Does ich symptoms appear within hours?

[m0nkie]

Hi. I'm just wondering how fast ich symptoms can appear? I saw a perfectly healthy blue tang at the store. I took it home and put it in the QT. a few hours later, it's covered with white spots. (x10-15 spots). It doesn't look like white sand dots outside the body. More like the inside the body turning white. uneven sized white dots.

soo.. does the tang have ich? or can it be something else? stress color?

sorry for the crappy cellphone camera. I'll try take better ones if I can. fish is scared and hiding currently

thanks for the help.

 

[HumbleFish]

The tang already had ich when you bought it, but mucous had not yet built up around the areas where the parasite burrows under the skin. So you didn't see it, as ich itself is invisible to the naked eye. Btw, this could also be marine velvet - which is far deadlier than ich and requires prompt treatment.

 

[m0nkie]

oh boy... thanks! good thing he's in QT. I'll observe him for another day.

without using medicine treatment, how long should they be in QT if symptoms of ich/velvet appears? 3 months?

 

[snorvich]

If you do not use treatment, velvet will kill, almost always within 10 days from the beginning of symptoms. If you do not treat, ich will persist on the fish and the environment where it is kept. The pictures are not clear enough for diagnosis.

 

[m0nkie]

thanks guys. I will monitor him for another day or two..

any big differences between ich and velvet symptoms? heavy breathing = velvet? I'll see if any clear symptoms show up today and tomorrow, then decide to go with copper or TT.

 

[snorvich]

I suggest you read here.