Need advice about antibiotics

[reefvettech]

My husband and I have a 55 gallon reef tank that has been up running nearly two years without any major problems. Recently we bought a clown tang to add to our yellow tank, mandarin, firefish and blood shrimp. We also have several mushrooms and soft polyps. About a week after purchasing clown, tank broke out with ick. We were half expecting it as we were told that tangs can be very prone. Our LFS rec'd a product called ChemMarin, which was reef safe. After finishing this treatment, yellow tang and other fish were much better but clown still had patchy spots. Our LFS told us he had probably developed a bacterial infection on top of the ick, and advised us to treat with Maracyn. We have just finished this treatment, and still he looks no better. He behaves normally most of the time, occasionally will sit in front of the powerheads. We have done frequent water changes, and all chems are testing normal, pH 8.1 Anyone have a better idea for treatment? I work at a veterinary hospital, so I have access to many types of antibiotics, but not the dosages. I have heard that enrofloxacin(Baytril) is now being used in fish. Has anyone tried this? He is still eating, and we are feeding a garlic supplement. Also, can Marcyn and Marcyn Two be used togethor? Another board rec'd this to me, but everything in my medical nature makes me wary of overdosing.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[BTTRFLYGRL]

Hmmmm..where to start...ah, welcome to RC!

You should never put any medication in your main tank. Reef safe products don't work.. You may see improvement for awhile, but the ich will be back. Always treat in a separate quarantine tank.
Its best to qt all new fish for 4 weeks before placing them in your main tank. Have you checked your paremeters? The meds probably killed off your biological filtration .[ and I predict the ich is still present]

Another problem..you have 2 fish that will get quite large. The Yellow Tang will reach 10" the Clown will reach 12" . a 55 is too small for even 1 of these fish. Yellows are aggressive, Clown Tangs are holy terrors when they get bigger [that's if they live, many don't do well in captivity] You are heading for a major disaster!!! These two fish together need 180 gallon tank . [at least] Keeping them in a 55 will cause both of them much stress..I predict the Clown will kill the Yellow or both will just die prematurely...Please find these fish a more appropriate home

PS 40 gallons is too small for Triggers also

 

[SAT]

reefvettech,

[welcome]

I agree with BTTRFLYGRL on all points. A few additional points...

The antibiotics we have been recommending in this forum are nitrofurazone and Maracyn-Two. Regular Maracyn (erythromycin) has a lot of problems with resistance, particularly in saltwater (yes, you can use the two together, but I wouldn't bother). For a tough case we'll double the dose when using Maracyn-Two.

Unlike many other antibiotics, these two don't wipe out biological filtration. However, I agree with Kim that no medication should be used in a reef tank.

Enrofloxacin has been used in aquaria. However, as with other quinolones, hard water will inhibit its action... so I can't recommend its use in saltwater.

Sitting in front of the powerheads indicates difficulty in respiration. This could indicate he still has parasites on the gills. My trust that ChemMarin will eradicate the Ich is low, so I think that's probable. It could also indicate a problem with water quality: low O2, ammonia, or some other toxin.

Are you testing for ammonia? Anything over 0.1ppm (total) should raise a big red flag.

For Ich treatment, I suggest the following article:
[ich]