nitegrl33
New Member
Ich on my fish, plzzzz Help
- Thread starter nitegrl33
- Start date
nicetry
Active Member
Read the FAQ's at the top of this forum, particularly on hyposalinity and quarantine. You'll do better not to use bottled cures as most don't work. Don't do any more dips. They won't help and are just stressing the fish more. Can you possibly post a picture of what you're seeing, particularly on the tang? You mentioned the tang was sick before and you treated it? What did you treat with? Post all of your water parameters; nitrate, temp, salinity, pH. Do you have a quarantine tank? If not, begin setting one up now per the instructions outlined in the FAQ's.
bellebelle
Member
I wouldn't waste my time or money on the " reef safe " ick meds...they don't work. I would treat the fish with hypo and leave the dt fishless for 6 wks. I am just finishing hypo myself and hope I never get ick again. Trust me I will quarentine everything..only way to go.
nitegrl33
New Member
stieger
Member
"back in the day" when we didn't have all the fancy meds, we simply turned the temp up and it got rid of ick. We also did "fresh water baths" for the fish and it got rid of the ick (probably stressed the fish out too, but it did get rid of it).
I don't know about the temp increase in a tank with various animals. At the time I did it years ago, I only had fish, no LR or corals.
If you can quarantine the fish and turn the temp up and "bath" them or hypo, my guess is you'd get rid of it - I never seemed to have much problem getting rid of ick - in fact, I just had it with a hypo tang, and did the temp increase and it's now gone
Best,
Stieger
I don't know about the temp increase in a tank with various animals. At the time I did it years ago, I only had fish, no LR or corals.
If you can quarantine the fish and turn the temp up and "bath" them or hypo, my guess is you'd get rid of it - I never seemed to have much problem getting rid of ick - in fact, I just had it with a hypo tang, and did the temp increase and it's now gone
Best,
Stieger
nitegrl33
New Member
Ok, I've removed all the LR and inverts off the DT and am now in process of Hypo...last night when i was doing this I noticed that my Tang was now infested with the Ich....and my damsel has started to scratch...the only ones that seem normal are the 2 clowfishes....Should I remove them or just leave them in while doing the Hypo??? And my other question still stands, will I need filtration for the the QT tank with the Inverts and LR???
nicetry
Active Member
Originally Posted by nitegrl33
Ok, I've removed all the LR and inverts off the DT and am now in process of Hypo...last night when i was doing this I noticed that my Tang was now infested with the Ich....and my damsel has started to scratch...the only ones that seem normal are the 2 clowfishes....Should I remove them or just leave them in while doing the Hypo??? And my other question still stands, will I need filtration for the the QT tank with the Inverts and LR???
Leave the clownfish in the tank for treatment. They have been exposed and likely will contract the parasite as well. Yes, the Q tank needs filtration/heat, water movement and light. The problem I foresee is keeping anemones in a Q tank. Not sure what kind of lighting you have on your display tank but the anemones will need the strong lighting to sustain them for the 6 weeks. Can you place the display lighting over the Q tank?
Ok, I've removed all the LR and inverts off the DT and am now in process of Hypo...last night when i was doing this I noticed that my Tang was now infested with the Ich....and my damsel has started to scratch...the only ones that seem normal are the 2 clowfishes....Should I remove them or just leave them in while doing the Hypo??? And my other question still stands, will I need filtration for the the QT tank with the Inverts and LR???
Leave the clownfish in the tank for treatment. They have been exposed and likely will contract the parasite as well. Yes, the Q tank needs filtration/heat, water movement and light. The problem I foresee is keeping anemones in a Q tank. Not sure what kind of lighting you have on your display tank but the anemones will need the strong lighting to sustain them for the 6 weeks. Can you place the display lighting over the Q tank?
nitegrl33
New Member
I have a good light for the QT, I guess i'll only have to go get the filter now...and wait and pray this will work... :notsure: I don't want my :happyfish to die!
