General Care Discussion :: Worm and green gnats in tank

[northeast33]

Thanks again for the replies. I'll revisit my filter situation after I go to the vet. I made an appointment for tomorrow morning. The office is only 1 mile from my house, any suggestions for transporting her such a short distance. I know there are tips on the site for longer trips, but what do you think is necessary for a 3-4 minute drive?

Also...since I moved her to another tank w/o gravel, I was able to take a look at her stool. It broke apart and dissolved into the water within 20-30 minutes. After it broke apart, I was able to see dozens of small white things. Resembling the shape of rice but smaller than rice. I've heard that tape worm looks like this, but can a turtle have tape worm?

If she has something, could it have been passed to me? The other day I reached into her tank to fix the filter, forgetting that I had a cut on my hand. Does anyone know the real possibility of a worm or parasite being passed to me?

[SINI5T3R]

I am pretty sure ANY animal can have tape worms. Humans, Dogs, Cats, Birds, Fish, Turtles....

usually tape worms stunt the growth of something because they suck up all the nutrition quite quickly and can end up being fatal. I myself have never seen one but i know they usually come from live food.

[northeast33]

Just a follow up. The vet gave her Pancur to kill any parasites that she may have had. A day later the stool test came back negative for parasites. I cleaned out he entire tank and let all of the supplies dry out for 2 days. (filter, heater, etc). It's been 3 days and so far the tank remains clear and and the bugs have not returned. I'm going to wait another week or two before calling it a success but so far so good.

[steve]

Sounds good, thanks for the update.