lot of salt. I could not determine how much salt from the web descriptions but you have to be careful you don't kill your plants or frogs with it.

The parasites breeding cycles speed up a lot in warmer water so they are easier to get rid of using chemicals because normally the chemicals get them in the freeswimming stage. When they are cysts or eggs, they are usually not affected.

With very cold water, your fish immune systems are somewhat weakened, particularly at the end of winter when their food reserves are running low.

If they are being attacked by fish lice, their immune systems don't matter, they will get killed. Fish lice are pretty big and easy to see on the fish so I doubt your fish have them.

Hi kalevi,
Thank you for your help. I will try to get a picture but they are very wary of the net. I will have to put a fish in something clear to get a decent picture. I couldn't find out the percentage of salt either but the Parasite Guard calls for a 25% water change before each treatment, it also claims to be safe on plants and fish,says nothing about frogs but maybe it will kill parasites on them too.:D
I am just afraid if I don't kill them now they will kill or make the fish sick before spring.
Thanks,
Michelle

25% water change after you have applied the first dose I assume? Are the red spots increasing in quantity or size? How big are they (1/64", 1/32", 1/16", 1/8", 1/4")?

I recently went through the parasite panic with my fishies. There seem to be two or three medications that will take care of the problem. The products I used that contain the necessary chemicals are Dimlin and Anchors Away. The addition of salt is a general tonic. The 25% water change comes before the addition of the medication. I found the treatment must be repeated a second time to kill off the parasites that were in a different and less vulnerable part of their life cycle when the first dose was delivered. I lost some beautiful fish before I figured out what was happening. According to what I have read the parasites slow down or go dormant just as the fish do and develop fast when water temperatures go back up. Sandy

The problem with parasites is that they require different things to kill them all. Dimilin or anchors away will kill fish lice and anchor worms. I prefer dimilin. Superverm or Prazi will kill flukes (superverm can also burn koi and WILL kill goldfish so use with caution....I prefer Prazi). Proform C will kill all other parasites but can't be used if the watar is below 60°. Potassium permanganate will kill many parasites too....but it is a powerful oxidizer that is easy to overdose. It must be measured with a gram scale and you must be certain of the pond volumn. Actually, you really need to be very certain of your pond's volume with nearly all parasite killers. If you underestimate the volume, the fish are getting a low dose of meds. If you overestimate, the fish might get a lethel dose. Salt is safe....but unfortunatly does not kill most parasites anymore.

Well, I still have not been able to catch a fish. They are so friendly until they see the net. I have noticed the bugs seem to have dropped off or moved somewhere now but there are still some red places on fins, about 1/8" in size but fading in color. One fish still has some strong red veins in his white tail. The shubunkin's tails are harder to see but the pinkish color is close to the edges. I haven't seen any of them flash yet. It is 30 degrees here this morning but will warm to 70's today. Sandy how warm was it when you treated your fish? I understand about the parasites being untreatable during the dormant stage or egg stage of their life cycle but I'm not sure how long that would be with our warmer winters. If the fish seem to be doing OK, should I wait till early Spring to treat so I know the treatment will be sure to get all the parasites?
Thanks,
Michelle

Michelle, the second treatment is necessary because the medications don't affect the eggs of the parasite. It doesn't stay in the water long enough to get both the adult and the egg.
I got the Prazi which is very expensive and then found it is in the Dimlim I bought. You should read the label. I thought the Dimlin was a product name but it seems it is a chemical name.
The red spots and streaks are evidence of bacterial infection so you might want to get some medicated food. There are several brands. My local pet stores seem to have a problem getting it. I will order it over the internet after the chase they caused me. There are foods for internal parasites, too. They are not the same thing.
Ccoombs has a very good handle on treatments for parasites and just about any other problem in the pond. I used that info plus always excellent advice from Horton to do my own search for a cure.
My pond seldom gets above 78oF and had dropped down to the 60s before I could get everything I needed. The Dimlin probably would have covered all the problems but I had a hard time getting it until I found it in the local Co-op. The label on the Dimlin recommended a second dose in two weeks if I remember correctly. (I threw away the empty bottle).
It was amazing how much better the fishies seeded to feel after being treated the first time and then they started getting woebegone again just as the second treatment was called for. The second treatment had them quite cheerful to the point they started having orgies. Sigh... anyone want some babies? Sandy

Dimilin is actually a pesticide used on crops. It is available for fish....treating only anchor worms and lice.....and VERY effective for both. It can be used at any temperature and it is practically impossible to overdose with it. Don't wait until spring to treat....go ahead and do it now. As the winter wears on, the fish's immunity drops lower and lower. By late winter, problems that would not normally even effect them can actually kill them. Fish should head into spring in a clean pond and in good health. Sandy is correct in that red streaking and red spots can indicate bacterial problems. To address that, medicated food is a good choice (if you water is warm enough to feed the fish...over 50°). Also if the pond is not already clean, get it nice and clean for them so there is no nasty bacteria hiding out that can infect their sores. If the water is too cool to feed, still get it cleaned up and add salt to .3% to help with the bacterial problems. Keep the salt levels up for a couple of weeks, then let it start going back to normal through your normal water changes.

Thank you for all your good advice! I treated our pond this morning and turned on the aerator so there should be plenty of oxygen with it and the waterfall. Last night I saw Mystery, our only baby, flash. It will be warm here for awhile so maybe I will catch all those bugs out of their dormant stage. Xing fingers anyway. I will also start feeding anti-bacteria food. I vacuumed our pond about a month ago but will do it again after the 2nd treatment just to be on the safe side.
Thank you so much,
Michelle

I am apparently wrong about the Prazi being in the Dimlin I bought. The advice I gave about reading the label is still good. I really wish I had saved the empty bottle and had even thought it would be a good thing to save it but decided there were too many things taking up shelf space. In any event, I will defer to Ccoombs about such things. I hope I didn't cause a problem for anyone. Sandy