Help with TTM timing

[Justintegra]

We introduced a tang to our 4 month old system that was clean and healthy. Two days later he was covered in white spots, 12 hours later we lost him. We effed up with not doing a qt with him. Now, our two young clowns JUST started showing a few white dots. We immediatly bought everything needed to get them out and start TTM for them. We are PRAYING we caught it early enough to save them as they are so fun. Playful.

Nothing has changed with their attitudes or personalities yet. Still eating and breathing fine.

My question is do we need to do anything else with them to help save them other than TTM? We pulled them from the display and put in transfer tank 1 at 8pm on Wednesday night. Does this mean they must come out around 7pm Saturday night (71 hours) to go into tank 2? I want to make sure we time it right for the transfers. We love those little guys.

We will watch then in a separate qt for a few weeks after that. We are dealing with disinfecting the display in the mean time as a separate issue from the clowns.

 

[Dmorty217]

With how quickly the tang died it may not be ich. Velvet kills quickly like that. The DT will need to be fish less for 72 days after TTM is complete. To answer your question it's better to do the transfers in the morning since the ich drops off at night/morning.

 

[Justintegra]

So I should transfer them Saturday morning, even though it would only have been 60 or so hours?

 

[snorvich]

So I should transfer them Saturday morning, even though it would only have been 60 or so hours?

Less is fine, but longer is not. Just have enough transfers so that the total of all cycles is 12 days with no cycle longer than 72 hours.

 

[Justintegra]

I was hoping I would be able to get you to chime in without actively calling you out

Is it worthwhile at all to time a transfer right after I notice a disappearance of white dots, or still wait till closer to the third day anyway?

Also, is there anything that I really should be doing while they are going through TTM to give them a better chance of pulling through? I know garlic doesn't do anything to the ich, but would it be worth while to help get them to eat just a little more than normal to help their strength? I checked them in the dark this morning and they were a little lethargic looking and leaning toward the side, but I am fairly comfortable that they were just sleeping. I'll be able to check in on them again in just a few hours when I am off of work. I'm hopeful that we can save those two. I couldn't count from than 5 or 7 white dots on them when we pulled them from the display, but I know that's not a total indication of level of infection.

 

[Spar]

I was hoping I would be able to get you to chime in without actively calling you out

Is it worthwhile at all to time a transfer right after I notice a disappearance of white dots, or still wait till closer to the third day anyway?

Also, is there anything that I really should be doing while they are going through TTM to give them a better chance of pulling through? I know garlic doesn't do anything to the ich, but would it be worth while to help get them to eat just a little more than normal to help their strength? I checked them in the dark this morning and they were a little lethargic looking and leaning toward the side, but I am fairly comfortable that they were just sleeping. I'll be able to check in on them again in just a few hours when I am off of work. I'm hopeful that we can save those two. I couldn't count from than 5 or 7 white dots on them when we pulled them from the display, but I know that's not a total indication of level of infection.

The only thing that helps the fish out from the misery is time unfortunately. You have to allow enough time for all the feeding trophonts to jump off the fish. Then the fish will heal up nicely. There is no advantage to the timing of transfers except for doing it before the 72 hours is up... after that means start over.

Garlic will help get them to eat if they aren't actively eating already. use it in moderation and stop it as soon as they get used to food again. IME, even a heavily infected fish will still eat though... but of course every fish is different.

Good luck with them and keep us updated!

 

[Justintegra]

Thanks.

As of last night they were still eating and acting normally. I am ignoring the konked out behavior early this morning in the dark because they were sleeping. They did straighten up and move a little when the light passed over the tank. I know clownfish can almost look dead when they are asleep.

I'll try feeding when I get home and only use garlic if they aren't interested. I think I'm just so nervous because they are young. We bought them small intentionally. I'm worried that young/small means weak. They are probably about the length of a quarter maybe a little bit bigger, but nothing like the monsters my brother in law has. Mine aren't babies, but they aren't fully grown either. I'll update you guys with activity level and such when I get home.

 

[snorvich]

I was hoping I would be able to get you to chime in without actively calling you out

I will be out of pocket for about a week starting this afternoon. TMZ, Spar, and Chris are knowledgeable and will help.l

 

[Justintegra]

Just a quick mobile update. Clowns are alive still and appear to be improving. Two days ago we thought they were done. Not eating, lethargic and just laying sideways on the floor of the tank panting. Woke up and one was still that way and the other was just bobbing around upside down.

Today they are both acting almost totally normal, one we saw eating normally, the other not yet but I suspect he is grazing off the floor when we aren't looking. Swimming normally and starting to hide in the pipe corners now when before they didn't care.

Next transfer is tomorrow before 8pm. Today ia day 4 for them so they still have a week and at least three or four more transfers, but im hopeful. Still undecided about the main tank.

 

[microlady]

Good luck. My fish looked much better after the 2nd tank transfer. This method really works! I'm leaving my DT fallow for a little over 72 days as well.