Quarantine

[FlipToast]

Tell me why not to...I'll tell you right back why.

Shoot

[heatdissipation]

Are you just looking to argue with people. :-)

[sanchezdamin]

You don't need to quarantine. It's just not necessary.

[FlipToast]

I'm tryin to seriously get this general idea out of peoples heads that quarantining is a joke. People refuse to do it and i want to know why?!

[EllieSuz]

Sorry, I'm on your side on this issue. The people who refuse to quarantine are likely to learn their lesson the hard way. Some of them will get away with it, but more will eventually lose everything. I've become quite fond of my fish and I wouldn't care to endanger them because I was to lazy to quarantine new arrivals.

[tcossey]

Just had my tank sit fallow for 8 weeks and treated six fish with cupromine. Put my 6 fish back in and everything was going well. Bought two new fish copper band butterfly and Anthius and quarantined them for 4 weeks. Put those two in the DT and now the Anthius is scratching on rocks and the Butterfly has two specs on its tail. Didn't see any signs of ICH in the QT. I'm beginning to think I need a microscope and need to start doing skin cultures. What is an aspiring reefer to do??

[Deinonych]

Did you treat the anthias during QT, or just observe? Active treatment with copper or chloroquine phosphate is the only way to guarantee an ich-free tank. It's also possible that 8 weeks wasn't long enough for the fallow period.

[tcossey]

I just observed during the 4 week QT. Really didn't want to treat a healthy fish. But, I think I have no choice from here on out to keep a healthy DT. I sure hope 8 weeks was long enough.

[Tbred]

I have always quarantined my fish, but I have encountered an issue. I live in an apartment and do not have room for a larger quarantine tank. I have been using a 5.5 gallon tank. I have decided to get a flame angel and I don't know if the small size of my quarantine tank will be harmful to the angel for 4 weeks.

[Rea17]

I just observed during the 4 week QT. Really didn't want to treat a healthy fish. But, I think I have no choice from here on out to keep a healthy DT. I sure hope 8 weeks was long enough.

IMHO proactive treatment is an essential part of the QT process - especially if it's a 4 week quarantine. Disease doesn't always rear its ugly head during that time. I think the 8 week fallow was probably sufficient... and assuming you didn't do your water changes on your QT out of the DT during the fallow, I'm going to assume something came in on the anthias or copperband. Anthias can be prone to flukes, but if the fish is flashing it could be anything really. An outwardly healthy fish, sadly, is often not. Parasites like ich will manifest themselves in the gills of the fish and remain invisible until the fish becomes stressed or the ich has time for a population boom.

I have always quarantined my fish, but I have encountered an issue. I live in an apartment and do not have room for a larger quarantine tank. I have been using a 5.5 gallon tank. I have decided to get a flame angel and I don't know if the small size of my quarantine tank will be harmful to the angel for 4 weeks.

A 5.5g is probably going to be too small for the flame angel. When angels are stressed oftentimes they refuse food, and you really need your angel eating during quarantine.

[MrTuskfish]

I have always quarantined my fish, but I have encountered an issue. I live in an apartment and do not have room for a larger quarantine tank. I have been using a 5.5 gallon tank. I have decided to get a flame angel and I don't know if the small size of my quarantine tank will be harmful to the angel for 4 weeks.

A 10 gal tank is cheap and easily will fit on the floor of a closet.

[ca1ore]

I QT every new fish, but in most cases just observation. I too don't really like medicating 'just in case', particularly with copper. What is the prevailing wisdom about length of observation? I have been doing it for four weeks, but that seems like it is insufficient.

[EllieSuz]

I've always observed new fish in quarantine for six weeks. I'm pretty sure that's an absolute minimum.

[ca1ore]

I'm inclined to agree. As my DT fish population has grown, the idea of having to deal with a major disease outbreak is enough to give me ich! I think I will be doubling the observation period to 8 weeks.

[sleepydoc]

Treating vs observing in QT is a personal choice, but I would advocate for treating.

The problem with observing only, is that many fish harbor disease asymptomatically. By simply observing, you're assuming that the 'stress' of moving is enough to unmask any disease. If this is not the case, you potentially infect your entire display system. As people have mentioned above, if you have a large DT with many fish that becomes a big gamble to take.

As far as ich treatment goes, there are alternatives to copper (chloroquine, tank transfer.) The advantage of copper is it treats other diseases like velvet.

[Deinonych]

Treating vs observing in QT is a personal choice, but I would advocate for treating.

The problem with observing only, is that many fish harbor disease asymptomatically. By simply observing, you're assuming that the 'stress' of moving is enough to unmask any disease. If this is not the case, you potentially infect your entire display system. As people have mentioned above, if you have a large DT with many fish that becomes a big gamble to take.

+1

I started out as an advocate for observing only, but I now proactively treat for the reason above.

[sleepydoc]

And on cue.. Here's (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2324259) a post from someone who apparently did everything right, but only observed and now is dealing with an ich outbreak. :(

[dixiedog]

Treating vs observing in QT is a personal choice, but I would advocate for treating.



Same here.

I'd much rather run the "risk" of medicating a healthy fish (if there is such a thing!) than risk introducing diseases into my display.