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RE:Tubifex
iFor what its worth....
Wright wrote:
> Both kinds of worms get a reputation for carrying fish diseases. They
> don't.*
> _____________________
> *Source: Private communication from Dr. Barry Cooper, Head of Veterinary
> Pathology Dept. at Cornell.
While I agree that the disease issue is often overblown and that
the main cause of problems with these worms is a dirty culture,
I throw this tidbit in for counter-balance:
I had private communication with a tubificid (sp?) researcher
a couple years ago (sorry, I don't remember his name) and this
person stated that these worms may carry an intermediate stage
of tapeworm. Wright has mentioned Dr. Barry Cooper in this forum
previously, and at that time, I contacted Dr. Cooper via private
email to get his opinion on the matter. Dr. Cooper thought it
unlikely that this would occur, but said that it was theoretically
possible.
So... as with most live foods, they may carry some element of
risk. I believe that most of us agree that the risk is worth
it, especially if care is taken to keep the culture fresh and
thriving. And hey, if you bother to culture your own, you've
eleminated almost all of the risk as long as they are cultured
separate from the rest of the tape-worm cycle hosts (which seem to
vary considerably depending on the specific variety of tapeworm
you are concerned about!)
Regards,
David Robinson