Fast spreading ich?!

[ashlynnmurlo]

This morning I woke up to a fish that was seemingly fine to laying up side down on the floor of the tank.. So I went to petco to get my water tested invade my testing kit just wasn't picking something out but everything checked out. Came back home and a fish that has been hiding for the past three days and only swimming around a very little bit was also dead. I went to check my coral beauty that I just added on Friday, who had no visible spots on it when purchased and now he is covered in white spots and even has them all around his eyes! I have two other fish a damsel and Cardinal that still look good for now.. I plan to set up a qt tank after this I just do not have the money for it right at this moment. Should I do a copper treatment in the water even with having corals and a starfish? Someone please help, I don't want to loose any more fish!

 

[Sk8r]

If you use copper you will lose the cycled tank, sand, rock, and all. No. You cannot. There is no cure that can be applied in the tank. You now have to have it fishless for 72 days to let the pest die out, so when the last fish dies, sorry to say, just concentrate on having a nice shrimp and crab and snail tank until 72 days has passed from the date of the last fish in it, and save toward a qt tank. Sorry to say no, but this HAS no fix but time and a qt tank.

 

[Deinonych]

Timeline is more consistent with velvet. Ich doesn't kill that quickly.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

If it is velvet is there any way that can be saved in the tank?

 

[reeferstace]

If it is velvet is there any way that can be saved in the tank?

No.

 

[TuckerB]

I feel sad every time I read that someone has Ich. Until I joined this sight I had no clue I needed a quarantine tank. I lost all my fish and had to look at a tank with shrimp and corals for 72 days. Please if you are reading this because you have Ich, had Ich or want to make sure you don't get it----------listen to the folks on this site. Quarantine and wait 72 days before you even think about adding to your tank.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

If it is ich, I think that it may have been onset in my fish from the stress they had while we removed our Picasso triggerfish. He was very difficult to catch and it wasn't easy on any of them

 

[snorvich]

Stress does not cause ich; ich causes ich.

 

[ThRoewer]

Stress does not cause ich; ich causes ich.

Stress surely helps in promoting outbreaks.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

I don't know if this will help diagnose if it is ich vs velvet, but this is the bet picture I could get of my coral beauty that is showing the spots. And I have read however, that stress can weaken the immune system of the fish which can help ich develop in them.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

Also, when I look closely at that fish there's stuff comin. Off of his fins that almost looks like a spider web, just stringy like that coming off of the fins.

 

[Deinonych]

That looks more like Brooklynella to me. Your fish needs to be treated ASAP to prevent further losses. Formalin dips are the standard treatment.

 

[Deinonych]

Stress surely helps in promoting outbreaks.

Only if ich is present, though.

 

[Biggibby18]

Whatever you do you need to do it fast though. QT setups don't always have to be expensive. You could easily get away with your bio load in a 10 gallon tank with a small filter and some large PVC. Its better to go ahead and spend the 40$ or so than to have to repurchase all your livestock. And to the copper question.. no bueno. copper will wipe out all your corals. Move all your fish to a QT and use cupramine and get a copper testing kit and in a couple of weeks they will be good as new!

 

[ThRoewer]

Looks like well advanced brook. It's already too late for formalin. I would go with Chloroquine Phosphate.

Only if ich is present, though.

Sure! But without stress, with good food and in a healthy tank even the presence of ich doesn't mean you get an outbreak. Of course if you buy already heavily infected fish all bets are off.
Petco is one of the places where I would expect every fish to be infected.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

Well that fish died a half hour ago. Three of my six down so far today. Do you guys think that it could have been brought in by the coral beauty that I added three days ago and just died? Or maybe from the neon blue green chromosome that was added a few weeks ago? That little guy so far is the only one the not show any symptoms of whatever parasite this is.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

I am definitely learning a lesson the hard way this time. I will never go without a qt tank again!!

 

[ThRoewer]

Any of them could have brought it in.
With fish from Petco I would expect everything from cholera too the black plague.

I would start with a 45 minute formalin dip for every new fish and if suspicious then at a minimum 2 weeks of CP in a QT. And after that a couple of weeks (4-8) of observation.

At the moment you couldn't add a new fish to your DT anyway - first you need to wait at a minimum 6 weeks so the parasites die off.

 

[ashlynnmurlo]

After the six weeks will the parasite for sure be gone and it will be safe to get art getting fish again? Is there a way to tell for sure that the parasite has died off? Also, will this effect my cc starfish at all?

 

[kmbyrnes]

I am sorry for your loss.
Sad to say, most of us learn this lesson the hard way. I know I did.
But this experience will make you a better fish keeper.
72 days is how long your tank needs to be fishless. During that time you can be setting up your QT system. I highly recommend researching TTM as well.

Good Luck!