QT Hypo - need some urgent help please

[aquiman]

Guys I've got a 20G QT in hypo for about two and a half weeks with a powder blue and flame angel in it. I've had to keep a close eye on nitrates with water changes but ammonia and nitrites have continued to be zero. I took my eye off the ball with PH and it dropped too low to about 7.6 and my nitrates over 100. I just changed about 8g of water and added PH buffer and the power blue seems fine but the angel is swimming on his side and upside down. He has also gotten himself stuck on the input to my filter a couple of times but he isn't being picked on. He has been in the QT since 8/16 but because i saw signs of ich i started hypo. since day 1 he hasnt eaten anything ive fed him (tried lots) but has picked at algae aggressively until a few days ago when he became much less active and stopped eating all together. He was not competing for food when he was active... just didnt want it. Is there anything else I can do at this point to save him? He is pretty close to dying... Shame on me! Thx

 

[sweatervest13]

Sorry to say but that sounds like it will be soon. You could try to soak some food in garlic. But it might be too late
Keep an eye in the parameters and have some water mixing for a WC if needed.

 

[flower]

Hi,

So sorry to hear of your troubles.....

Sweatervest is right, the fish is not going to make it. Dwarf angels are very sensitive to any water changes and being crowded in a QT with a tang didn't help. The QT is for ONE fish, or two very small pairs, such as clown fish.

I suspect the tang, being a very active fish that the angel never felt safe around it...then it just got weaker and weaker. Nitrates don't bother fish, even in 100's...the buffer may have raised the PH too fast too soon.

 

[aquiman]

Thanks guys. Too bad... I've already tried soaking mysis and seaweed in garlic but to no avail. I have water ready for another change, but I think Flower is right that he might not have felt comfortable around the tang who is much larger but never seemed to bother him. I guess I'm learning the hard way....but learning. I'll let you know the outcome.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Aquiman http:///t/396330/qt-hypo-need-some-urgent-help-please#post_3530997
Thanks guys. Too bad... I've already tried soaking mysis and seaweed in garlic but to no avail. I have water ready for another change, but I think Flower is right that he might not have felt comfortable around the tang who is much larger but never seemed to bother him. I guess I'm learning the hard way....but learning. I'll let you know the outcome.

Hey...At least you made a heartfelt effort to do things right, using a quarantine. I couldn't keep a dwarf angel alive to save my life until a year after my tank was established. They are very sensitive critters.

 

[aquiman]

Thanks Flower.... Dare I say this is my third attempt on a flame angel. One of my favorites but a lot of cash down the drain. Taking your lumps in this hobby is sometimes tough.

 

[aquiman]

Didn't make it as expected. Thx

 

[aquiman]

Hi folks. I'm going to tag onto my previous thread with a related hypo issue but this time it's with the powder blue that's been in QT since I got it on August 16. After being in QT for about a week, I noticed some Ich spots and started hypo on August 22. On Aug 27 I got to 1.009 and I no longer saw visible signs so I started my 3 to 4 week countdown. Along the way, salinity peaked a couple of times as high as 1.010 but I never saw it higher. On Sept 19 I began raising salinity slowly and got as high as 1.0195 yesterday Oct 1 and began to see a couple of spots. Today he is covered with them so I've started hypo again. Although he is still very active and has always eaten great, he is now breathing heavy. My water quality hasn't been perfect with my PH dropping a few times (as low as 7.8) and nitrates getting a bit high (as high as 100) but my ammonia and nitrites have consistently been at 0. I use a refraction meter and I think it's calibrated properly but I used RODI water to calibrate it and not distiller water - is this an issue? So that I don't make the same mistake again, any guidance anyone can offer? I have Cupramine on hand but haven't used it thinking a second round of hypo would be best. Thanks!

 

[mr llimpid]

Here is my 2 cents. It works for me, keep your salinity at 1.008 reasons if it goes up B4 you catch it hopefully not over 1.009 ok for fish but not ok for killing ick if you go above 1.009. Check your salinity twice a day or more if you can. After you see last ick yes start count down but I add a week to hypo just in case if there is 1 ick lingering somewhere you can't see it. If you add a week better then starting over from scratch. This mad method has worked for me. Many reason for QT 1 fish at time sorry you found one of them yourself. One tip on your purchase of your next fish makes sure you see them eat at LFS and buy the food they fed them, better chance they will eat for you.

 

[aquiman]

Thanks for the help! I like the 1.008 target to give a bit of a cushion. Any thoughts on calibrating with RODI VS distilled?

 

[mr llimpid]

If your RO has TDS of 0 then you should be good. Some refractors are temp. sensitive you need to check your instructions.

 

[aquiman]

Thx again. On my way to 1.008 and hoping this guy sees the DT some day!

 

[mr llimpid]

I have a Hum Triger in my QT currenty. He was there for 2 weeks then saw 1 spot, has been in hypo for 2 weeks and then another spot accured. It takes awhile but well woth it, I have over $700 of fish in my tank, not worth rushing a fish threw QT.

 

[aquiman]

I totally agree! I learned the hard way by not QTing and lost over $700 due to Ich not too long ago... Back then it was a powder blue as well that started the mess. 2nd attempt on powder blue now. Now I know why they are known as Ich magnets.... At 1.014 and counting. Thx again.

 

[travis32]

I have a tang that looks like it's covered in ich, but the white spots are not Ich and Hypo will not work to cure it. I believe very firmly my powder blue has this... He has a ton of the raised white spots.. But, it's a virus, not a parasite.. How the "common" aquarist could tell the difference I don't know. But, all I've read on it indicates the virus flares up under stress, including a too small QT could induce stress. It bothers me that everyone assumes that white spots mean that its automatically ich.. start hypo and copper treatment asap.. I wonder how much is actually ich and how much is this or other diseases or parasites.. There's some parasitic pods that look and act like ich, but have an 8 year lifecycle. Not one month like ich. And are immune to hypo treatment. So, to get rid of them the tank would have to be fallow of fish for 8 years.

The virus that also looks like ich is lymphocystis.

 

[mr llimpid]

If it is Lymphocytic and not ick you can tell because the spots are irregular and puffy in shape and usually less in numbers. Ick looks like grains of sand and a lot more in advance conditions. You need to post a picture if anyone is gong to be able to help you.

 

[mr llimpid]

Also ick will fall off in about 3 days were as Lymphocytic will take a month or so with good water quality and good food.

 

[mr llimpid]

Also ick will fall off in about 3 days were as Lymphocytic will take a month or so with good water quality and good food.

 

[aquiman]

I'm pretty sure mine is Ich. I'm now at 1.008 for only two days and the powder blue Ich magnet is looking really clean. I got it early this second time around. I will say on his side fins near the gills it was looking more like white feathering than spots and it didn't look raised at all but the hypo made that disappear too.