adding a achilles

[dgasmd]

I've had 2 achilles with different yet successfull results. The first was in my 360g SPS tank. It did great for over 2 years until it died int he move to FL. I had a powder blue and a powder brown with it. The powder blue was twice as big as the achiles, which was the same size as the powder brown. There was some friction between the 3, but in the end they did well together and I would classify it as a very mild mannered fish . They all got a bit of ich here and there, but I never did anything about it. It would come and go on its own without a strong reason. I think the key were 3: tons of open room to swim, plenty of feeding, and strong water current.

The second one I have had now for 2 years. It has never had a single spot of ich since I got it. It is the meanest fish in my tank and it is single handedly responsible for the assassination of multiple other fish, all of which are not even tangs. I feed so much less now (every other day) as oppossed to before and it is fat as it gets. Yet, I think the keys remain tons of open water and space along with strong water current. This fish loves to swim right up to the tunzes and close loop outlets.

 

[zemuron114]

Most people use a QT tank of say 20-40 gallons. This is not a good size to QT an achilles. The main system most likely has ICH in it anyway so the achilles will probably come down with ich with or without QT anway.... QT if it makes you feel better, but i dont believe it will make a difference.

 

[dgasmd]

I think QT have their place, but more for isolating a fish to acclimate it better to a tank life and to get it to eat than to get it "sterilized". Unless you have taken every single fish in the tank with the same "sterilization procedures", zemuron114 is right.

 

[bureau13]

Well, that's the point isn't it? To make sure with every single fish that you don't bring parasites with it? You may translate your statement as "Unless you do it right, QT is useless." If that's what you meant, then of course I agree

Look, I never quarantined, I got something far nastier than ich as a result, and I had to catch the few remaining fish that survived and QT them. So, my display tank should not have any ich or velvet or any other parasite with a similar lifecycle in it. SHOULD not. Hey, you never know I suppose, but that IS the goal of proper QT procedures. You can play Russian Roulette with your fish if you want to, but sooner or later it will bite you.

jds

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8154989#post8154989 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dgasmd
I think QT have their place, but more for isolating a fish to acclimate it better to a tank life and to get it to eat than to get it "sterilized". Unless you have taken every single fish in the tank with the same "sterilization procedures", zemuron114 is right.

 

[emperior911]

BTTRFLYGRL, why is it that when i add a new fish.... It gets ich but none of the other fish get it? stressed fish get ich. bottom line. i've had the same fish for 2 years now. I worked at a LFS bringing new fish home every week... trading in the ones i didn't like. new fish would get ich because of being stressed. old fish wouldn't even have a spec of ich.

 

[emperior911]

i will be adding a majestic angel, i'm going to take the chance of adding a large angel to a reef. i'll toss whatever coral the majestic develops a taste for

 

[JENnKerry]

See what gets me is that I got my powder blue a year and a half ago. He came down with ick within the first month of having him, and he continued to have it for about a month. Then mysteriously, it went away and never returned and none of my other fish got it. Weird.

My opinion? If you have your heart set on it, get it from a good online vendor.

 

[zemuron114]

Try to get it at a LFS. That way you can see if it is healthy or not eating/no signs of stress. A mean achilles is a healthy achilles

 

[bureau13]

(*SIGH*) What exactly is your point? Yes, stressed fish are less able to ward off the parasite. No one is disputing this. But guess what, other things can stress your fish out besides being introduced to your tank. Something will eventually come up that will stress them out. Do you want them to suddenly develop ich then? Or not? Keep it out of your tank, and it can NOT show up, no matter how stressed out your fish are. Do people just not believe this?

jds

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8159522#post8159522 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by emperior911
BTTRFLYGRL, why is it that when i add a new fish.... It gets ich but none of the other fish get it? stressed fish get ich. bottom line. i've had the same fish for 2 years now. I worked at a LFS bringing new fish home every week... trading in the ones i didn't like. new fish would get ich because of being stressed. old fish wouldn't even have a spec of ich.

 

[emperior911]

Ich is present it all systems in my experence. there isn't a 100% way of not bringing it into your system. rock, corals, nets, water, inverts ex can bring it in. i've heard of cases of people quarenting everything, but yet they'll still get ich. i used to help run the best fish store in my town. i've dealt with almost everything in the book

 

[bureau13]

If someone "quarantined everything" and ich still got in, then they didn't do it right. Its not black magic, we know what the parasite needs to survive and we know what we can do to kill it.

That said, sure...its tough to be completely, 100% religious with this stuff. For instance, I don't yet have a coral qt set up. Its a risk, sure. I think more so for hitchiker pests and such than for ich...the LFS I buy from do have a few fish in their coral tanks, but they don't rotate fish through there and they don't sell the fish out of those tanks. As far as ich or velvet is concerned, you are astronomically more likely to bring it in with a fish than any of these other paths, so saying you won't quarantine fish because of the possibility you can get it when you bring in corals is kind of like saying you won't wear a motorcycle helmet because a stray meteor could smash into your head and it would still kill you. Fairly dumb analogy but its the best I could come up with at almost 3am! At any rate, if it were just ich I would undoubtedly still be rolling the dice. However, if velvet is parasite of the day, its a whole new world of pain that awaits. Whatever...I'm finished with this topic on this thread. Good luck.

jds

 

[VikeBron]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8159536#post8159536 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by emperior911
i will be adding a majestic angel, i'm going to take the chance of adding a large angel to a reef. i'll toss whatever coral the majestic develops a taste for

WOW! That's showing alot of respect and compassion for the other LIVING creatures in your tank.
You should give your corals away and go with fish only.

 

[bureau13]

Hey, Majestic Angels are worth it! FWIW mine never touched a thing until he was brutally slain by an onset of marine velvet due to NOT QUARANTINING INCOMING FISH.....but I digress

Don't we tend to be a wee bit hypocritical with the whole "all living creatures are valuable" mantra?

"Hey how dare you disrespect that coral...damn, there's another aiptasia, pass the Joe's Juice..."

jds