Help! My tangs got ich

[BlueMoonAquatics]

Hi guys just bough a new tang from the fish shop as I plan on setting up a frag tank soon. Stuck him in my main display and next morning he was covered in ich. I new this would happen but I’m having trouble getting him to eat. I have a clown fish and a six line wrasse, the six line seems be trying to eat the ich off the tang? I saw him do it and I can see marks left that he made . I got some pictures I’ll put up. I’ve started to dose there food with ich x but can’t get the tang to eat any of it. I plan on leaving the tank fallow for 90 days after I get the frsg tank up. Clown and wrasse are bother eating well and having norpblems with the medicated food. How should I get the tang to eat ? Is he just still a little shy cause I just got him? I think he will come around soon I just don’t want the ich to spread like crazy . Also it seems like in the morning the tang is covered with it and later in the day some of it falls off.

 

[HotRocks]

That is velvet. You will need to move this fish, and any others that share a tank with it to a QT and treat asap. Time is not your friend here. Allow your DT to be fallow for at least 6 weeks.

Best course of action for battling velvet, as recommended by @Humblefish

1. 5 min freshwater dip to provide temporary relief, it will also dislodge some of the attached parasites.

2. 90 min bath in acriflavine, this is an antiseptic and will help prevent secondary infection from entry wounds. (Ruby Reef Rally is generally the easiest product to get containing acriflavine)

3. 30 days in therapuetic copper or CP. Either way you go you will want to be to the therapuetic level in the next 48hrs.

Let us know if you need additional help!

 

[DancingShark]

I don't know but that may be velvet. In any case you should have not just drop this guy in. Ich or velvet your dt has it now. I would treat Fast.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/ich-cryptocaryon-irritans.191226/

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/velvet-amyloodinium-ocellatum.217570/

 

[BlueMoonAquatics]

That is velvet. You will need to move this fish, and any others that share a tank with it to a QT and treat asap. Time is not your friend here. Allow your DT to be fallow for at least 6 weeks.

Best course of action for battling velvet, as recommended by @Humblefish

1. 5 min freshwater dip to provide temporary relief, it will also dislodge some of the attached parasites.

2. 90 min bath in acriflavine, this is an antiseptic and will help prevent secondary infection from entry wounds. (Ruby Reef Rally is generally the easiest product to get containing acriflavine)

3. 30 days in therapuetic copper or CP. Either way you go you will want to be to the therapuetic level in the next 48hrs.

Let us know if you need additional help!

Well good job I posted to the forms! I got a extra 20 gal tank rn that’s not set up but I can throw that together in a few hours should I just use my tank water from my tank? Hang on the back filter and heater? I’ll stop by the fish shop and grab all these things to start.

 

[BlueMoonAquatics]

I also have pistol shrimp and star fish and a bunch of snails and hermit crabs they won’t get effected by velvet will they?

 

[Joseph Wright]

A

 

[BlueMoonAquatics]

Thanks I’ve seen this product in the shop before I’m currently feeding pellets with garlic in them too. He ate one today with some ich x on it I’m still gunna setup the qt tank but I’ll look into that product more !

 

[HotRocks]

Well good job I posted to the forms! I got a extra 20 gal tank rn that’s not set up but I can throw that together in a few hours should I just use my tank water from my tank? Hang on the back filter and heater? I’ll stop by the fish shop and grab all these things to start.

You can use water from your tank, but you may be better off just putting some media from your DT into the HOB so that you have an established biofilter. You will want a power head aimed upward breaking the surface to generate O2. An Airstone will also be helpful. The meds do deplete the oxygen.

If you don't have media that can be moved over from DT you will want to get some bacteria in a bottle like Dr Tims or Biospiria to seed the tank.

In regards to the post above by @Joseph Wright garlic does absolutely nothing for velvet. Fish may be able to live in ich management tanks, but not an option for velvet.

 

[4FordFamily]

You can use water from your tank, but you may be better off just putting some media from your DT into the HOB so that you have an established biofilter. You will want a power head aimed upward breaking the surface to generate O2. An Airstone will also be helpful. The meds do deplete the oxygen.

If you don't have media that can be moved over from DT you will want to get some bacteria in a bottle like Dr Tims or Biospiria to seed the tank.

In regards to the post above by @Joseph Wright garlic does absolutely nothing for velvet. Fish may be able to live in ich management tanks, but not an option for velvet.

I could not agree more. @HotRocks advice is how you save your fish on this one.

The only benefit garlic brings is a potential increase in feeding response, which would help a finicky fish or fish with a minor ailment because more nutrition/calories can slightly strengthen a fish’s immune system. Aside from that it’s been suggested that it actually causes internal organ damage if used long-term.

 

[deedubz]

Well good job I posted to the forms! I got a extra 20 gal tank rn that’s not set up but I can throw that together in a few hours should I just use my tank water from my tank? Hang on the back filter and heater? I’ll stop by the fish shop and grab all these things to start.

I'd also recommend buying some antibiotics while you're out shopping. Infections are very common with velvet due to the volume of parasites attacking the fish.

