A MinnFinn Moment, Vol. VI: Spring 2010

By: Paul A. Curtis

MinnFinn Max, Product of the Year from PondTrade Magazine MinnFinn Max was selected product of the year Grand Champion by a panel of judges and online voting by folks like you. It is a great honor to receive this kind of recognition from those in the hobby and industry. To get this kind of industry recognition truly gives confirmation in the quality of our product and how it may impact how we treat our fish while reducing effects on the environment and risks to the health of you and your fish. Koi Season is around the Corner Here we are on the brink of another Koi season and I know everyone is getting itchy to get out to their ponds and fish. We at MinnFinn hope there are no surprises when you go out and look for the first time. It has been a harsh winter and I have already heard of not so pleasant stories of the fate of some ponds and their fish. With all of the stress these fish are under during winter it is no wonder there is an increased susceptibility to the multitude of pathogenic organisms in the water. Once a problem arises, what is your treatment of choice? How long does it take for you to do the treatment(s)? Do you need to use several products to do the job? Do you know exactly what problem you have? And lastly, is what you are using safe for you, your fish and the environment? With MinnFinn products you can take care of pretty much all of the external pathogens that may infect your fish. In one to three treatments any fluke, protozoa, external bacterial or fungal problem can be eliminated. In doing so, you have had no negative effect on the environment and no risk to your health with a toxicant or carcinogen. One thing I like to point out is the potential impact on the fish. With the long life expectancy of Koi, we need to be concerned about the impacts we have on their long term health. Imagine being exposed to repeated doses of cancer causing agents. The risk of developing a tumor goes up astronomically. By treating Koi with carcinogenic compounds like malachite green and formalin, the risk of inducing cancer in our fish increases by orders of magnitude. The biggest problem is it may not show up for years

so it is hard to determine a cause and effect. Why risk the health of your fish if you do not have to. MinnFinn now gives you a safe alternative. MinnFinn, Regular Strength We are proud to announce that MinnFinn regular strength is now available at many distributors and retailers. Now an easy to ship alternative to MinnFinn Max is here that can be shipped by overnight air if needed as it is not considered a Hazmat by the Department of Transport. The less concentrated MinnFinn is also an excellent choice for folks with smaller ponds where such a large treatment volume like MinnFinn Max is not needed. It is also even easier to use and comes in improved retail packaging. New Website We are pleased to announce that our new web site will be up soon. On this site you will be able to download newsletters and other technical documents as well as pictures and flyers. We also have tools for calculating the volume of a pond (round or rectangular) and a calculator for determining your MinnFinn (both Max and regular strength) dose if you know your pond volume. If you do not know the volume of your irregular shaped pond, we will also have the procedure for using salt to calculate your volume. Please look for this new site at www.aquafinn.net. Field Data I again encourage the submission field results please so we can build a better product and move forward to FDA labeling. Please submit at www.minnfinnmax.com, www.aqufinn.net or with the document attached and e-mailed to paultrout@aquasolver.com. Tech Notes:

Water Hardness In the use across the country there have been some interesting observations made with regards to efficacy and MinnFinn with regards to water hardness and alkalinity. In a couple of cases treatments were less than effective at the bottle dose and it is most likely involved with very hard water. With hardness levels above 350 to 400 mg/l alkalinities will also generally be high and will have an acid neutralizing capacity. As the active ingredient of MinnFinn is peracetic acid, it is not surprising that there may be some hindrance. An increase in dose from 1.5 to 2 times has provided the desired treatment effect. The common observations made from fish being treated are animals becoming lethargic and a change is schooling behavior with fish crowding together more. These are normal

treatment behaviors and are a good indicator that an effective treatment is underway. Sometimes the behaviors are subtle and other times more exaggerated. If you have had less than acceptable efficacy an increase in dose should rectify the problem. It is suggested that you start at the label dose and then add extra dose step wise by ¼ dose increments and watch the fish for 5 to 10 minutes between dose increases. Once you observe the above mentioned behaviors you should have a good dose. These occurrences have been few and far between. If you do experience a problem please call as I would like to hear about it and help ensure you get an efficacious treatment. On the other end of the spectrum is the effect in water with near no hardness or alkalinity. The effects of MinnFinn can be amplified and can be lethal at bottle doses. If Your water is this soft add MinnFinn in ¼ dose increments watching fish behavior between dose increases. It is highly recommended to not keep fish in these types of conditions as it is not healthy for the fish and biofiltration efficiency will suffer. If you live in an area with very very soft water it is best to use a combination of calcium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate to bolster hardness and alkalinity. It is good to have a minimum hardness around 100 ppm and alkalinity also above 100 ppm.

