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Is API General Cure Safe For Shrimp In Your Tank?

With API general cure being such a popular treatment option that can work well for a wide range of potential problems with fish, it has managed to become one of the most commonly used products within the fish keeping hobby.

As the reputation of API general cure continues to get better and better, the number of people using it with their own fish also continues to climb too.

That said though, as the popularity of keeping shrimp and other invertebrates as tank mates for our fish also increases, there have been a number of people asking if API general cure is safe for shrimp or not.

Is API General Cure Safe For Shrimp?

The main ingredient in API general cure is Metronidazole and it is this chemical which is effective at treating a wide variety of common fish diseases.

At the same time though, it is also worth noting that Metronidazole can be lethal to shrimp and other invertebrates if it is used at full strength.

For this reason, when using API general cure to treat your fish it is very important that you stick to the recommended dosing instructions for your tanks water volume that are clearly shown on the label of the product.

If you don’t do this then there is a good chance that your shrimp will not survive the treatment process but if you do follow the easy to follow instructions then the treatment shouldn’t cause any problems with healthy shrimp in your tank.

The second active ingredient in API general cure is Praziquantel and although it can post a small risk to shrimp when used in large amounts, it is used in a three to one ratio against Metronidazole making very hard to even accidentally add enough Praziquantel to your tank to cause problems with your shrimp.

Our advice would be to use the dosing instructions on the label of your API general cure for the tank size you have and don’t use the treatment for longer than is needed and your shrimp should be fine.

How Can I Treat My Fish If I Am Worried About My Shrimp?

We understand that some of our readers may still be worried about using their API general cure to treat various problems with their fish if they have shrimp in their tank.

There are a number of ways that you are able to safely remove your shrimp from the tank for a temporary time period though and most people can easily set up a 1 gallon shrimp tank to keep their shrimp safe while they treat the fish in their main tank with API general cure.

If you have an old aquarium that you are no longer using, you can also look to move your fish that is having the problems with its health into the old tank to treat it with the API general cure in the other tank rather than your main community tank that has the shrimp in too.

This can sometimes be the best course of action to take in many setups due to the other fish in your tank potentially being at risk if the infected fish that you need to treat has an infectious disease that may spread to them too so keep that in mind.