Copper and baby fish?

[taimarain]

Hey guys I have a question....(obviously)

So long story short, I had an outbreak of Marine Velvet in tank. Luckily it was from the first fish I introduced so I'm def gonna start a good QT habit early on! So out of 5 fish and 2 crabs, I now have 1 fish and 1 crab. (Not sure what happened to the crab...he died a few days after he molted) The fish I have left is now in my QT and the crab is in the DT. So far, the crab is doing fine (Will he be ok in a 50 gal tank alone?) And the Chromis was doing fine until we noticed his tail twitching this morning (It's been 6 days since the last death) His colours are great and he's eating well and staying away from the power head.

So now I want to treat the chromis cause he's obviously come into contact with the MV parasite and I want to get new fish. My plan is to get a few new fish (I miss my clowns) and put him in the QT with the chromis. Treat everyone with copper for 2 weeks, then monitor for 3 weeks (3 weeks because I still need to go fallow for 3 more weeks at this point in my DT) Once that time is up, I can safely put everyone into my DT and put MV behind me.

So here's my question... The fish that we get here (I'm in China and have to order all my saltwater fish and supplies online as there's no LFS here for saltwater fish.) When I order, I usually order the baby clowns (2-3 cm) I like watching them get bigger and seeing their stripes develop. However is copper safe for babies? The Chromis is a baby too but he's grown quite a bit since we got him... so I'm less worried for him. The clowns will be new baby babies. I just want to make sure they would make it through the treatment. (It was a 2 cm clown that ended up being the one who had brought in the MV)

 

[DEWreefing]

I would not treat with copper I would observe them for a few months to make sure everything is fine.

 

[taimarain]

I would not treat with copper I would observe them for a few months to make sure everything is fine.

Yeah I thought of that too, however I know that the there is mv in the QT as well.. the only way I can do that is to have a "pre QT" before they go into QT... The chomis was originally in the DT, then got moved to the sump that was connected to the DT (cause he was a bully and I didn't have another tank) then he was in QT with the other chromis which then died.. so he's definitely been exposed to the mv.

Because shipping will stress out the fish I was going to leave them for a few days before I start the treatment anyways and observe during that time.

So that's why I figured I would run a treatment on the new guys along with the exposed one, and then observe and then when that's all done I'll have fish to put in there. That's why I was wondering if there is a safety issue with copper and baby fish...

 

[LAReefer4Life]

Yes copper treatment is safe to use on the young fish. To clarify your chromis that was exposed to MV is still not being treated? Run display aquarium fallow for minimum 6 weeks but 8 weeks is advised.

Key Points to Successfully and Safely Administering Copper Medication:

• Copper is extremely toxic to aquarium life. As a matter of fact, no inverts, corals, etc. can survive the copper treatment and it is advised to administer copper in separate QT at-least 20 feet away from DT. In addition, all tools should be utilized separately for water changes, testing, etc.
• Copper is only effective when administered at therapeutic levels. Too low of solution it can’t do its job properly and too high of solution it can potentially kill your livestock.
• My personal brand preference for copper treatment is Seachem Cupramine. It is fully charged (ionic) copper solution. I've personally had great success with this product but there are several great products on the market.
• Do NOT run media such as carbon unless you're trying to remove or reduce of the copper solution.
• Keep the QT scape minimalistic. You want to maintain consistent levels of copper during the treatment period and any additional media, sand bed, rock, etc. can affect the copper absorption rate. PVC piping is a great solution to use for creating hiding places for your livestock while in quarantine and it will not have a large impact on the copper solution.
• A reliable test kit is a must and in conjunction with Cupramine I recommend the Hanna Checker. These tests kits are easy to facilitate and the results are read digitally. Seachem makes their own copper test kit. However, the results are viewed through a color scale which I find it hard to decipher.

*Note: API copper test kit does not work well with Cupramine.

• When administering copper treatment, it is advised to slowly increase the copper level to allow time for your fish to adapt. I start with 1/4 the recommended amount suggested by Seachem. I then add 1/8 dose twice daily splitting between am/pm over a 4-5-day period until I reach the recommended levels.

 

[taimarain]

I haven't started him on the copper yet because I have to order it, it was 11.11 here (like black friday so packages take forever to get here) I ordered the Cupramine and I got it, but I'm still waiting on the testing kit. I didn't know that the testing kits weren't interchangeable so thanks for that. It's good to know. I did order the seachem testing kit tho, so all is good there.

I love your recommendation on using the seachem. I will definitely follow it. As for the 8 weeks, I was going to follow the 6 weeks (cause that's what I read) but to be honest... if I can wait 6 weeks to put them in there... another 2 is nothing. And you answered my main question which is if it's safe for baby fish. You have been so helpful. Thank you soo much