I got ich! Help!

[ibrat82]

So 2 days ago I added my orchid dottyback and 2 chromis I had in quarantine into my DT from quarantine. I had them in quarantine for 3 weeks. Yesterday after 24 hours of adding them to the tank is can clearly see ich on the dottyback. It had white spots everywhere. I never saw this in my quarantine tank but then again it's hard to see white spots when your qt doesn't have blue lights that would make there colors stand out. So I have no idea if they got ich from the qt or DT. Anyways everyone's been moved to 2 qt tanks. My pair of clowns are in one. As for the other tank the one I setup last night was for the chromis and dottyback. 1 chromis and the dottyback are missing both were the ones with ich symptoms. I have no idea where the are. Is it possible they died over night and hermits and snails ate them??


With regards to the clowns if they don't show signs of ich which they don't should I still treat them with cupramine or wait till they show signs of ich?? Please help

[drillsar]

With my understand of ICH is that it may not get it as easy as other fish. Anyway I would treat all the fish to make sure. ich in its life cycles can last 6-8 weeks alone without the host. now in egg form there is no definite stamp on time thatll last. the key to ich is to have all its potential hosts be healthy and strong to keep ich from breaking out.

With that said without a host your DT fishless for 2 months should kill the parasite in the DT tank

[sleepydoc]

My condolences. Did you treat in quarantine or just observe? cases like this are why many people argure for treating all fish in QT.

Are you sure it's ich? Velvet can also look like ich, but is usually rapidly fatal.

Fish can harbor ich asymptomatically. Assuming it's ich, there are two possibilites - the new fish were infected and didn't show signs before transfer or there was ich in your display tank.

I have to disagree with drillsar. It is very possible to have an ich free tank. The key to ich is to keep it out of your tank completly so that fish have no chance of catching it.

The recommended fallow period is generally 12 weeks, but you have to find all your fish and remove them from the display tank. Since fish can have ich and not show it, I would treat all your fish once you have them in QT either with Cupramine or tank transfer and leave your display fallow.

Head over to the disease forum and read the stickies on ich and its treatments - you'll find much more detailed info there.

[drillsar]

If fish had or has ich in DT than most likely ich is present in the DT liverock, sand,etc. Ich can survive 8 weeks without a host. yes it's possible no ich present in DT but I doubt it. Have DT fishless for 2 months and should be fine.

[ibrat82]

I only observed when i bought the fish. Am i supposed to treat all new fish with something in qt??

So I found both fish. They died and we're being eaten by hermits. It's strange because just 48 hours ago they were showing no.symptoms then there dead? Was it ich or velvet? The 2 clowns and 1 chromis are not showing any signs and are in qt with cupramine.


My condolences. Did you treat in quarantine or just observe? cases like this are why many people argure for treating all fish in QT.

Are you sure it's ich? Velvet can also look like ich, but is usually rapidly fatal.

Fish can harbor ich asymptomatically. Assuming it's ich, there are two possibilites - the new fish were infected and didn't show signs before transfer or there was ich in your display tank.

I have to disagree with drillsar. It is very possible to have an ich free tank. The key to ich is to keep it out of your tank completly so that fish have no chance of catching it.

The recommended fallow period is generally 12 weeks, but you have to find all your fish and remove them from the display tank. Since fish can have ich and not show it, I would treat all your fish once you have them in QT either with Cupramine or tank transfer and leave your display fallow.

Head over to the disease forum and read the stickies on ich and its treatments - you'll find much more detailed info there.

[kmbyrnes]

It is 100% possible to have an ich free tank. But if you have fish already, it is a bit tougher.
Start by assuming all new fish have ich, even if you can't see it.
Use one of the proven methods of ich eradication ( TTM, copper, hyposalinity ) to treat every new fish, without fail.
If you get ich, you will need to let you tank go fallow ( fishless ) for at least 72 days.
There is a great sticky at the top of this forum, just above the moving red arrow. Follow the process describer there and get yourself on the path to an ich free tank.

[soulpatch]

No need to worry about where it came from but more or less that you had it.

So TTM all of your fish which is easier then copper. That should take care of ick. To be sure you dont have something else treat with some prazipro in the QT tank after TTM while you wait for your DT to be ready again.

Let DT sit fallow for 72+ days.


As for what you should do with new purchases here is what I do:

fish
1 - TTM which takes 12 days
2 - Prazipro which takes 5-7 days give or take
3 - a solid 30 day observation period post treatment
Total time is around 50 days which is a lot but better then having deaths and needing to go 72+ days fishless in my DT or killing a prized fish.

Corals
Dip in Bayer
Observation for pests and redip if needed
Rinse
Dip in Peroxide
Rinse
Frag tank for observation and grow out then onto big tank

CUC is where I take chances. I should TTM them to be sure but I have not in my most recent purchase. That said my purchase came at same time as fish so the big tank will still be fallow for 50+ days which should take care of any eggs that could have come in on the CUC.

[Sisu]

Good reading from the fish disease forum-

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2159738
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1992196

[ibrat82]

How can determine if it was ich or velvet??


My condolences. Did you treat in quarantine or just observe? cases like this are why many people argure for treating all fish in QT.

Are you sure it's ich? Velvet can also look like ich, but is usually rapidly fatal.

Fish can harbor ich asymptomatically. Assuming it's ich, there are two possibilites - the new fish were infected and didn't show signs before transfer or there was ich in your display tank.

I have to disagree with drillsar. It is very possible to have an ich free tank. The key to ich is to keep it out of your tank completly so that fish have no chance of catching it.

The recommended fallow period is generally 12 weeks, but you have to find all your fish and remove them from the display tank. Since fish can have ich and not show it, I would treat all your fish once you have them in QT either with Cupramine or tank transfer and leave your display fallow.

Head over to the disease forum and read the stickies on ich and its treatments - you'll find much more detailed info there.