Southern California Steelhead For all of you fish crazy people, I thought this next bit would interest you. I have been involved in the development of a project to help restore populations of Steelhead here in Southern California. The populations of these fish have been decimated and are in dire need of help. I have been working with a local non-profit called The Escondido Creek Conservancy (TECC) in putting together a plan for the construction of a rescue hatchery to hold fish threatened by habitat destruction or acts of nature. My part is to design the hatchery and then develop and implement the required husbandry protocols for its management. The plan is then to use some of these as broodstock and to reproduce fish and repopulate streams. The plan will also include some stream rehabilitation to ensure the best chance of developing a sustained population of fish in the creek. The Escondido creek here in San Diego County is fairly unique in that it flows year round. It therefore provides an opportunity to develop a sustainable population of steelhead in a Southern California stream.

Hazmat Certification If you are interested in becoming certified to ship a hazmat like MinnFinn Max please follow the link www.mastery.com. Here you will find a class that will certify you to ship any hazmat product. My colleague Don Gressly has done the class and the certificate was accepted by FedEx and UPS. The best part is it only costs $30 and takes a few hours to complete.

Label changes

I am including the label changes again this month as I want to ensure that a new set of instructions goes out with every bottle of MinnFinn Max. Our regular strength MinnFinn has the changes incorporated into the new label. In Section: APPLICATION OF MINNFINN MAX and MINFINN

1) One bottle treats 8000 gallons or 2240 gallons 2) It is recommended that the user wear gloves and eye protection when applying MinnFinn Max or MinnFinn. 3) Make sure you have an accurate pond volume to avoid over dose and under dose. 4) Increase aeration to tank/pond to maximize oxygen levels and to ensure proper mixing of treatment. 5) When treating Flukes and Costia leave filter online for the first treatment. When treating other diseases placing filter on

bypass is optional. If left online expect small impact on nitrification for 2 to 3 days. Bypass filter for further treatments 6) Dilute the required quantity of MinnFinn Max or MinnFinn in a ¾ full 5 gallon bucket(s) using water from the pond to be

treated or tap water for up to 250 ml of MinnFinn product. Use a separate bucket for each 250 ml of MinnFinn product to be applied.

7) Spread the mixture around the entire edge of the pond to ensure good mixing and reducing the potential of an area of high concentration fish may pass through or pour slowly over top of air column.

8) Let MinnFinn Max or MinnFinn treatment run for one (1) hr. 9) Normal behavior will be lethargy, mild to moderate increase in respiration, and possible mild agitation. 10) See required NeuFinn directions for preparation prior to the end of the treatment. 11) If fish appear severely distressed indicated by rolling over and appear to be falling asleep, apply NeuFinn immediately

anytime during the treatment 12) Do not use with any other treatments.

APPLICATION OF NEUFINN REQUIRED

1) Same 2) In the same 5 gallon bucket(s) used to distribute the MinnFinn Max or MinnFinn treatment, mix the required amount of

NeuFinn neutralizer in a ¾’s full bucket using pond or tap water. Use a separate bucket for each ¼ bag (325 g) of NeuFinn applied.

3) Same 4) Same

MinnFinn Max and MinnFinn are Effective for

1) Control of Protozoal Parasites; eg. Trichodina and Chilodonella in one (1) treatment and Costia in two to three (2-3) treatments.

2) Control of Flukes in one (1) to three (3) treatments (Species dependant) 3) Control of Ich in three (3) to five (5) treatments (Each case of Ich is unique and must be evaluated during treatment

program for number of needed doses) 4) External Bacterial Infections such as Bacterial Gill Disease, Columnaris, Mouth Rot and Fin Rot in one (1) to three (3)

treatments 5) Leave one day between treatments

APPLICATION RATES 3 measured teaspoons (17.25 g) of NeuFinn Neutralizer STATEMENT OF PRACTICAL TREATMENT At the beginning of the section add: “It is recommended that the user wear gloves and eye protection when applying MinnFinn Max.”

Wholesalers and Retailers on www.aquafinn.net We are planning to have all of the distributors that carry MinnFinn product on our website www.aquafinn.net. Along with this we would also like to have a list of retailers who carry our products so potential customers can find a location to buy. If you would like to be listed please send us an e-mail with your contact information. Those of you I know have it will be placed automatically. I do not want to miss anyone.

Treatments (In the Field):

Ted McConnell, PondRX

Morning Ted,

Hope all is well with you. Just wanted to let you know that I mixed up a little of the

Minn Finn on Tuesday and dabbed it on the tail fins of two of my fish. I let it set for

a little bit and then neutralized it. The next day their fins were completely fine....no

signs of fin rot! The only hard part was letting it sit for a bit on the fins....you know

they DID NOT like being in the net for a couple of minutes!!!! I'm still going to do

two pond treatments waiting a full day in between starting tomorrow. The weather

is supposed to be quite spring like here this weekend, so it will be a good time for a

vac and water change too!

