Clowns - possible Diseasse HELP!!!!

[cbrynolf]

Newbie- Just bought two percula clowns on Saturday for my 55g fish only tank with live sand. Fish seem to be doing fine. They are very active and the three damsels that were in there before are now very active since the introduction of their new friends, BUT..
Yesterday afternoon while observing them close up I noticed some white specs on the upper edge of the top fin. Both have it. They were not quarantined as I have not set up one(Will Now!). This morning the one had a few more specs (like pin hole size) on the upper back side just under the fins. They are still very active and eating. Sine I have had them though they do not eat as vigorously as the damsels.
Any ideas if this is actually ich or clownfish disease? Do I treat with copper?
Also If I were to do a copper treatment, does that mean I can never do inverts. I was planning in the coming weeks to introduce some shrimp, conch and crab. Once you treat a tank with copper does it get removed or can it be removed?
PLEASE HELP ASAP!
Chris

 

[oyam1]

you are SOL dont do copper in your show tank it will kill live sand to.
try KENT Rx and HYPO.
i think i may have OD some of my fish with copper. it kills every thing and my kill a stressed fish.
even if things start to look good, dont add anything for 30 days, and not till you set up a QT..
take it slow, i did'nt and i am now paying the price....

 

[sarah19802]

hold off on using copper, try Organi-Cure. It contains copper but will not harm inverts. we used it on our hippo tang and the 5-6 spots are gone. Might have been ich but none of the other fish were showing signs,nonetheless, it worked. It does however, take 2 weeks, and the simptoms will get worse before thay get better. That was a month ago and now we have inverts and they are healthy. hope this helps.

 

[elfdoctors]

Originally posted by cbrynolf
Any ideas if this is actually ich or clownfish disease?
Sounds like ich. Clownfish disease (Brooklynella) is usually more likely a whitish slime across large sections of the body. Look at the pictures of both of these diseases at the end of the Basic FAQ sticky at the top of this forum and compare to your fish.
Do I treat with copper? Also If I were to do a copper treatment, does that mean I can never do inverts. Once you treat a tank with copper does it get removed or can it be removed?

I am unfamiliar with Kent Rx or Organicure. However, there are NO reefsafe ich medications which are consistently effective. The only treatments for ich which are recommended routinely on this board are hyposalinity (preferred) or copper. Copper treatment should be done in a hospital tank with no live rock or substrate. Copper will bind strongly to live rock (and CC or Live Sand). It is toxic to these (make your Live Rock into Base Rock) as well as all invertebrates and corals. Copper is also stressful on the fish and is a known immunosuppressant for fish. Once it is used in a display tank, you may permanently be unable to grow inverts. Read about hyposalinity in the FAQ also. There is also a 5 part series (only 4 parts published so far) of articles about ich in the online magazine written by one of the moderators TerryB.

 

[cbrynolf]

Just got home and things don't at least look any worse... actually the white spots do not seem as many.
Any ideas?

 

[elfdoctors]

Ich can often seem to come and go as the trophonts (visible spots) detach to reproduce. If this is the case, the disease will come back.
It is also possible that the spots may have only been some sand grains that were stuck on the slime coat of the fish. This is more likely to happen after the fish have been handled. If this theory is correct the spots should not come back. I hope this is the case.
Are your tank readings okay? Poor water quality will sometimes bring on low grade fin (and eye) infections which are often improved with just a good water change.
I think you are beginning to see the advantages of having a QT. You would be able to safely watch a fish without having to worry about your other inhabitants. If treatment is necessary, you can start it immediately instead of trying to recatch the fish and put it under more stress.