Damn Ick...

[ccCapt]

Damseluver is right on!

Ich is so easy to control. Buy a new fish then quarantine it. Watch it, make sure you get it eating the same food you feed the tank and if you see a problem....treat it. I qt any new fish for a min of 2 weeks to make sure they are eating and I don't see any problems. If any treatments are needed, it gets done before they are put in the main. A little patience in adding new fish to the display goes a long way.

[daugherty]

my lfs qt every fish they get they will not sell it for 4 weeks after they get it in. every tank they have has a uv on it. i have never had ick in any of my tanks. i will not buy a fish that is going to be sold in the first couple weeks of them receving it.

[cthegame]

Although Damsluver's info is correct, not everything will go by the book and the 17 days is not going to mean the same for all tanks.

I also disagree about the cleaner shrimps. Sometimes they might have no affect and sometimes they do a great job.

In my tank, the fire shrimp gives my tang a daily cleaning and has removed ich from his body on many occasions. So its not correct to say that cleaner shrimps have no affect because they do alot of the times.

Ich is always present in our tanks. The 6 week life cycle doesnt really mean much, ich will come right back if the fish are stressed. If the fish is eating, the chances of recovery is very high and there is no need to put the fish thru more stress by removing it from the DT. In my personal opinion, i think fish that are not eating and show other signs of stress should be medicated. Just spots on the fish is not enough reason to remove him if all other signs are good (eating, acting healthy, etc.).

[ccCapt]

Originally Posted by cthegame

Ich is always present in our tanks. The 6 week life cycle doesnt really mean much, ich will come right back if the fish are stressed.

Nothing can be further from the truth. This is pure misinformation. It has been scientifically proven that copper treatment or hyposalinity will kill ich. One it's dead, it's gone. Stress can not create a parasite that does not exist.
Please, show me one study proving otherwise.

[daugherty]

yes ich is introduced to the tank by a sick fish. it does not live in our tanks all the time. if it did we would all keep having outbreaks non stop. ich will come back if the cysts are not liked by letting the tank sit for awhile. as ich can only host to fish.

[cthegame]

Originally Posted by ccCapt

Nothing can be further from the truth. This is pure misinformation. It has been scientifically proven that copper treatment or hyposalinity will kill ich. One it's dead, it's gone. Stress can not create a parasite that does not exist.
Please, show me one study proving otherwise.

Nope, cant prove it, but i have had ich free tank for months (way beyond 6 weeks) and my coral beauty still got ich. So did my tang. And im not disputing that copper will kill ich. Im saying there is no need to medicate a fish if the fish is not seriously ill and ich alone is not a good reason to put the fish thru more stress if he is eating and acting healthy.

Weaker fish, stressed fish, etc. are more prone to ich. You can have ich in your tank but have ich free fish if the fish are strong enough and not stressed. Most of the time the fish fights it off on his own.


I myself am someone who advocates quarantining each new addition. I quarantine my new fish for in copper for 2 weeks. I did this with my CB and my tang. They still got ich!

So im just saying, it doesnt always go by the book. They are not robots.

[ccCapt]

Originally Posted by cthegame

I myself am someone who advocated quarantining each new addition. I quarantine my new fish for in copper for 2 weeks. I did this with my CB and my tang. They still got ich!

I'm glad you advocate qt, but if it didn't work, you did something wrong. Which copper product did you use? Was it chelated or non-chelated? Did you test your copper levels as you were treating? Which test kit did you use? Some test kits only read chelated copper and some non-chelated. If you don't get the correct test kit for the copper you used, you won't get accurate readings. As with anything else that gets dosed into your tank, always test for whatever it is your dosing. Copper is no exception when medicating.

[Damseluver]

It is true that the parasite can exist at non lethal levels in tanks with healthy well adjusted fish. It is also true however that when done properly the parasite can be completely eradicated from the system.

If the parasite is present the introduction of new specimens will be difficult. The stress from the move or aggression from existing tank mates will usually push the new fish over the edge. Once the new fish is highly susceptible to the parasite its population will increase significantly putting even established fish in jeopardy.

[Rcpilot]

Shameless post count bump.

Like it matters......................