Sulphite Posted December 11, 2012 Report Share Posted December 11, 2012 Hi again everyone, sadly I'm back here in the fish health section. Just yesterday I noticed that two of my Blue Rams had white spots all over their bodies and through their fins; straight away I knew it was Ich, a disease I haven't encountered before but have done plenty of research on. Now I'm the kind of person that would rather treat a problem without meds if possible, but the rate it has spread throughout my tank has me concerned.So far I've been raising the temperature to what is apparently the point where the parasite can no longer reproduce, and I am planning to slowly bring it up to 32°C which is supposedly the point at which the parasite dies; I've also added several tablespoons of Aquarium Salt which my catfish seem to be tolerating well, but I'm not noticing any changes in the spots on my fish. I come to this forum to ask any of you who have encountered this before: what method of treatment worked best for you, was the temp + salt increase effective if you tried it, and what meds are effective yet still gentle enough for my scaleless fish?Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dan486 Posted December 11, 2012 Report Share Posted December 11, 2012 yup. temp & salt worked for me. took a few days to start clearing up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daharkazangel Posted December 11, 2012 Report Share Posted December 11, 2012 (edited) I PERSONALLY dont like the "just add salt, raise temp and hope for the best" Kinda approach. Ive done this many times before, and every time i do it seems to stress the fish out more then just adding meds in the first place....I use meds and bump the temp up to 26, no higher. Add a air stone and simply treat for a week or two (until im dead sure its gone, have had some resisitant strains, long story) Raising the temp makes the parasite breed faster, yes. BUT it will also kill your fish faster for any reason its not 100% in the first place. Thats why i find 26c helps it breed a bit but not take over(esp onlivebearers). Each to their own i guess Others will say yay and nay, but at the end ofthe day, do what feels most comfortable to you and your fish. HTH Edited December 11, 2012 by Daharkazangel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tutters187 Posted December 11, 2012 Report Share Posted December 11, 2012 Aquasonic - Ichonex is safe for all fish, follow instructions on meds and remove carbon people!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 11, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2012 Thanks for the replies. I'm gonna go to the pet store now and have a look at my options in terms of meds. My fish don't seem at all stressed by the salt or the temp increase so I feel comfortable knowing that they're not struggling. Will wait and see what meds I can find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Tech Den Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 If you find it a bit hard to get a hold of can send it to you and you would get it in a couple of days and being a QLDAF forum member you get 10% off items. Have Ichonex in stock in 100ml, 250ml and also 1 Liter. Aquarium and Fish Medications Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lippa Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Protozin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 12, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 I bought some Tetra Ickguard and have just dosed the tank and relocated my shrimp. I'm keeping the temperature around 30C just to help speed things up a bit. Fingers crossed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Tech Den Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 The important thing is that you get it all sorted for your fish. Hope they recover well and quickly for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craigo Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Protozin for the win! Do not stuff around with anything else! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 So I've been keeping the temperature at and above 29C but accidentally went to 33C at one point because I wasn't keeping an eye on my heaters; this ended up in the loss of my two Borneo Suckers So far my Bettas seem to be losing their white spots after 3 doses of Tetra Ickguard, however my Clown Loach has been hit by it really badly and right now is sitting on the sand breathing rapidly, covered in Ich, though he doesn't seem to be losing any weight yet which is a good sign I guess. Some of my Rasboras got affected by it but only one of them is covered in white spots, and my Blue Rams are stressed but are looking relatively ok. Not sure how long I should keep the temperature so high for, as I have to accommodate for my 3 baby Bristlenose who, so far, seem to be doing ok even though they show the spots in their fins. At what point can I declare the heat treatment and/or Tetra Ickguard to be ineffective and then commence some other form of treatment? I really don't want to lose any more of these fish, the Borneos were among my favourites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milwocky Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 have you got another tank that has no gravel in it you could transfer them too? im no expert but ive been told the ich reproduces in the gravel and by treating them in a tank with no gravel might help... just a thought Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daydream Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Make sure you leave your lights off.The newly hahatched parisite swims towards shadows to find a hoast.no light less reinfection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 have you got another tank that has no gravel in it you could transfer them too? im no expert but ive been told the ich reproduces in the gravel and by treating them in a tank with no gravel might help... just a thought The Ich just settles anywhere once it's finished feeding on the fish; it doesn't matter if there's gravel or not. I've educated myself on the life cycles of the parasite but I'm torn between the people who say heat treatment and those who say medications. I guess I should just wait it out and be patient as I only started like 4 days ago. I just fear for my Clown Loach as he's not looking so good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betta Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Protozin is my first choice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daharkazangel Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Half dose for loaches and baby fish????! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milwocky Posted December 16, 2012 Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 thanks mate ill remeber that if i ever get ich again... i lost a 33cm barra to it once when i was first starting off. let me know how you go and what you thought was the best way you treated it if you have any luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 Just lost a Rasbora to what looks like a secondary infection; it had a big bulge on the lower half of its eye and was flailing all over the tank. I did a half dose of Tetra Ickguard this morning because I think a full dose would stress my Clown Loach too much. I think I might go out and get some of this much-praised Protozin either today or tomorrow. Any suggestions on the best place to get it from south-side? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daydream Posted December 17, 2012 Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 Would first geo liquid your tank and wait for water to clear before adding protizen.The geo liquid will remore the other med so you dont react with the protizen.Dont use seachem stressgaurd with any meds containing copper if you use it treating fish as some of us do.You do pay for all the waterlife products but then again you get what you pay for Some of the best aqua meds around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 I woke up this morning to find my Clown Loach and baby Whiptail dead All of my Bettas look to be free of spots, now there's just a couple of Rasboras with it all; I'm thinking the Clown Loach's susceptibility to the parasite was what was making it so hard to get rid of. Maybe with him gone now it might clear up. I'm gonna keep using the Ickguard because as I said, there's not much sign of the parasite anymore. I'll put up an update with how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kane123 Posted December 17, 2012 Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 Does everyone keep feeding their fish as usual whilst treating for whitespot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeadFishFloating Posted December 18, 2012 Report Share Posted December 18, 2012 As long as water conditions are favourable (0ppm ammonia and oppm nitrite) then yes keep feeding. This will keep fishes immune reaction strong, and will help fight the secondary infections at the locations damaged by the parasite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kane123 Posted December 18, 2012 Report Share Posted December 18, 2012 Thank you DFF. Does anyone ever dose there tank with melafix or the like, say every 12 weeks or so as a precaution against infections? I havnt had whitespot in yrs and have not added any new fish for approx 8 months but somehow now my fish have it. Been doing usual water changes, feeding etc aswell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kane123 Posted December 21, 2012 Report Share Posted December 21, 2012 bump... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sulphite Posted December 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2012 It looks like I've finally started to win the battle. I stopped using Tetra Ickguard because I felt it was doing more harm than good, and so I just left the tank to sit at its ambient 29C temperature. I haven't seen white spots for around 4 days now and my breeding Rams are back to their flirtatious antics again. I bought some Protozin as a precaution but haven't had to use it yet, and also bought a UV-C sterilizer just to help out that little bit more. Fingers crossed ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
