Ich question?

[Joe0813]

So the other day i was at my LFS talking to the owner. As i was talking i noticed his clown had a bad case of ich. so we went to talking about the parasite and according to him a fish can get ich no matter what? Even if you QT a fish for 9-10 weeks, treat with copper or whatever treatment you may do. He says if a fish gets very stressed they will get ich.

My question is, is that true? i dont think it is but i want to ask the experts. say my blue hippo which are pretty prone to ich. I qt him for the 9 weeks and see no white spots. so i put him in my tank (which i know for a fact does not have ich) and then my top off spills a bunch of freshwater in the tank and makes everything stressed.
Can that hippo magically come down with ich? this is only a example

[den75]

My understanding is that no amount of stress in the world can "cause" ich. It has to already be present in your system. Stress can weaken the fish and lower it's immunity level and cause an outbreak of symptoms, but the parasite already has to be present.

[Joe0813]

thats what i was always told. but he says he swears he did not have ich in his tank and something went wrong that stressed out the clown and it came down with ich.. guess it might be time to switch LFS's

[EllieSuz]

He's mistaken. Ich doesn't magically appear. It gets in your system from a fish that is harboring it in the gills or someplace else where you can't see it. I've never had it in my Display Tank, through careful quarantine. My fish have been subjected to two upgrades and gotten netted and stored in a Brute while I switched out the tanks. If that kind of stress didn't result in Ich, nothing would. Your LFS has believed some of the wives' tales that make regular rounds in this hobby.

[Joe0813]

ya i thought so.. thanks everyone

[sleepydoc]

+1
The 'stress causes ich' theory is a the salt water fish equivalent to saying one can catch a cold from getting wet or being cold. Both are well known to be false, but some people refuse to be confused by the facts.

[snorvich]

+1
The 'stress causes ich' theory is a the salt water fish equivalent to saying one can catch a cold from getting wet or being cold. Both are well known to be false, but some people refuse to be confused by the facts.

This.

[Joe0813]

Thanks guys... I told him that but he said it was wrong.... good luck to him

[MrTuskfish]

This.

That.

Then read this: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1992196

[Joe0813]

Thanks I'll give that a read when I get out of work