I just wanted to let you know the outcome of my latest saga and let you know just

how much I appreciate everything you do for me!

Have a great day and I will speak to you soon!

Kim Graham

Casey Sparks, Alpine Koi

Paul Curtis, AquaSolver

We have a retail store in Fort Collins Colorado, We have 5 tanks for retail sales of Koi ,

Goldfish, Catfish and specialty fish. We have 4 tanks that are 2,000 gallons and 1 tank

that is 400 gallons. During the season we will sell approximately 800-1000 fish a week.

We only bring in fish from 3 different suppliers to limit the exposure of parasites in our

tanks.

I treat our tanks on a regular basis to make sure that we are not transferring any issues to

our customers. I was treating with Potassium Permanganate in years past. I then moved

to Permoxin to treat the tanks as the dosage was easier to calculate and administer. The

problems with both of these products is that the fish cannot be sold during the treatment

process. And even after the oxidation was done we have to do a large water change to

remove waste and also get the water to look better to sell fish out of the tanks, and also

the use of these products was very hard on the fish in the tanks.

I was contacted by Paul about the use of MinnFinn and told him I would give it a try. I

was very pleased with the results that we saw after using the product. I had fish that were

flashing in the test system that I used the product on. After using the MinnFinn for 1

hour and then neutralizing the product the fish seamed to not flash as much. We

monitored the system for a week and the mortality rate on the fish and the flashing that

we were seeing drastically reduced. I do not have a microscope on site at this time and

could not get a count of the parasites that were on the fish. I do know that what ever was

bothering them drastically reduced and the fish were doing a lot better.

We do have a unique opportunity as we have a Vet at Colorado State University

Veterinary Teaching Hospital that comes to our site with his students to take fish and get

scrapings to look for potential problems. After using the MinnFinn he told me that he

was having a heck of a time finding any parasites to show his students.

Since we started using the MinnFinn, I have abandoned the Potassium Permanganate and

the Permoxin. I treat my tanks on a regular basis with the MinnFinn because of the ease

of use and the effectiveness that we have seen. One of the best things is that the fish in

the tanks can be sold within an hour of starting treatment and the water is still crystal

clear in the bags that the fish are getting put into. The use of this product also helps us

with making sure we are selling quality fish to our customers.

Thanks for a great product

Casey Sparks

Alpine Koi & Homescapes

Dr. Jason Sulliban, Aloha Animal Hospital Pond 1: Date: 5/09 Pond Size/ Age: 1000 gallons/ 3 years old Fish population: 3 koi about 1-1.5 feet long, several fancy gold fish. Added 4 new baby koi about 2 weeks ago. Filtration type: skimmer and biofalls filtration only. No other form of filtration present Presenting Problem: After adding new fish a few weeks ago, many fish are sluggish and reluctant to eat. Multiple white dots are present on numerous fish. Most are exhibiting periodic flashing behaviors.

• pH: 7.6

• Ammonia: 0.5 ppm

• Nitrite: 0 ppm

• Nitrate: 0 ppm

Plan: Skin scrape and gill snip after mild sedation in MS-222. Cytologic evaluation of both samples yielded a large amount of Ich organisms and no other apparent ectoparasites at that time. Treatment: Perform a 25% water change to reduce ammonia levels. Apply an ammonia binding product to further bind free ammonia and reduce toxic stress to fish as directed by the manufacturer. Apply MinnFinn as directed by label. Repeat application in 7-10 days. Start use of a beneficial bacterial additive

such as Koizyme, AquaMedZyme or MicroLift. Recommend adding addition biofiltration and test water quality regularly to manage any toxic presence before adversely affecting fish. Pond 2: Date: 8/09 Pond size/ Age: 2000 gallons/ 4+ years old Fish Population: 10 koi from 1-2.5 feet long plus various goldfish Filtration type: Skimmer and biofalls with external pump and external biofilter- bead type plus UV sterilizer. Presenting Problem: Several of his goldfish have died off over the last week and now a koi has died off as well. No new additions since early summer (plants) - no new fish. One very sick fish presented for examination. Fish lay on the bottom of the tank with multiple (>100) dark spots on it.

