Pbt ich again

[Acemann]

Hey guys my powder blues hot ich again last time I tried to put him in quarantine I almost killed him bu stressing to much and would prefer not to do that again to him but it looks pretty bad this time.
I got a ig sterilizer and I vacuum the sand bed once in awhile. Should I try and take him out again and quarantine because I’m afraid he might die if I do that. I have a pair of clowns in there with him too but they don’t have it. I also have some inverts and corals.

 

[jabberwock]

Are the clowns pressuring the PBT? Looks like they are sizing it up in the pic, and the PBT is looking at them sideways.

 

[Tamberav]

How did you treat that you almost killed him?

Many people QT fish without much issue. You need adequate hiding and a cycled tank (ideally, bottled products can help) that is large enough to house a tang for QT purposes (20gL min for small tangs, I would go bigger for larger tangs) and good oxygen/flow.

Pic is a bit blurry but I do see a lot of bumps on the fish. If you do not remove all fish to treat and fallow then this may be an ongoing issue. Your clownfish likley have it but they have a thick slime coat, may effect their gills. Acanthurus tangs are very susceptible to parasites.

I am a believer that QT stresses fish because people do not set them up properly and just go cheap/small/uncycled way too often. It is not a good combination for someone who is not seasoned at QT.

 

[Acemann]

How did you treat that you almost killed him?

Many people QT fish without much issue. You need adequate hiding and a cycled tank (ideally, bottled products can help) that is large enough to house a tang for QT purposes (20gL min for small tangs, I would go bigger for larger tangs) and good oxygen/flow.

Pic is a bit blurry but I do see a lot of bumps on the fish. If you do not remove all fish to treat and fallow then this may be an ongoing issue. Your clownfish likley have it but they have a thick slime coat, may effect their gills. Acanthurus tangs are very susceptible to parasites.

I am a believer that QT stresses fish because people do not set them up properly and just go cheap/small/uncycled way too often. It is not a good combination for someone who is not seasoned at QT.

Last time I had a 30 gallon breeder and treated with copper for 14 days but most of the issue was getting him out of the tank. I specifically made rocks which allow him a lot of hiding spaces. it takes over an hour or two to get him out. He almost completely had no color and I could see some type of red rash looking thing on him. The clowns I feel don’t really bother him but I do sometimes see them follow him around but he is mostly the boss of the tank.

 

[Tamberav]

If he is eating, I have had good luck with fish traps. Some people drain the tank then scoop out the fish.

However, if you do not treat all fish and go fallow it is kind of pointless to cure something only to expose the fish again.

 

[HB AL]

If it's eating I would just let it be and feed it as much as possible, as long as its ich it's not a big deal for me.

 

[Acemann]

If it's eating I would just let it be and feed it as much as possible, as long as its ich it's not a big deal for me.

Sounds good to me. He eats a lot I go through a whole cube of mysis shrimp a day with him and a piece of seaweed.

 

[Spare time]

Last time I had a 30 gallon breeder and treated with copper for 14 days but most of the issue was getting him out of the tank. I specifically made rocks which allow him a lot of hiding spaces. it takes over an hour or two to get him out. He almost completely had no color and I could see some type of red rash looking thing on him. The clowns I feel don’t really bother him but I do sometimes see them follow him around but he is mostly the boss of the tank.

14 days is way too short. What were the rocks made of? Those could have also been dropping the copper level in the qt.

 

[Acemann]

14 days is way too short. What were the rocks made of? Those could have also been dropping the copper level in the qt.

I didn’t have the rocks in the qt the rocks are in the main and they are made out of concrete sand and water softeners and then you cure those rocks in fresh water for up to 6 months. I had some pvc pipes in the qt and I watched a video on BRS and they said to treat 14 days and change the water every 3 days.

 

[Acemann]

14 days is way too short. What were the rocks made of? Those could have also been dropping the copper level in the qt.

 

[Spare time]

I didn’t have the rocks in the qt the rocks are in the main and they are made out of concrete sand and water softeners and then you cure those rocks in fresh water for up to 6 months. I had some pvc pipes in the qt and I watched a video on BRS and they said to treat 14 days and change the water every 3 days.

I'm honestly not a fan of the brs qt video. I think they missed the mark with those.

 

[Acemann]

I'm honestly not a fan of the brs qt video. I think they missed the mark with those.

What should I do?

 

[Gudhjem]

I don't think taking him out of the display to treat for ich makes much sense. If you successfully rid him of ich, what then? He goes back in a tank that has ich in it, so will likely catch it again. The only real options are to (a) treat the entire tank (fish fallow for 72 days), or (b) live with ich.

I used to try for keeping my tanks sterile, but couldn't manage it, no matter how careful my QT. It was also a major hassle. For years I've gone with option (b), and have not lost a fish to ich in that time. They pull through with a healthy environment and lots of feeding. I do use UV, which does not eradicate ich, but I think helps the fish get ahead of it.

A month ago I had a PBT show ich, but no sign of it in the last few weeks.

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

I don't think taking him out of the display to treat for ich makes much sense. If you successfully rid him of ich, what then? He goes back in a tank that has ich in it, so will likely catch it again. The only real options are to (a) treat the entire tank (fish fallow for 72 days), or (b) live with ich.

I used to try for keeping my tanks sterile, but couldn't manage it, no matter how careful my QT. It was also a major hassle. For years I've gone with option (b), and have not lost a fish to ich in that time. They pull through with a healthy environment and lots of feeding. I do use UV, which does not eradicate ich, but I think helps the fish get ahead of it.

A month ago I had a PBT show ich, but no sign of it in the last few weeks.

This. QT isn't fool proof, stuff still gets through, BTDT. If your not going to treat properly (pull all livestock for proper treatment and go fallow), go for ich management. It's still work, but it can be done.

P.S. that PBT is a ich magnet, you stare at it funny and it will break out. I frankly didn't have a lot of luck with acanthurus tangs and ich management, thus I stick to zebrasoma's now.

 

[jabberwock]

Reduce its stress. I think Ich is pretty much always there, or about to be there. When a fish is stressed, its immune system weakens and it expresses the parasite/disease that has been in the tank all along.

Are your clowns exhibiting reproductive signs? Submissive shuddering? Increased aggression?

I know you said you have not really observed anything aggressive, but you never know what happens when you are not looking at the tank. If you can, put the clowns in "time out" and see what happens.