Is this Ich? (I have pics)

[dasteve003]

This is a coral beauty I put into my tank on Thursday (tank is 6 weeks old and levels were fine when I put her in), yesterday she was fine, was away during the day and come back and saw this. I know she likes to flip around in the sand and hoping it's not ich but I'm new and don't really know. There does seems to be some on the fins which I heard is where ich would start. Could it spread in 24 hours to a massive outbreak and cover a decent amount of her body (the little dots aren't totally covering here in spots it just seems there wide spread across her body)? The clown who has been in there 3 weeks doesn't show any signs of these spots and the only other creatures in there are 2 turbo snails and 2 nassurus snails along with a couple bristle worms and what I believe are micro brittle star fish. She did eat the briner shrimp I put in today which is the 1st time I've seen her eat. (assuming it's a female by saying her but don't really know)

Is this ich and if so how do I treat the tank, I cant afford a quarantine tank right now so that isn't an option. If it's not ich what is it just some sand she's flipped up on herself?

Any help would be greatly appreciated thanks!

 

[reid429]

Looks to be ich

 

[dasteve003]

That's what im thinking I just got a real good look at it, what is the best way to take care of this in the entire tank since I dont have option to quarantine?

 

[ethridge78]

They way you described it sounds like ich but cant see in the pictures.

 

[dasteve003]

I just got a close up look and it looks like bubbles which look like the pics I have seen of ich, how could it go from nothing to full bown in less than 24 hours and what hsould I do to treat it?

 

[krystal]

Give them garlic in thir food

 

[dasteve003]

How would I add garic to thier food? Really like your signature by the way!

 

[krystal]

Go to your local fish store and ask for garlic stuff for thir food and they should have a bodle of garlic water to add to the mysis shrimp or pellet food and feed your fish with that and it will help with ich and get a cleener shrimp

 

[NanaReefer]

Just keep the fish well fed. Sadly your tank is now infected. Any other fish you put into it will most likely become infected. The best option (I know you said it's not) is to QT the Angel & allow your tank to fallow for 8-10 weeks.
A hospital tank doesn't have to be an actual aquarium. It could be a 10g rubber made tub. This way you could treat/kill the parasite the lives on the fish.
What your eyes are seeing on the fish are the cysts. Or eggs. These will drop off into the water, where they'll hatch. Become free floating, looking for a host. The adults will spend their lives on the fish unless killed.

 

[dasteve003]

But wouldn't I need a heater and some kind of filter/water return system in that tank?

I got some medication last night and will continue to use that until I see all the ich is gone and then keep using it for at least a week after to hopefully get any left over ich.

 

[cymonous]

What kind of meds? Usually best to not treat with meds in the DT.

 

[dasteve003]

i believe it says ick guard

 

[krystal]

Se up a 10g tank you can get from walmart for 12$ and get a 10g Heter and a filter and a hood with a light and bomb you got a qt tank now just get 9g out of your big tank put I it in the 10g and bomb add your fish

 

[krystal]

Or coper safe works great

 

[3dees]

there are only three ways to rid Ich. tank transfer, hypo salinity, and copper. all need to be done In a qt. garlic does nothing for fish. it may Intice them to feed but thats it. reef safe chems are proven to be worthless. you can wait it out and hope for the best, but your tank is now infected.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Hyposalinity Treatment

The hyposalinity treatment only treats a very limited number of ciliated parasites. The most notable in this group is Marine Ich (Cryptocaryon irritans). The home aquarist will not be using hyposalinity to treat any other disease or condition. Is this clear? I'll write it again -- hyposalinity cures ONLY Marine Ich.

A hyposalinity treatment will kill: Pods, snails, crabs, invertebrates, corals, live rock, most marine algae, and Marine Ich. This is why it is best performed in a separate, bare bottom, hospital tank. It has been performed successfully in fish only aquariums where there is no live rock and the substrate doesn't have worms and pods in it. But the best treatment tank is a bare bottom hospital tank, set up like a quarantine tank.

A hyposalinity treatment will not kill other parasites or conditions. A hyposalinity treatment does not kill Marine Velvet (Amyloodinium ocellatum), bacterial infections, injuries, intestinal parasites, external parasites, and a few hundred other diseases. Let's get to it!

GENERAL

Setup/System
Use a suitably clean tank or a setup/establish quarantine tank. The size should 'fit' the fish to be treated. About 5 gallons per inch of fish works out okay for this treatment, except for large adult Angelfishes, Tangs, and Rabbitfishes. For them, it would be better to use the ratio of 9 gallons per inch.

Lighting on the treatment tank should be dimmed so that you can see the fish, but not bright. Provide the fish with some hiding place(s) (e.g. PVC pipe, fake rock, etc.). Do not put substrate, live sand, live rock or any other kind of living thing in the treatment tank. A simple bare tank with a corner sponge filter is more than adequate. Use one corner filter for every 15 gallons of tank water.

Don't add/use power heads or strong circulating pumps. Set the tank up in a quiet area of the home, where there is minimal human traffic. Use heater or chiller and thermometer to hold temperature steady and constant. A UV may be used if you have one suitable for that size tank. Just don't overcook the water!

Do not attach a skimmer -- they don't usually work well with this kind of water. Besides, you should be making water changes to control organics/dissolved proteins.

DO NOT USE AN ELEVATED TEMPERATURE during treatment. DO NOT ADD ANY OTHER MEDICATIONS TO HYPOSALINE SALTWATER without knowing it is approved by the medicine manufacturer for use specifically during a hyposalinity treatment. When fish are in a hyposaline liquid, the effects of medicines and medications changes. Some meds become lethal, like copper. NEVER USE COPPER when doing the hyposalinity treatment.

