View Full Version : new fish with possible ick - QT in refugium?
bmackcw
03/09/2015, 08:35 PM
I picked up a filefish at petco today for $14. Drip acclimated for about 90 minutes and put him in. He went behind the rocks for a couple hours, then started to come out.
I noticed his eyes are cloudy and he seems to have a thin white film on him. I've never had a fish with ick, but I'm guessing this is it.
I put him in my sump's refugium, which just has some rocks and algae. If this is ick, am I in danger of contaminating the tank?
soulpatch
03/09/2015, 08:44 PM
yes if he has anything and you put him in your refugium hooked up to your DT then you have really not done anything to save the rest of your tank. A QT is a seperate system where the fish is in different water and can be treated independant of the main tank.
google ick but typically looks like a series of white dots on the fish and not a film...
top shelf
03/09/2015, 08:47 PM
There's a good sticky on ick that might help but I believe it does have a free floating stage that could be sent back into the display tank. To be on the safe side I would set up a 10g QT were you can treat if need be and monitor better. All new fish inhabitants should be quarintined for at least 4-8 weeks.
Breadman03
03/09/2015, 09:36 PM
yes if he has anything and you put him in your refugium hooked up to your DT then you have really not done anything to save the rest of your tank. A QT is a seperate system where the fish is in different water and can be treated independant of the main tank.
google ick but typically looks like a series of white dots on the fish and not a film...
Soul patch gave you a good answer, but here is the link to the fish disease forum to help you with some research: http://reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=87
pyithar
03/09/2015, 10:00 PM
yes. that's why you should quarantine everything. drip acclimating a fish too long can be very stressful to the fish and it could even be fatal if you're unlucky. once the bag is opened, pH rise, and ammonium becomes toxic ammonia. if the salinity difference is too big, set up the quarantine tank salinity close to the water it comes from so that you could put the fish in the quarantine without taking too much time. then you could slowly raise the quarantine tank salinity to match your display tank salinity over a couple of days.
you should post a pic to see if it's really ich. is the fish flashing or rubbing against rocks? if it's only cloudy eyes, it could be normal probably. maybe filefish have cloudy sheen to their eyes like rabbitfish does? if not, it could be flukes, baceteria infections, etc. good luck.
bmackcw
03/11/2015, 08:44 PM
All seems well today. He's eating and out in the open. Thanks all.
pyithar
03/11/2015, 10:48 PM
i'm glad all is well. good luck. :)
Jason S
03/12/2015, 12:39 PM
I have never heard of Ich causing a film, however, it is a parasite, and I have seen the areas that it attacks get bacterial infections.
Also make yourself familiar with the life cycles of the various parasites you can have. It can be visible on a host fish, and disappear only to return with a vengeance. What happens is that it when matures it drops off the fish, rests in the substrate for days, and then becomes free-swimming in greater numbers than it was before. This is how it reproduces, and at this time, the free-swimming parasites can attack the original host in greater numbers as well as other fish. I know this is an over simplified description, but the premise is there.
The moral of the story is that this is why a QT tank for ALL new livestock is critical, and it must be in quarantine and observed for several weeks to ensure you are not transferring anything to your DT.
twon8
03/12/2015, 12:41 PM
Cloudy eyes sounds like flukes
gone fishin
03/12/2015, 05:48 PM
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2389659
The link has a diagnosis section if you think your fish is infected with something.
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