Perplexing dilema

[tracymace1229]

Hey all,
just back into the hobby after 10 years and trying to catch up on the tech.
Did not have a quarantine tank and might have problems
Read a lot on the saltwater ick and some on clownfish disease.
55 Gallon FOWLR Tank...set up in August.
lots of tufa/lava rock and 12 +lbs live rock.
1 Fiddler Crab
1 Red/Flame Hawkfish
1 Azure Damsel
1 Yellowtail Damsel
1 Tomatoe Clownfish
1 Scooter Blenny
3 snails
Everything is going smoothly ....and then I get the yellow-tail Damsel and the snails and my first introduction of newly shipped Live Brine Shrimp.
3 days later I see what looks like ick on the clownfish...and only him. They are gone in 4 days. They come back, but not as bad....and are gone in 2 days...My wife sometimes sees some spots but when I check the next day there are none.....I am waiting for the inevitable explosion,...but nothing yet...It has been about 3 weeks since I first noticed the spots....now I see nothing.
Finding out about the life cycle and the recommended 40 day absence of fish and setting up 3 small quarantine tanks...and will be adding a refugium with skimmer when I expect to have to take out the fish for treatment by X-mas.
The Ph has been around 8.2, Nitrites and Amonnia are nil, and Natrates run from less than 5ppm to 10ppm. Do about 8% water changes every week and feed about 5 times a week. Tried adding some copebods starter for the dragonet...but decided to get a refugium to raise amphipods instead.
So now I am at a dilema...I want to get a couple more fish...but I am expecting an outbreak of ick...and it never comes...perhaps my fish are healthy enough that they are resistant..but it is still in my tank and don't want the new arrivals to get it.
SHOULD I follow thru with my plan to remove the 5 fish and let the tank sit with only the crab and snails for 3-4 weeks...or should I just chance it?
I assume that the ick cannot live on the crab and snails...?
thanks for any advice..
wes and tracy

 

[tracymace1229]

So the Live Brine Shrimp, snails and Damsel were purchased on 11/15 and over the next 8-10 days I view what looks like ick...off and on.
That first weekend I gave the clownfish a freshwater dip and let him in a low salinity tank for about 4 hours....seemed the white spots fell off soon after.
I have not seen any white spots for 2 weeks+ now.
Can live brine shrimp be a source of the parasite?
None of the other fish have ever showed any sign.
All fish look and act better than ever and are good tank mates and eat aggressively...even the ever hunting dragonet!

 

[beth]

Hi, Tracy, and welcome to Saltwaterfish.com!

Take a look at both the Diseased Fish Thread, and the FAQ Thread pinned to the top of the Disease Forum. There are picture examples of ich in the Diseased Fish Thread, and info on ich and ich cure in the FAQ Thread.
The best way to treat is hyposalinity, which is described in detail in the topics I mentioned.

 

[tracymace1229]

ok...there have been zero signs of ick since the long before the last post.
so either it was not ick or the fish may have a slight immunity to it.
What I am confused over is the dominant fish...my tomato clown
shortly after we got him in October we noticed what looked to be darker squiggly lines/ on his back...kinda hard to see. Not sure if it is some scar tissue from scraping...or what {NEVER have seen him scrape since we had him.}
These lines/patches are individual scales which are darker{just slightly} and looks just slightly less elevated{indented if you will} than most of his normal scales...I would say he had gone from about a dozen of these scales to about 40 on his back...it is nothing like Head and lateral line and he has proven to be the most elusive fish to focus and photo! Always swimming around or doing his clown dance....ther are no anonomes...
What could it be?
wes and tracy

 

[sepulatian]

Do you have any corals in the tank at all? Anemones are not the only thing that can sting. When did you buy the clown? When did the marks start? Hyper-melaninization can take some time to show as the pigment darkens. I am glad that your fish are all doing well!

 

[mess88]

I one thing i learned is to never feed your fish anything alive. I have seen to many fish die after getting live food. Stick with frozen food and you will have less problems. good luck

 

[tracymace1229]

no corals...at least 1 polyp on the live rock though
I noticed the odd dark area soon after getting the fish....you have to be real close to see..but it is easy to see once you look for it. It has been a steady but slow addition of dark scales for about 2 months now. At first it was only on 1 side...but now both sides have it or at least I am noticing that now. Orginally I thought it was just an oddity to the fish...now wondering if it is diet or something else.
He is a bully, and hog when it comes to feeding...
Feed Frozen {Spirulina Brine, Plankton, Mysthis Shrimp},Frozen Fish, Marine flakes, Marine pellets, some bulk hard flake marine food {standard, algea, veggie versions} and now some Freeze dried Krill.
Try to mix it up and feed only 5 times a week.
When I fed the krill for the first time yesterday....there was 1 time when the Flame Hawk appeared to go after the Clownfish...never thought a Hawk would challenge something his same size as peaceful as they seem.{maybe it is the same coloring thing} Other than that the Pecking order is established.