Oh no! Ich fish in my tank

[Dave-T]

I've quarantined nearly all the fish in my tank, but I got lazy last week and added an unquarantined fish last week (yellowtail flasher wrasse). I can explain why, but it isn't relevant.

I just noticed white spots on the wrasse, I assume it's ich. He seems otherwise healthy, is active and eating. No signs of ich on my other fish. Do you think I should remove the fish and medicate? The only reason I'm hesitant is that it will be very hard to catch him.

 

[Lavey29]

Well technically if you confirm it's ich then all fish need to be removed and treated with medication in QT while the tank sits fallow for 6 weeks.

Pics of the fish will help some of the disease experts here. That type of fish is not as prone to ich as others are.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I've quarantined nearly all the fish in my tank, but I got lazy last week and added an unquarantined fish last week (yellowtail flasher wrasse). I can explain why, but it isn't relevant.

I just noticed white spots on the wrasse, I assume it's ich. He seems otherwise healthy, is active and eating. No signs of ich on my other fish. Do you think I should remove the fish and medicate? The only reason I'm hesitant is that it will be very hard to catch him.

Please post pics and /or video under white lighting?
Any unusual behaviors youre seeing such as labored breathing, itching, darting, loss of appetite.

 

[Dave-T]

Well technically if you confirm it's ich then all fish need to be removed and treated with medication in QT while the tank sits fallow for 6 weeks.

Pics of the fish will help some of the disease experts here. That type of fish is not as prone to ich as others are.

Yikes, I don't have QT room for all my fish. I'm hoping it doesn't come to that!

Please post pics and /or video under white lighting?
Any unusual behaviors youre seeing such as labored breathing, itching, darting, loss of appetite.

No unusual behaviors. The fish is new to me, but seems normal. Actually, maybe you can help me ID this fish. The guy in the LFS called it a yellowtail fairy, but it sho don't look like the yellowtail fairy I see in pictures. I think he was mixed up with another wrasse I was looking at.

Here's some pics:

 

[vetteguy53081]

Yikes, I don't have QT room for all my fish. I'm hoping it doesn't come to that!


No unusual behaviors. The fish is new to me, but seems normal. Actually, maybe you can help me ID this fish. The guy in the LFS called it a yellowtail fairy, but it sho don't look like the yellowtail fairy I see in pictures. I think he was mixed up with another wrasse I was looking at.

Here's some pics:

Pssst - you for got the pics

 

[Dave-T]

Pssst - you for got the pics

Sorry, check again. I typed the message on my computer, saved it, and then edited it on my phone to attach the pics.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Yikes, I don't have QT room for all my fish. I'm hoping it doesn't come to that!


No unusual behaviors. The fish is new to me, but seems normal. Actually, maybe you can help me ID this fish. The guy in the LFS called it a yellowtail fairy, but it sho don't look like the yellowtail fairy I see in pictures. I think he was mixed up with another wrasse I was looking at.

Here's some pics:

This is a McCosters Flasher Wrasse - better fish yet

 

[Lavey29]

I can see the spots you mentioned and may be ich but will let Vette or another expert ID

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Yikes, I don't have QT room for all my fish. I'm hoping it doesn't come to that!


No unusual behaviors. The fish is new to me, but seems normal. Actually, maybe you can help me ID this fish. The guy in the LFS called it a yellowtail fairy, but it sho don't look like the yellowtail fairy I see in pictures. I think he was mixed up with another wrasse I was looking at.

Here's some pics:

That does look like it has ich. White spots on the body can be other things, but spots on the body and the clear parts of the fin is usually ich.
Tough to give you an easy way forward - there is a slight chance if you pull the wrasse it won’t spread to the other fish, but otherwise it’s move the fish to a treatment tank and go with either copper or hyposalinity.
Jay

 

[Seansea]

Nice fish. I would feed heavy for the next couple weeks. I never qt'd in my old 150 and never lost a fish. As long as the fish you have are fat and happy and not stressed they will fight it. Its like getting a flu for people but if your unhealthy it might kill you other wise your sick for a week and goes away. Hopefully you have the filtration that can handle it like a fuge or algae scrubber.

 

[Dave-T]

This is a McCosters Flasher Wrasse - better fish yet

Thanks! I thought it might be a flasher wrasse. The clue was the flashing it does.

That does look like it has ich. White spots on the body can be other things, but spots on the body and the clear parts of the fin is usually ich.
Tough to give you an easy way forward - there is a slight chance if you pull the wrasse it won’t spread to the other fish, but otherwise it’s move the fish to a treatment tank and go with either copper or hyposalinity.
Jay

When you say "move the fish" - is that fish plural, or just the wrasse?

Nice fish. I would feed heavy for the next couple weeks. I never qt'd in my old 150 and never lost a fish. As long as the fish you have are fat and happy and not stressed they will fight it. Its like getting a flu for people but if your unhealthy it might kill you other wise your sick for a week and goes away. Hopefully you have the filtration that can handle it like a fuge or algae scrubber.

