Hippo Tang + Ick = HELP!!!

[salth2o]

Hi,
This tang has just developed ick / small white spots on a portion of his body. I have a 150 gallon reef. w/ 20 gallon hospital tank. This is a 5 inch hippo tang. He is eating very well. He's a super fish - losing him is NOT an option.
#1 what do people recommend adding to heal this guy?
#2 I've seen a few products that advertise they can be used with reefs? any users?
Any advice would be appreciated

 

[ebeckels]

i wouldn't bother with ther "reef safe" chemicals... Try this. 1. move this to the disease forum. 2. Take ur fish out and move them to the quarantine tank. Once in there do hyposalinity. If your not sure about that...do a search on here for it. That's probably the best way. Make sure there is nothing in ur QT tank besides water and fish...hypo will kill and LR or LS or inverts...only fish can be in a tank that has the salinity lowered so much.
-Eric

 

[goofieones]

You can do what the above post says, which is probably better, but I also have a hippo tang. (keep in mind fish are different) And mine has gotten ich, two times before, and what I do his feed him galic soaked food for about a month, he clears up in a week and seems to just fight it off himself. Now just because this worked for my guy, doesn't mean it will work for yours. But just remember moving him to a hospital tank, will cause alot of stress also. The reason mine got ich in the first place is because I had to move him out of the tank for a few hours to rearrange it, well aparently this was too much stress for him, but that is how these tangs are. Very pretty fish though.

 

[jess]

Use Garlic

 

[ocellaris_keeper]

I was warned early about hippos and Ick. I have had three boughts of ich - the first bought I lost all my fish, 2 clowns, 2 pigmy angels, 3 damsels and learned a valuable lesson. Keep reef safe ich medication on hand at all times. I have not used garlic so I can't say if it works but I have sucessfully used Quick Cure from Aquarium Products - it's easy, cheap and it worked great.
BTW - I don't have a quarantine tank so copper based meds are not an option for me.
Good luck and I hope your first experience with ich isn't as deadely as mine was.

 

[salth2o]

Thanks to all who replied. I tried something a little diferent. I purchased 2 cleaner wrasses. These guys cleared the ick up over night. Atleast that's the way it appears.

 

[moby da goby]

I am currently fighting ich right now with my hippo (just a wee guy yet). I treated him for 3 days in a QT, put him back in the main tank, instantly developed popeye as a secondary infection, trying to catch him right now to put in back in the QT. I so have cleaner shrimp and a cleaner wrasse with are keeping the ich in very good check in the main tank but I think I may have to treat the main tank eventually. Only my two tangs have ich, the rest of the fish are fine.

 

[headabovewater]

Im using kick-ich right now it says its safe for inverts and corals. It seems to be working and not bothering my button polyp or anemone.

 

[ocellaris_keeper]

Kick-Ich doesn't didn't do the job for me at all. the stuff I bought (Quick Cure) works better, is easier to administer and costs alot less. But there are alot of good remedies.

 

[kumiko]

isn't quick cure for freshwater? i know there's an organi cure for salt water, but don't both have copper in them? and isn't copper bad for inverts, etc?

 

[thor]

i just wanted to ask a ? about your cleaner wrasses
how long have you had them and are they ok? because everybody says there really fragile in tanks

 

[the maintenance man]

You could also try a UV sterlizer it has helped me it has made the problem a lot less of a pain plus the object now is to try to keep the fish eating if he continues to eat he can beat it (with the Uv)

 

[headabovewater]

Im using kick-ich im going on the 5th day of treatment. But I still see a few spots from time to time. It doesnt seem to be working so far. This ich is driving me crazy. I will never cycle a tank with damsels again. I had two. That I put in too soon, and they got ick and I left them in there for a week. Because they seem to be getting better. Well anyway. I got to clowns now in the 55gallon tank I thought the ich was gone but I guess not. Im going to buy garlic tomorrow. So maybe the kich-ich and garlic together will work.

 

[headabovewater]

Also are you sure this is safe for a reef aquarium? The Quick Cure from Aquarium Products?