6 methods of using drugs in aquaculture

1. Bathing pets

This method often uses high concentration drugs, in a small volume and for a short time (maybe 10 minutes, 20 minutes...). How to do it: collect aquatic animals in a small volume tank, mix high concentration drugs or chemicals, quickly bathe aquatic animals to treat pathogens outside the body.

This method has the advantage of using less chemicals, does not affect plankton which is food for aquatic animals in the water body; suitable when transferring fish and shrimp from one pond to another, transporting over long distances or for breeding before commercial farming.

2. Spraying medicine into cages and ponds

Use medicine sprayed directly into the cage, down into the pond with low concentration of medicine, but the time of effect of the medicine is long. This method is expensive but convenient, easy to do, and treats the disease promptly.

Spraying chemicals into cages and ponds can kill pathogens in the external organs of aquatic animals and pathogens that exist in the water body. The chemicals are used similarly to bathing, but the concentration is reduced by about 10 times.

3. Hang the medicine bag

• This method is often used with water-soluble disinfectants. A certain amount of the drug is contained in a bag, the quality of the bag allows the dissolved drug molecules to pass through and into the water environment.

Hanging medicine bags is suitable for disease prevention and treatment when they first appear; often applied in cage farming. Medicine bags are hung in the corner of the cage, at the beginning of the flow... This method has the advantage of saving medicine, simple operation, animals are less affected by medicine.

• The amount of medicine should be used to achieve the required concentration, maintained for 2-3 hours and hung continuously for 3 days.

4. Use topical medication directly

Aquatic animals infected with some external diseases often use high concentration drugs applied directly to the ulcers to kill the pathogens such as: red spot disease, ulcer disease, anchor worm disease, parasitic roundworms.

This method can be used when catching parent fish to check or spawn, or to prevent and treat infectious ulcers in turtles. The advantages are less medication, high safety, convenience and little impact on pets.

5. Mix medicine into food

Mix the medicine into the feed, then feed it to aquatic animals according to the dosage. The medicine is calculated in two ways: g/kg of feed or g/kg of body weight of the animal. This is a common method used in aquaculture; used to treat diseases caused by parasitic organisms inside the body of aquatic animals.

• The disadvantage is that when medicated food is put into the pond, part of the medicine will be dispersed into the water environment. The seriously sick and weak fish will stop eating and cannot use the medicine; on the contrary, the healthy fish will eat more medicine than necessary.

6. Injections

This method has precise dosage, the drug is easily absorbed so it works quickly. Usually, injection is only used to treat parent fish, or when the fish are seriously ill with a small number, or some rare aquatic animals.

* Principles of using drugs in aquaculture to avoid risks and ensure food safety.

- Accurately diagnose the cause of the disease.This is a very important principle, because accurately identifying the cause of the disease will help the treatment to be effective, less costly and less time consuming.

- Treatment with low doses should be tried.Test a small area before treating the entire area. This is to minimize the risk of miscalculation of dosage.

- Do not feed shrimp or fish 24 hours before treatment.is very necessary to improve the effectiveness of drug use and reduce shock to the animals.

- The medicine should be used at times of the day when shrimp and fish are least shocked.Usually in the morning; the best time is around 7 - 8 o'clock.

- The water level should be lowered before treatment.This helps reduce the amount of medication needed, and additional water can be easily provided to dilute the medication concentration when needed.

- Be aware of the possibility of adverse reactions.In this case, it is necessary to stop treatment; supply new water or change the water quickly, turn on the water fan system (if available).