Thank you guys so much for all the help and info...since i'm a beginner you'll probabily see me here again with some other question...
nitegrl33
New Member
Ok I started the Hypo thing on the 2nd, since then my flame angel didn't make it and one of my gobies died today. My Tang this morning had ich on it again, and tonight it's all over him...the clowns are still in normal shape, no ich, no different behaviors...I'm starting to lose hope...I did notice my salinity was at 1.010 so I got it down to 1.009. My pH was very low the other day so I had to use Baking soda as an emergency tool and now I have buffers to help me out in case it hapens again. But I really don't want to lose my Tang...he seems to be the only one to get all the ich on him every time. Is this suppose to happen? The ich falls off then comes back again? Even durring Hypo? I'm so hopeless...please someone let me know that I'm doing the right thing here....I don't want to waste my time and still end up losing my fish...
sepulatian
Moderator
Originally Posted by nitegrl33
Ok I started the Hypo thing on the 2nd, since then my flame angel didn't make it and one of my gobies died today. My Tang this morning had ich on it again, and tonight it's all over him...the clowns are still in normal shape, no ich, no different behaviors...I'm starting to lose hope...I did notice my salinity was at 1.010 so I got it down to 1.009. My pH was very low the other day so I had to use Baking soda as an emergency tool and now I have buffers to help me out in case it hapens again. But I really don't want to lose my Tang...he seems to be the only one to get all the ich on him every time. Is this suppose to happen? The ich falls off then comes back again? Even durring Hypo? I'm so hopeless...please someone let me know that I'm doing the right thing here....I don't want to waste my time and still end up losing my fish...
What are you using to measure salinity? Be sure to check the ph of the fresh water before it goes into your tank. Buffer it if need be. I notice the SG has gone up to 1.010, how long was it there? Durring hypo you realy have to be on top of the SG, monitor it twice a day.
Ok I started the Hypo thing on the 2nd, since then my flame angel didn't make it and one of my gobies died today. My Tang this morning had ich on it again, and tonight it's all over him...the clowns are still in normal shape, no ich, no different behaviors...I'm starting to lose hope...I did notice my salinity was at 1.010 so I got it down to 1.009. My pH was very low the other day so I had to use Baking soda as an emergency tool and now I have buffers to help me out in case it hapens again. But I really don't want to lose my Tang...he seems to be the only one to get all the ich on him every time. Is this suppose to happen? The ich falls off then comes back again? Even durring Hypo? I'm so hopeless...please someone let me know that I'm doing the right thing here....I don't want to waste my time and still end up losing my fish...
What are you using to measure salinity? Be sure to check the ph of the fresh water before it goes into your tank. Buffer it if need be. I notice the SG has gone up to 1.010, how long was it there? Durring hypo you realy have to be on top of the SG, monitor it twice a day.
nitegrl33
New Member
It must've been at 1.010 for about 2 or 3 days, I wasn't checking every day. I'm using a Hydrometer w/ Thermometer, it stay inside the aquarium. I probabily should be using a Refractometer but the pet stores around here don't have them, I can only get it online...my Tang and the goby are the only ones affected...specially the Tang, he's not looking good. :help:
stieger
Member
Dude, sorry to hear about your problems!
Way back when I had 3-4 tanks, and had ich problems, I would catch the fish and give them a fresh water bath. Same temp as my DT, and I buffered the water to ensure the pH was identical. Give them a 2-3 minutes fresh water bath. The ich should drop off the fish. You may need to do it a couple days in a row.
Best,
Stieger
Way back when I had 3-4 tanks, and had ich problems, I would catch the fish and give them a fresh water bath. Same temp as my DT, and I buffered the water to ensure the pH was identical. Give them a 2-3 minutes fresh water bath. The ich should drop off the fish. You may need to do it a couple days in a row.
Best,
Stieger
nitegrl33
New Member
OK, from what i read of the ich cicle, it'll drop off the fish in a few days anyway right?! so is it safe to say that once it drops off the fish, the fish is no longer carring it? i ask this cuz i had an idea of, when it drops off the fish I would remove them and place them in the QT i have with the LR and anemones right now(it's a 20 gl). i have another smaller 3gl that i could treat the Tang and Goby separately...meanwhile my DT will be fishless for the 6 weeks and the ich there should die. i know this sounds confusing but i'm desperate right now.
sepulatian
Moderator
Originally Posted by nitegrl33
OK, from what i read of the ich cicle, it'll drop off the fish in a few days anyway right?! so is it safe to say that once it drops off the fish, the fish is no longer carring it? i ask this cuz i had an idea of, when it drops off the fish I would remove them and place them in the QT i have with the LR and anemones right now(it's a 20 gl). i have another smaller 3gl that i could treat the Tang and Goby separately...meanwhile my DT will be fishless for the 6 weeks and the ich there should die. i know this sounds confusing but i'm desperate right now.
