I recent took all the fish out of my tank to treat for an ich outbreak after transferring to a 180g reef. i've had my boxfish in a treatment tank for the past 5 weeks. he has no white spots on his fins but his body still has spots. everyone else in the hospital tank looks great. a total of 12 fish in that 75g hospital tank. i'm thinking of putting everyone back in the main display but i'm bit skeptical when it comes to him. Could these white spots be scars, are these spots usual for a boxfish or could it be that he still has ich? Plz let me know if anyone has any info.
Boxfish Question
- Thread starter Pakawem
- Start date
I've treating my hospital tank with Kordon- copper-aid. Before moving all the fish to the copper tank i was using metroplex to help fight the ich and replenishing their slime coat. I soak their food in Garlic Extreme to help boost their immune system. copper has been steady at .75ppm n for 2 weeks i went up to 1ppm. now i have it back down to .50ppm n i was thinking of bringing it down to .25ppm and slowly stop treating it before putting the fish back in the main display. The main tank has been fish free for 5 weeks now.
ThRoewer
New member
That doesn't really look like ich. With ich I would expect spots to be on the fins, and with this density also some on the eyes.
The other alternative would be lymphocystis - likely due to the copper. But again, I would expect at least some spots on the fins.
When did these spots show up?
Does the fish behave in any way sick or shows signs of heavy breathing?
The other alternative would be lymphocystis - likely due to the copper. But again, I would expect at least some spots on the fins.
When did these spots show up?
Does the fish behave in any way sick or shows signs of heavy breathing?
I'm pretty sure he had ich at first because his fins had a lot of white spots. All the spots cleared off after being in the copper tank for about a week or 2 and we recently started seeing these white spots that you're seeing in the picture. Looks like he's getting more. And his behavior has been normal, Eats like a champ, very alert when i come close to the tank. no heavy breathing.
if i'm reading this correctly, you have a couple of problems. #1, the main tank needs to stay fishless for 72 days, at the least, to kill the parasite. #2, because you have added new fish before the tank has been fallow long enough to kill the parasite, there's every chance that your new fish will become infected.
i could be way off but the only solution i see that would be 100% would be to remove the new fish to qt and leave the tank fallow for the full 72 days. if you leave the new fish in your display and they get ich, you will be back to square 1. actually, the way i see it, you ARE back to square 1.
The spots showed up about a week ago. There was only 1 or 2 spots at first and he's been getting more at a slow rate. He does not show any signs of stress. He is still eating, his breathing is fine, he is swimming, he is not hiding and he still greats us everyday. So, other than the spots, he seems completely normal. All of the other fish are spot-free and behaving as I would expect them to. Nobody is showing any signs of stress.
ThRoewer
New member
It may be Lymphocystis, despite the fins being clean. Boxfish are a bit different than other fish which could be the explanation for that. Boxfish have bony structures below their very thin skin and this skin is pretty sensitive.
These spots showing up after copper treatment would also support Lymphocystis.
Try to get a close look at these spots, ideally with a magnifying glass, and check if they look a bit like little cauliflowers.
These spots showing up after copper treatment would also support Lymphocystis.
Try to get a close look at these spots, ideally with a magnifying glass, and check if they look a bit like little cauliflowers.
I agree. If it were lymphocystis it would be persistent; if it were ich the spots would disappear after a few days. My recollection is that treating a boxfish or cowfish with copper is not desirable.
ThRoewer
New member
Check this page under Viral diseases -> Lymphocystis Marine Fish Diseases and Parasites
There are some pictures of a cowfish with Lymphocystis and it looks exactely like on your boxfish.
There are some pictures of a cowfish with Lymphocystis and it looks exactely like on your boxfish.
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