• pH: 7.8

• Ammonia: 0.25 ppm

• Nitrite: 0 ppm

• Nitrate: 10-20 ppm

Plan: Visual exam- obvious severe infestation of Fish lice. Sedate with MS-222 for gill snip and thorough skin scrape. Cytology of skin showed a few skin flukes in addition to the Fish Lice. Treatment: Perform a 25% water change to reduce ammonia levels. Apply an ammonia binding product to further bind free ammonia and reduce toxic stress to fish as directed by the manufacturer. Apply MinnFinn as directed by label. Repeat application 7-10 days. Recommend adding addition biofiltration and test water quality regularly to manage any toxic presence before adversely affecting fish. Although ammonia appears to be fairly controlled, consider reducing stocking density to maximize filter efficiency and reduce crowding stress on fish. Pond 3: Date: 6/2009 Pond Size/ Age: 4000 gallons / 1.5 months old Fish Population: 5 koi from 5-16 inches long Filtration: No niche skimmer to a vortex settling tank, floating media bed filter, 2 other unnamed filters and returned through an airlift system via 2 TPRs. Very awesome system with no noisy pumps, moderate water turnover and crystal clear surface. Presenting problem: This is a brand new pond with very lethargic and anorexic fish. Lighter colored fish show a lot of redness and there are several sores on 2 of the fish.

• pH: 7.8

• Ammonia: 1.5 ppm

• Nitrite: 0 ppm

• Nitrate: 0 ppm

Plan: Pond side sedation (MS-222) of the one of the two fish with sores. 3 sores observed- 1 very deep on ventral body. Cytology- fish is apparently free from ectoparasites. Amikacin injection intramuscularly perform during recovery. Treatment: Discussed new pond syndrome with the owner. There has been no biological filtration developed in such a new system and the waste from the fish is acting as a toxin to the fish and burning the skin. Secondary bacteria are taking advantage of the weakened fish and causing infections. We must treat the infections but equally as importantly, control water quality. Perform 30% water change immediatel. Apply an ammonia binding product to further bind free ammonia and reduce toxic stress to fish as directed by the manufacturer. Test daily and repeat on days when the ammonia is at 0.25 ppm or higher. Apply MinnFinn as directed by label. Repeat application in 5-7 days. Repeat Amikacin injections every 3 days until the deep ulcers are clearing on the very ill fish. At a 2 week recheck to this pond- the fish ulcers were healing well. All other fish had returned to normal appearance and behaviors. The owner was down to a water change every 5-7 days and the ammonia was not peaking over 0.25 ppm.

Owner’s impressions: Owner 1: “This drug was easy to use and clearly effective. Within 1 day, I was seeing significant improvement with the overall health of my fish. I didn’t lose any more and haven’t had a problem since.” Owner 2: (Keith) “ The MinnFinn was a life saver to my fish. It was a snap to apply and did the job. I hope I never need it again but I’m glad to know it’s around. Thanks.” Clinical impression: I feel that the Minn Finn product is a solid performer. I have used it in a variety of applications- from ectoparasite to bacterial skin disease and had good response each time. It is easy to use with clear instruction. That’s important since the doctor is not there to apply and neutralize the treatments. I look forward to putting it through more challenges as the cases come in but have yet to find a situation where it hasn’t done its job. Dr. Jason Sulliban

Donald Whaley

Mr. Paul Curtis

AQUAFINN Corp

5/14/2010

Dear Mr. Curtis,

I thought I would take the time to tell you how much I’ve come to appreciate your MinnFinn MAX product. Twice during the past year it has successfully saved my pond. The first time was during our koi club pond tour. In preparing for the tour my wife and I planted up our bog with new plants so there would be a nice variety with lots of color to show off our pond and fish. Everything went well, but on the morning of the second day of the tour I noticed all the fish being very lethargic and lying close to the bottom of the pond. We had been careful to sterilize the new plants before putting them in the bog but decided we must have missed something and treated the entire pond with MinnFinn Max. After about four hours and for the remainder of the pond tour everything returned to almost normal. The next evening I applied a second treatment and by the end of the third day the fish were once again eating aggressively and acting quite normal. The second time I had purchased two new fish at our Koi Show and placed them in my quarantine tank with two companion fish that always stay in the tank. After 6 weeks everything was well and I released them into the main pond. A week later my wife pointed out the fish were not acting normal and after a day of observing we determined all the fish were sick except the two new ones. We treated the entire pond with MinnFinn Max for three successive treatments with the fish showing improvement following each treatment. By the third treatment we were discussing whether it needed to be applied at all, but decided to treat the pond anyway as a precaution. I am happy to report we have not lost a single fish during the past 18 months we have been aware of MinnFinn Max. Additionally, during this past week, we successfully

treated one of our club member’s ponds for what he had suspected were gill flukes. That series of treatments exhausted my supply of MinnFinn and I recently ordered another case. My pond is 3500 gallons so I can get two full treatments from a bottle with enough left over to treat my quarantine tank. My wife says she will never be without at least one bottle on hand again.

Sincerely, Donald Whaley

Jacksonville, FL

For Availability Contact Your Local Retailer or Distributor

For more Technical Information Please call 800-955-0221 or visit our websites at

www.minnfinnmax.com, www.aquafinn.net