Well if I was going to wait until I got the answer I wanted hear, my wait is over. Like I said, I'm really not sure I can catch the fish, there are too many places to hide, and it's a deep tank. He's acting healthy now, and for all I know he caught the ich in my tank. He didn't have any sign of it in the store.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thanks! I thought it might be a flasher wrasse. The clue was the flashing it does.


When you say "move the fish" - is that fish plural, or just the wrasse?


Well if I was going to wait until I got the answer I wanted hear, my wait is over. Like I said, I'm really not sure I can catch the fish, there are too many places to hide, and it's a deep tank. He's acting healthy now, and for all I know he caught the ich in my tank. He didn't have any sign of it in the store.

Moving meaning placing it into another tank (quarantine) to lessen risk of exposure to other tankmates. Treatment best with Copper Power at therapeutic level 2.25-2.5 For a FULL 30 days (do not interrupt this 30 day period) monitored by a reliable Copper Test kit such as Hanna Brand- No API brand. Also monitor Ammonia levels while in quarantine with a reliable test kit and add aeration during treatment using an air stone.
The display tank will have to be kept fishless (FALLOW) for 6-8 weeks to assure the existing parasites go through their life cycle without a host fish and die off
A quarantine tank can be as simple as a starter kit from Walmart which most of the needed essentials.

 

[Dave-T]

Moving meaning placing it into another tank (quarantine) to lessen risk of exposure to other tankmates. Treatment best with Copper Power at therapeutic level 2.25-2.5 For a FULL 30 days (do not interrupt this 30 day period) monitored by a reliable Copper Test kit such as Hanna Brand- No API brand. Also monitor Ammonia levels while in quarantine with a reliable test kit and add aeration during treatment using an air stone.
The display tank will have to be kept fishless (FALLOW) for 6-8 weeks to assure the existing parasites go through their life cycle without a host fish and die off
A quarantine tank can be as simple as a starter kit from Walmart which most of the needed essentials.

I'm not saying you're wrong, but that's ~not~ the answer I wanted to hear. ;-( I do have two 40 gallon quarantine tanks, and know how to quarantine fairly well, I've done it with a couple dozen fish. The problem is that I have way too many fish to cram into my quarantine tanks, even if I could catch them all, and I don't have anywhere else to put them. But don't many (most?) tanks get ich in them eventually?

But back to the wrasse ID, are you sure it's a Mccoskers? It does look a lot like it, but my guy differs in a few ways from the pics I see online (McCoskers left, mine on right):

 

[vetteguy53081]

I'm not saying you're wrong, but that's ~not~ the answer I wanted to hear. ;-( I do have two 40 gallon quarantine tanks, and know how to quarantine fairly well, I've done it with a couple dozen fish. The problem is that I have way too many fish to cram into my quarantine tanks, even if I could catch them all, and I don't have anywhere else to put them. But don't many (most?) tanks get ich in them eventually?

But back to the wrasse ID, are you sure it's a Mccoskers? It does look a lot like it, but my guy differs in a few ways from the pics I see online (McCoskers left, mine on right):

Now that I have a better look on large screen- Not McCoskers. May be Redtailed Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus rubricaudalis)

 

[Dave-T]

Now that I have a better look on large screen- Not McCoskers. May be Redtailed Flasher Wrasse (Paracheilinus rubricaudalis)

But my dude has two spiky things on his dorsal fin, red tailed (and mccoskers) have one. I think I’ll ask the wrasse lovers also, if you don’t mind.

 

[vetteguy53081]

But my dude has two spiky things on his dorsal fin, red tailed (and mccoskers) have one. I think I’ll ask the wrasse lovers also, if you don’t mind.

Not at all.
@i cant think

 

[vetteguy53081]

But my dude has two spiky things on his dorsal fin, red tailed (and mccoskers) have one. I think I’ll ask the wrasse lovers also, if you don’t mind.

Carpenter has two spikes but dont believe this one

 

[i cant think]

Yikes, I don't have QT room for all my fish. I'm hoping it doesn't come to that!


No unusual behaviors. The fish is new to me, but seems normal. Actually, maybe you can help me ID this fish. The guy in the LFS called it a yellowtail fairy, but it sho don't look like the yellowtail fairy I see in pictures. I think he was mixed up with another wrasse I was looking at.

Here's some pics:

This is an interesting one to ID, it does have the traits of ‘Mccoskeri’ and ‘Carpenteri’ but actually, it’s neither!
This is a beautiful Paracheilinus flavianalis.

 

[Dave-T]

Ok, this is weird. Today, the white spots are gone. It’s a miracle!

 

[i cant think]

Ok, this is weird. Today, the white spots are gone. It’s a miracle!

Honestly, it could be that they were grains of sand stuck on the fish due to the mucous coating.
Also, a flasher species is the last fish I’d expect to see get ich, in fact even the hardest of wrasses tend to get ich and other diseases last.