No, the ich does not all drop off of the fish at the same time. It depends on where in the life cycle the ich is. You will have to treat all of them. You will need a refractometer. This site sells an excellent one for $39.99
OK, from what i read of the ich cicle, it'll drop off the fish in a few days anyway right?! so is it safe to say that once it drops off the fish, the fish is no longer carring it? i ask this cuz i had an idea of, when it drops off the fish I would remove them and place them in the QT i have with the LR and anemones right now(it's a 20 gl). i have another smaller 3gl that i could treat the Tang and Goby separately...meanwhile my DT will be fishless for the 6 weeks and the ich there should die. i know this sounds confusing but i'm desperate right now.
No, the ich does not all drop off of the fish at the same time. It depends on where in the life cycle the ich is. You will have to treat all of them. You will need a refractometer. This site sells an excellent one for $39.99
nitegrl33
New Member
If you recall, I had ich on two of my new fishes a flame angel (died) and a Brown Tang (because i didn't QT them prior to putting them in the DT). I removed the invert, anemones, LRs and placed them in the QT. Once i got the refractometer i started Hypo in my DT with all the other fishes even though they were not infected. I went through with it checking twice a day for 6 weeks ...which ended this weekend, with no signs of ich since i started, i also gave them garlic for that time being. I gradually brought the salinity back up in the DT, put everything back in there. This morning the same Tang had Ich again...in other words...Hypo did not work for me
. The Tang is in the QT right now, he seems to be very vulnerable to Ich, any suggestions as to what i do now? Should I try hypo on him again? Y these damn things keep attacking my tang...
sepulatian
Moderator
Originally Posted by nitegrl33
If you recall, I had ich on two of my new fishes a flame angel (died) and a Brown Tang (because i didn't QT them prior to putting them in the DT). I removed the invert, anemones, LRs and placed them in the QT. Once i got the refractometer i started Hypo in my DT with all the other fishes even though they were not infected. I went through with it checking twice a day for 6 weeks ...which ended this weekend, with no signs of ich since i started, i also gave them garlic for that time being. I gradually brought the salinity back up in the DT, put everything back in there. This morning the same Tang had Ich again...in other words...Hypo did not work for me
. The Tang is in the QT right now, he seems to be very vulnerable to Ich, any suggestions as to what i do now? Should I try hypo on him again? Y these damn things keep attacking my tang...
You were on top of the SG reading the entire time? Before you had let it go to 1.010 with a hydrometer which is actually much higher. I thought my tank was at 1.025 and it was actually 1.030 the day I bought my refractometer. Please explain what all happened durring the time you last posted before and when you just posted. Something went wrong. I would hazzard a guess that the ich got used to the lower salinity before got the refractometer. Can you put your fish into another tank besides the dt just to watch them while you perform hypo the correct way this time? You may want to wait a week or more before starting. Do what you can for the tang to keep the ich off of him. He will need to breathe saltier water for awhile before he goes back into hypo. Feed him lots of fresh garlic.
If you recall, I had ich on two of my new fishes a flame angel (died) and a Brown Tang (because i didn't QT them prior to putting them in the DT). I removed the invert, anemones, LRs and placed them in the QT. Once i got the refractometer i started Hypo in my DT with all the other fishes even though they were not infected. I went through with it checking twice a day for 6 weeks ...which ended this weekend, with no signs of ich since i started, i also gave them garlic for that time being. I gradually brought the salinity back up in the DT, put everything back in there. This morning the same Tang had Ich again...in other words...Hypo did not work for me
You were on top of the SG reading the entire time? Before you had let it go to 1.010 with a hydrometer which is actually much higher. I thought my tank was at 1.025 and it was actually 1.030 the day I bought my refractometer. Please explain what all happened durring the time you last posted before and when you just posted. Something went wrong. I would hazzard a guess that the ich got used to the lower salinity before got the refractometer. Can you put your fish into another tank besides the dt just to watch them while you perform hypo the correct way this time? You may want to wait a week or more before starting. Do what you can for the tang to keep the ich off of him. He will need to breathe saltier water for awhile before he goes back into hypo. Feed him lots of fresh garlic.