Ich or Velvet? Either Way I Need Some Help!

[JakeK]

Ok, so all my fish in my new 93 gallon tank went through QT. The flame angel either has ich or velvet. In the tank is a male lineatus fairy wrasse, a male red head wrasse, 2 carberryi anthias, 1 orange spot goby. Previously there was a kole tang but the kole tang died the day after I added it to the DT, so ich or velvet could have been present on him and then transferred to the DT. It looked ok in QT, was eating and such but was a little pale which I thought was mostly due to isolation of QT. The kole tang died 5 days ago.

4 days ago I notice a few white specks on the flame angel. The next day they were gone. Then 2 days ago they were back. Yesterday, no white specks, today no white specks but I did notice a film on the fish and more importantly I noticed very strange behavior. Today the fish has not picked at the rocks once (at least while I have been watching, which has been a significant amount of the day). This is unusual as this fish has picked at the rocks every day for the past 12 days. Second, the fish is constantly swimming in the stream of the gyre. It has never done this before.

Now, today the red head wrasse did chase the goby under the sand and kicked up a huge sand storm in the tank which could explain the film. It could just be very fine particles of sand sticking to the slime coat, but not eating and swimming in the stream of the powerhead are very unsual behaviors for this fish.

The red head wrasse has a little of this very fine film on its surface. The anthias and lineatus do not. None of the fish other than the red head have had white specks either.

Picture from a few days ago.


Picture from today.


If it is velvet or ich, can an angel tank copper? I have cupramine and formalin on hand as well as a whole host of antibiotics.

 

[Humblefish]

That last pic is either Velvet or Brooklynella (which can affect non-clownfish). I am leaning more towards brook, as he should be dead by now if this was velvet. Brook is a funny disease. Clownfish are almost always affected, but non-clowns may or may not be. Meaning, you may never see symptoms on any of your other fish.

The Flame Angel definitely needs a formalin bath (more info below), then immediately transferred into a QT. To completely be sure brook is out of your tank you would need to QT all your fish and go fallow for 6 weeks.

Formalin: Treats Brooklynella and provides temporary relief for Marine Velvet disease (Amyloodinium). Also may be used as temporary relief, or even as an alternative treatment, for worms such as flukes and black ich.

How To Treat - Formalin is very interesting because its potential is not fully known. It is best administered in a bath solution for 30-45 minutes, following the dosage instructions on whatever bottle you use; or at 150 ppm if using "100% formalin" (ex. Formalin-MS). The bath should be done in a large glass bowl or container, and temperature should match the tank the fish is coming from. A bucket is not advised as plastic may absorb some of the medication and then leach it back out during future use. It is imperative that you heavily aerate the bath solution for at least 30 minutes before and also during treatment to compensate for oxygen depletion. The fish should be placed in a premixed bath solution. DO NOT add more formalin after the fish is already in the bath.

For Brooklynella, multiple baths may be required (so long as symptoms persist), but it’s important to give the fish a day to recuperate in-between baths. Formalin has also been used as alternative treatment for external worms such as flukes and black ich. However, at least 2 baths are required (7 days apart) for the same reason described when using Prazipro. For all of the above, post treatment, the fish should not be returned to the same tank/water he came from to prevent reinfection.

You can dose formalin directly in a quarantine tank, but this can be risky due to the harshness of formalin and how quickly it can deplete the water of oxygen. Providing additional gas exchange to the QT is a must! A fish being treated must be monitored closely and should be removed if showing signs of distress - this applies when treating in QT or in the bath solution.

Pros - Treats or provides temporary relief for a wide range of diseases. In some cases, formalin can “buy you more time” until a proper treatment can be done.

Cons/Side Effects - Formalin contains formaldehyde, a known carcinogen. Therefore, precautions must be taken when using it. Preventing your skin from coming in contact with it by wearing water proof gloves and not breathing in any fumes by wearing a face mask is highly recommended. Formalin also can be harsh on the fish and will quickly deplete oxygen from the water. In some areas, the purchase of formalin is prohibited.

 

[JakeK]

Humblefish, thank you for the advice.

No luck catching the flame angel tonight. Next chance will be tomorrow evening.

 

[brandon4432]

Looks like Velvet to me but humble fish presented excellent information and treatment plan. However I have always used copper in quarantine coupled by daily freshwater baths for 5 minutes and then heavy feeding of high quality pellets and garlic extract. The freshwater dips are an absolute must and provide fast relief from the Velvet. I associate freshwater dips with saving my fish many times throughout this hobby