Hippo has ich, imagine that!

[Matt850]

I have a new hippo tang which is fairly small in QT. I received it the day before last and after acclimating it to the QT tank I found that it had a few white spots. I normally just watch for signs in the first two weeks and if there isnt any spots there wont be ich. Anyways, what would be the best way to treat the fish. The only reason I ask is that the fish came with a slightly battered mouth which seems to be healing pretty well. It looked as though he had lipstick on yesterday but it is more white and very little pink/red tonight. I'm worried because I know I shouldn't run copper with other injuries however the ich is starting to take hold. I was planning, and probably will still, change him between two QT tanks every three days while emptying and drying out each tank in between. Is it still safe to use copper? Should I find another treatment? Should I be treating his mouth damage? With what?

*He is in fact eating even with the damaged mouth.

 

[RBU1]

I would start a cuprmaine treatment following the directions on the bottle for the most part. The directions say to treat for 14 days but if you call Seachem they will tell you to treat for 4 weeks..I would also split the doses of copper up. After the cuprmaine treatment if the fish still has issues then you can address them but I would get rid of the ich first. Some issues you may be seeing can be secondary bacterial infections from the ich.

Copper dosage is 1ml per 10.5 gallons wait 48 hours then repeat. So for your 30 gallon tank I would dose 2ml wait at least 2 days to make sure the fish is still eating and acting fine then dose another 2ml wait at least a couple days make sure the fish is eating and acting fine, test the water to see what your copper concentration is then add another 2ml only after making sure the fish is tolerating the copper and still eating. Your total dosage amount spread over a week or so will be 6ml if you want to play it safe and go with 5ml you can just make sure you test regularly to make sure you are staying in the target .5 treatment range.

Good Luck.

 

[Trademark]

hyposalinty might help with ich but not real sure with the other problems,

 

[Psionicdragon]

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1752607

 

[Matt850]

RBU1 thanks for the recommendation. I will begin copper following my second water change coming up tomorrow. Theoretically based on the life cycle of the parasite, I should be parasite free IF i did everything perfect... knowing I probably did not, I will still do an additional water change and start the Cu. I will do a full week to get it up to the correct amount and then watch carefully for spots. If I do not see any in the time period of 7 days(about two full ich life cycle periods) I should assume that the ich was cured from my first method of killing ich (two QT tanks and switching between those tanks every 3 days, emptying and drying the one not being used) and discontinue the copper treatment, otherwise the Cu treatment will be well under way and able to finish off any remaining ich.

I have a ton of knowledge on this subject but the thing that caught me off guard was the damaged mouth. I just wanted a second opinion before proceeding. I was unsure of how to proceed if the fish had a sore on him. I have also read that hyposalinity can be far more stressful on the fish than even copper can be and the parasites can often last longer than the fish in these conditions. I generally wait one full day after the last of the spots go away from the fish and move him slowly to a second QT tank. Assuming none of the parasites is able to make the transition, this method should work as much as using Cu. I think that I will still use copper to make sure, but knowing that it isn't always necessary is helpful in my mind.

 

[RBU1]

No problem. Make sure you do the full 4 weeks 3 at a minimum of .5 Cuprmaine.

I don't think Hypo is stressful on the fish as much as the hobiest. You really have to keep up on the water quality. PH is a PITA to maintain. I thought lower salinity was actually easier on the fish for oxygen reasons....Not sure on this but I think I read that somewhere.

Good Luck with your treatment.

 

[RBU1]

OH and I can't stress enough the importance of adding copper real slow.....

 

[wooden_reefer]

RBU1 thanks for the recommendation. I will begin copper following my second water change coming up tomorrow. Theoretically based on the life cycle of the parasite, I should be parasite free IF i did everything perfect... knowing I probably did not, I will still do an additional water change and start the Cu. I will do a full week to get it up to the correct amount and then watch carefully for spots. If I do not see any in the time period of 7 days(about two full ich life cycle periods) I should assume that the ich was cured from my first method of killing ich (two QT tanks and switching between those tanks every 3 days, emptying and drying the one not being used) and discontinue the copper treatment, otherwise the Cu treatment will be well under way and able to finish off any remaining ich.

Nothing works instantaneously. Copper or hypo does not kill any ich instantaneously. A few may find their way onto a fish and become no more vulnerable to the copper or hypo, IMO.

So I believe that several lifecycles of duration of treatment will lead to a high chance of eradication.

 

[wooden_reefer]

Yes, hippo tangs getting ich is rare indeed.

If there is no ich; it is quite rare for any fish to get ich.

 

[krowleey]

Nothing works instantaneously. Copper or hypo does not kill any ich instantaneously. A few may find their way onto a fish and become no more vulnerable to the copper or hypo, IMO.

So I believe that several lifecycles of duration of treatment will lead to a high chance of eradication.

yes, it's quite simply really. The lifecycle of the ich can only be eradicated in it's free swimming stage. although research has shown hypo can cause some of the cysts to explode while on the specimen. Which i have had happen, but also can help invite bacterial infection. Most people think the fish is getting more infested after a day of getting moved into QT, but the fish was already infected the same, they just could not visualize the parasite. One would want the fish in treatment so those parasites drop off the fish for reproduction.

 

[clownaround2]

Try adding garlic to the food. The ich will have a hard time sticking to the fish. I use liquid garlic, but I 've heard that crushing a fresh garlic clove is even better. Try to marinade the food in it, before you feed it to the fish. Good luck, hope your fish recovers quickly.

 

[krowleey]

Try adding garlic to the food. The ich will have a hard time sticking to the fish. I use liquid garlic, but I 've heard that crushing a fresh garlic clove is even better. Try to marinade the food in it, before you feed it to the fish. Good luck, hope your fish recovers quickly.

this is a myth, garlic has no control for ich what so ever, while a fish can gain a temporary immunity, it will still harbor ich and thus leaving it in your tank for future outbreaks. Do yourself and fish a favor, and QT and treat them. Leave the display falow for 6-8 weeks and then enjoy not ever having to deal with it in your DT again.