Kanaplex, Metroplex, and Furan-2 (dubbed the trifecta) would be a great addition to your fish's medicine cabinet

 

[blkhwkz]

I really dont belive in hospital tanks, dips, baths ect. I had a hippo tang for years and recently after adding a couple of new fish, the hippo got ich really bad, just like in your pictures. You cannot eliminate pathogens completely from any tank. All you can do is keep providing consistent conditions and feed normally. The best product ive ever used to get rid of ich and velvet is “Kent garlic extreme”. In desperation I followed the directions on the bottle and in three days there was hardly any ich on the hippo. And within a week there were no traces of it . Never since i got into this hobby, back in the 90’s, have i used anything that worked like that. This is not an advertisement. Lol. And Ive tried everything. So now i call my hosp/quarantine tank my garlic tank. Fish go in there for a week before they go in the DT. Any new fish going in the DT, after the garlic tank, i put the kent stuff in the dt too as a precaution. Try it, it works!! Oh, and the cleaner shrimp seemed to work on the affected fish more. It did not harm any corals(lps,softies, nems). Good luck!

First off you can have a tank without ich or velvet with proper QT. Second garlic does not get rid of ich or velvet. You are doing ich management, if garlic cured ich, everyone would be all over it instead of CP or copper. Your fish built up their immunity, that in no way is getting rid of ich.

 

[HotRocks]

I also have pistol shrimp and star fish and a bunch of snails and hermit crabs they won’t get effected by velvet will they?

All of your coral and inverts are good to stay in the DT for fallow period. Velvet will not have an impact on them.

 

[Joseph Wright]

First off you can have a tank without ich or velvet with proper QT. Second garlic does not get rid of ich or velvet. You are doing ich management, if garlic cured ich, everyone would be all over it instead of CP or copper. Your fish built up their immunity, that in no way is getting rid of. Www

 

[HotRocks]

What ever, i know it got rid of it. If it takes building immunity then so be it. My fish didnt die... copper as im sure you know cant be used in a dt. Did you ever try to catch a fish, let alone a sick fish. IT WOOOORKED, in dont care if you believe it. One my best friends Is the senior research scientist for cancer research at Brystol meyers squib. He has Two phd’s, he says the only place that pathogens cant exist is in a sterile environment. No fish / coral / ocean is sterile. Sorry but your tank has pathogens.

I think the best thing to do here is to start your own thread to debate the topic of an immune reef/disease free DT.

Let's keep this tread on topic for the member in need here.

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

its not a debate or thread for who believes you or not. its about proven methods that have been tried and tried over years to see specific results.
There are many name brand companies that market Copper based and CP based medicines to rid of parasite like ich. one can find shelf after shelf of these products. if the garlic MYTH was correct you would see many manufacturers making products based on garlic to rid parasites, unfortunately i am not aware of a single bottle that says Garlic removes ich. forget what i know as a doctor or through hobby and years of parasite management.

Knowing that if someone comes to us here with a parasite issue we provide them with the best known and proven method that can relief the issue in quick and most efficient way.
Garlic myth and reefsafe ich medicine myths really needs to go away. Honestly even to believe garlic somehow opens up appetite and makes fish eat more is also a myth to me.
for example i have a qt with 4 tangs going through ich treatment right now and garlic mixed in food has done nothing for them to eat more infact less i would say.

To OP please follow the advice given by senior members here using methods like freshwater dips and using antiseptics and cp or copper.

 

[dannyfish]

Just hitchhiking the thread. What brand copper do y’all use for quarantine?

 

[HotRocks]

Just hitchhiking the thread. What brand copper do y’all use for quarantine?

I currently use copper power. It seems to be much less harsh on species known to be "sensitive" in copper.

 

[4FordFamily]

@Joseph Wright I have a PHD in underwater basketweaving. That doesn’t mean I know a thing about parasites.

Pathogens probably cannot be removed entirely. Parasitic creatures on the other hand can. That’s a false equivalency.

 

[blkhwkz]

He deleted his post, but the funny thing is if he had read correctly, I didn't say anything about pathogen free. I said it is possible to have a DT ich and velvet free. My wording was carefully chosen to avoid the whole sterile debate. I mean I suppose I could ask my mom's best friend's husband that is one of the top cancer Dr's, but he doesn't have reef tanks so I guess his MD won't matter to this discussion anymore than someone's double phd's

 

[BlueMoonAquatics]

You can use water from your tank, but you may be better off just putting some media from your DT into the HOB so that you have an established biofilter. You will want a power head aimed upward breaking the surface to generate O2. An Airstone will also be helpful. The meds do deplete the oxygen.

If you don't have media that can be moved over from DT you will want to get some bacteria in a bottle like Dr Tims or Biospiria to seed the tank.

In regards to the post above by @Joseph Wright garlic does absolutely nothing for velvet. Fish may be able to live in ich management tanks, but not an option for velvet.

I’ve set up a qt station got some live rock and media from established tank And I’ve got some seed bacteria starter and I got a bunker too I’ve tested for copper and it was normal so I added some of the medicine in. I’m gunna test again and adjust acordingly. Then I’ll alc the fish’s to the qt.