HELP!!! ICH OR unknown desease ?

marmari

New member
Please help! My dottyback is having some whitish sores on her body. doesnt look like grains of salt so not itch...or is it? I tried to catch her, I cant! any tips on how to catch such small fish(3 in) and any idea what is this desease, and how to treat it?
<img src="http://b.foto.radikal.ru/0603/6a071fbbf6d4.jpg">
 
There are threads throughout RC that discuss catching fish in reef aquariums. This is one of them:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=586506

The fish looks like it has a coating problem that may be evolving into a secondary kind of bacterial infection.

You don't give us much information regarding this fish and your system. It doesn't look like Marine Ich (Cryptocaryon irritans). However, you did not give us enough information to say how the fish may have gotten to this condition. You can cure it probably easily enough, but if you don't correct the reason the fish became ill, then it may just face the same stress that got it to this point again.

I would remove this fish to a hospital tank. I would give the hospital tank treatments of a conditioner to help return its surface coat to a proper condition (like Pro Tech Coat Marine and StressGuard). I would make sure you are feeding it the best and proper foods:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=785228
and I would treat the hospital tank with a gram negative antibiotic to prevent or stave off any bacterial problem.

But, something in your system; something you are doing; something you are not doing; or something in the recent history of the fish has gotten it to this condition.

Good luck! :rollface:
 
Thanks! When I got the fish it only had a tiny sore(like it had one scale damaged) near gill and i though it was from transporting/catching the fish. The tank is new, I am cycling it right now - there are also 4 damsels there. The ammonia is still in check though, so no reason for stress? I just found out about water buffering...I replenished water with filtered water from grocery store and I didn't add baking soda in it///should I ?
 
Your replenishment water doesn't need much in the way of a pH adjustment, unless it's out of wack. Evaporated water leaves the buffer in tact so that add-back water is stabilized. That is. . .unless the add-back water is really off track. Is the filter water pure enough? Have you ever checked it for ammonia, nitrites, phosphates, silica, organics, and other things? You might consider switching to DI or distilled water for replenishment.

Stress doesn't mean that you are the one doing it. A fish responds to stress in minutes, hours, days, or even weeks. So, it doesn't have to be a stress from you. If you can see any damage to a fish, trust me, that could be just the tip of the iceberg. It's what you don't see that will bite you. I suggest you read this short thread for some insights:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=800280

Don't hesitate to refuse a fish that you think was hurt during its capture. You might say to your LFS that you will buy that fish, but until you've paid for it, it is still theirs! So if for any reason you don't like the looks of the fish when it is in the bag, after capture, tell them you don't want it now.

I think it'll be okay if you give it rest, good foods, TLC, and some treatment. :rollface:
 
Well, its an ich 'cause i see one really white spot on her...so i removed her (she is VERY curious fish) in a cocacola bottle trap and she is now in a hospital tank with copper. And I gave her a freshwater dip for 5 minn, dont know if that's enough? she seemed to have no trouble staying there, the temp was same as in aquarium plus there was a couople of flakes there to munch on.

Anyways the damsels are also infected. i only see chromis now covered in white spots. I cannot lure those in my trap though they are too cautious.
 
If it's Marine Ich (Crytpocaryon irritans) don't bother with a FW dip. The FW dip is useful if the fish is overwhelmed with Marine Ich and not worth doing as a routine thing.

Sorry to hear it is Marine Ich. It seems like you know what to do. :(
 
A weird thing happened today! The green chromis damsel seem to have recovered - one day without infected dottyback - no white sores on his scales on him today, not even one!!! I had a trap overnight to get the fish used to it, but now I have second thoughts...it may not be ich? looks like i'll be able to cycle the tank after all?
 
You're falling into a very old 'pit' with regards to Marine Ich. It comes and it goes isn't what is happening. What it does is go through stages. In a few days, there will be another outbreak. It doesn't 'go away.' It just plays hide 'n seek. You/we can only see the MI for just a couple of days when it is fat and large enough to show itself on the fish. The other 20 days we can't see it.

Learn about its cycle and some of the myths surrounding it here:
http://www.petsforum.com/personal/trevor-jones/marineich.html

:D
 
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