The only different equipment needed besides the above is a refractometer. They are less than $50 and well worth the investment. A hydrometer is just not accurate enough for controlling the salt content in the treatment tank. Control will be essential to a successful treatment.

First Water and Water Changes
Water is taken from the display tank system or water is made up to match the water the fish is coming from. Match specific gravity, temperature and especially pH to very close to the water the fish is currently in, if water is being prepared from salt. The pH should be within 0.05 pH units -- that's how close I mean by 'close.

pH Control
pH is hard to control in a hyposaline solution because at this dilution, the buffer ability of the diluted saltwater is not good. Be prepared for this.

Make pH adjustments with pure baking soda (e.g., Arm & Hammer) you find in the grocery store, or better yet is sodium carbonate. Sodium carbonate can be made in the home oven. Take a pound of pure baking soda and spread it out evenly on a large cookie sheet. Put into a preheated oven to 350F. Bake it for 30 minutes. Take the sheet out of the oven, let cool to warm and put into an air-tight, clean container for use. Now the baking soda has been turned into sodium carbonate, a more potent pH + additive.

DO NOT try to control the pH with pH buffer or other off the shelf additives. Use only the two mentioned above or a specific strong pH+ control.

Do not add the baking soda or sodium carbonate directly to the hospital/quarantine tank. Always thoroughly dissolve some powder in RO/DI or distilled water then drip/add that in slowly to move the pH up.

If you mess up and the pH has lowered considerably (more than 0.2 pH units) then raise the pH VERY SLOWLY -- no more than 0.10 pH units per day. A large pH change can seriously harm a fish, especially a sick one.


PROCESS

Lowering Salinity
Over a period of about 36-48 hours (use 48 for most Tangs, Butterflyfishes, Lionfishes, Puffers, and Dwarf Angelfishes) lower the specific through water removal and RO/DI or distilled water additions. Watch pH and temperature of the added water -- match that of the water being replaced. Use only a refractometer to measure the specific gravity. Lower the specific gravity to a reading of 1.008 to 1.009 sp. gr. units. Hold it there throughout the treatment.

Maintenance
This is why I mentioned above this treatment is not easy on the aquarist.
If the treatment tank has an active biological filter, don't assume it's working. When salinity is lowered the bacteria sometimes enter into a state of suspension and hold off in their metabolism of ammonia and nitrites. Controlling water quality and especially pH will be the challenge. Check for ammonia, nitrites, and pH twice each day at the start, until readings are zero for ammonia and nitrites. Don't count on the pH to remain steady. It must be checked no less than twice a day and if needed, adjusted.

Make water changes to control organics, ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, etc. If all is steady, still make water changes of 35% or more every other day. After the first water use, the only water to use to make changes is made up water from salt. DO NOT USE DISPLAY TANK WATER to make water changes in a treatment tank, no matter what disease is being treated.

Nutrition
The fish must be offered and gotten to eat throughout the process. The best foods must be given. Choose the right foods and feed frequently

I would also seriously recommend the fish foods be fortified/supplemented with immune boosters.

Salinity Control
If the tank water salinity is allowed to go up, the Marine Ich parasite will not be killed or stressed into submission. If the tank water salinity goes below the target salinity, the fish are in danger. HOLD THE SPECIFIC GRAVITY very closely within 1.008 to 1.009 sp. gr. units.

Treatment Time
The fish is kept in hyposalinity until the aquarist can no longer see any spots on the fish. After the last spot disappears, the hyposalinity continues for another 4 weeks. If during that 4 weeks, if any spot is seen, the time/clock starts over. There must be a minimum of 4 solid weeks with no spot EVER seen.

Raising Salinity
Now raise the specific gravity slowly. The raising of the specific gravity is very stressful on fish and this part must be done slowly. It should take 6 to 7 days to return the water to its normal salinity. Raise the specific gravity by about 0.003 sp. gr. units or less, per day. Less is okay. No need to be ultra conservative and go beyond 8 days to do this. BUT in no way try to shorten the time to less than 6 days.

When the treatment time is over, there is no need to add back distilled water to compensate for water evaporated. Let that be part of the raising of the salinity. When you go to raise the salinity, add small quantities of high specific gravity mixed and aged salt water.

Continue to monitor all water parameters and chemistries.
Written by LEEBCA- Marine Biologist

 

[Tahoe61]

Angels can be very sensitive to copper I would try

AQUARIUM SOLUTIONS & POND SOLUTIONS Ich-X

Formalin is the active ingredient.

This is an excellent resource for information based in research.
FA164/FA164: Cryptocaryon irritans Infections (Marine White Spot Disease) in Fish

There is a new product on the market but the name escapes me, active ingredient is Chloroquin, proven to effectively eradicate the parasite.
Aquarium Fish: Chloroquine: A "New" Drug for Treating Fish Diseases ? Advanced Aquarist | Aquarist Magazine and Blog

I also suggest the use of Selcon over the use of garlic.

Good luck, beautiful fish hope he pulls through.

 

[Naiad]

I would Google velvet as well to be sure. It is very hard to diagnose fish via pictures. What worries me is how fast it appeared. There are some exceptions but ich doesn't normally cover a fish in 24 hours. You want to be as sure as possible that you are treating the right thing.

 

[dasteve003]

This morning after 1 treatment of the ich guard stuff i'd say at least 70% of it seems to be gone, is that normal it would start to go away that fast or could this not be ich? I got a closeup view and it looked like little white bubbles stuck to it which is what it looks like in some pics I checked online.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Won't go away that fast with a treatment.