Noticing my hippo is starting show little salt specs looks like the start of ich

N

Newjack2005

New member
Any ideas without removing him and tearing the tank apart I have a UV sterilizer and cleaner shrimp but have been told cleaners do nothing for ich. I have no hospital tank setup ive heard the theories of the fresh water bath hypo salinty every other fish is fine. Its always the Hippos that get ich and eventually die on me. They are by far one of my favorite fish and im determined to keep this one she's beautiful.
 
Cleaners, UV, FW dips, will not cure ich. Hypo every other day can't possibly work work either. If you know this, why do you keep buying them? Set up a QT/HT and treat your fish; preferably with copper. Its the only answer and very simple. If you can't/won't use a QT on all new fish; this may not be the right hobby for you. Because the untreated tang brought ich into your tank; all of your fish are infected and need to be treated. Ich will keep living in your tank as long as there are fish in it. You cannot just treat the fish that show ich; eventually you'll probably lose all of your fish unless you get rid of the ich. Here's some vital reading:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2159738
 
Im glad you responded Mrtuskfish ive seen in the past your very knowledgeable on this subject the hippo is my "unicorn" fish the one im not meant to have ive never had a hospital tank before because of the trouble of always catching the fish and tearing apart the reef. I've never had a bad outbreak of ich "knock on wood" however im anal about maintenance and upkeep of my equipment. I watched this current Hippo at my local fish store for 30 days before bringing him home hes fat healthy about 6 inches in length I figured he was a guarantee but low behold the salt spots are showing up. Shes currently eatting like a little pig and swimming and happy today the first day of the spots id like to nip it in the butt before she declines. What do you recommend for a hospital qt tank.
 
Ich could easily have been in your tank and the Hippo just got it there. No LFS does a decent QT regimen and you should assume all new fish have ich or other parasites. A QT does a lot more than just catch ich and other deadly parasites. Fish adapt to captivity and their diet much easier; there is no bullying, competition, or general mayhem. Because your whole system has ich, all fish need to be treated and the nDT left fishless for 10+ weeks. There just isn't an easier way. Your QT size will depend on how many fish you need to keep for the 19 weeks. A tank, heater, some PVC pieces for shelter and patience are all you really need. Craigslist is a great place to find a QT; at least, everything but the patience. You can move the UV to the HT, it will help a little. Cupramine and a SeaChem copper test kit would be my choice. A HOB filter, I really like Aqua-Clear will help hold aerobic bacteria and also help keep the surface for gas exchange. Assuming you don't have any well-seeded filter media in your DT; Dr. Tims or Bio-Spira will help get your bio-filter started. Ammonia is an enemy in a HT if you're not ready. Get a SeaChem stick-on Ammonia Alert, regular ammonia tests don't work with copper. Ask a lot of questions as you go. This is going to be a big PITA, but use a good QT on all new fish from now on and you'll never go through this again.
 
I picked up a little a 30 gallon tank from LFS used. Filters heaters the hole shebang i treated my main 220 tank food with garlic today we'll see how she is tomorrow if she's still showing spots or going down i'll move her but i want the new tank to to cycle a bit and she's currently eating and swimming just has the spots just a little skittish i've never had a mass breakout besides my early beginner days. The powders and the Hippos are always the ones i want but can't keep maybe the DT/ hospital tank is finally the way to go the wife was always in my ear all these years "oh great another tank" I'm sure you can understand and aside from these fish species I've had no massive ICH breakouts or casualties they are like finishing paint to my portrait fish wise.
 
I hope you don't expect garlic to do anything, it won't. You won't reget the work of eliminating ich; it has ruined the hobby for many folks who thought they could just "manage" ich.
 
It's not just your hippo that needs treatment. The ich will remain in your tank as long as fish are in there. The others may not show symptoms, but if you want to rid your tank of ich your tank needs to be fishless for an absolute minimum of 6 weeks. Otherwise when you put your healthy tang back in he will start to show symptoms again.
 
I thought ich was one of those pathogens that was present no matter what you do (excluding extreme uv). I have never had issues with ich because my systems are healthy. The fact that you have ich seems that maybe your water quality isn't where it should be or your overall system is not healthy. If your animals are healthy they don't get ich. I would start more basic. How often do you do water changes and what are your parameters? In my experience fish get sick when they are stressed because the stress drops their immunity levels.
 
Yose said:
I thought ich was one of those pathogens that was present no matter what you do (excluding extreme uv). I have never had issues with ich because my systems are healthy. The fact that you have ich seems that maybe your water quality isn't where it should be or your overall system is not healthy. If your animals are healthy they don't get ich. I would start more basic. How often do you do water changes and what are your parameters? In my experience fish get sick when they are stressed because the stress drops their immunity levels.
Click to expand...

Ich is a parasite with a known life cycle. It is not always present and will die off completely if allowed to complete its life cycle without a fish host. Ich can, and does, take over the healthiest of systems. No fish has permanent immunity to all strains of ich. Here's a short version, written by a true expert on the parasite:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1992196
 
So in essence, from the first section, water quality is a huge trigger, which brings us back to my question of, "what is the water quality?"
 
Water quality is spot on no other fish have shown ich just the hippo throughout the whole time the tanks been running but they will all be hospitaled id rather be safe then sorry and reinffect the hippo thanks guys
 
Heres a question for you Mrtusk once the hippos back to good health I dont plan on adding any more fish for awhile if I let it go the whole 6 weeks with uv running and keep the water quality good which it always do should my issue be over. The reason why I ask is I dont think I can move my sailfin, yellow, and hippo all in there at once its only 30 gallons and I think they would kill each other and be more stressed all together in there the other fish im not worried about just my tangs. The other fish have never been sick or ever shown ich ever just when I put in a hippo or powders in and my guess is they get ich from stress from the first few days of acclimation.
 
Hippos are easily infected as they have a very thin mucus over thier body's in comparison to a lot of other fish. It is this membrane or secretion that protects the fish from the parasite . If a fish is stressed or not healthy this defense is compromised. Garlic can help the fish to possibly eat more but other than that it isn't a proven cure. Stress is the #1 cause of infections in not only fish but us also. Quarantine and copper based is the only cure but if the stressors are not addressed it will return. Good luck
 
Again, unless all of the fish are taken out of the system, ich will remain. Just because the others don't show symptoms doesn't mean they don't have the parasite. It can host in its gills and mouth. All it takes is one cyst to complete the life cycle.
 
mbingha said:
Again, unless all of the fish are taken out of the system, ich will remain. Just because the others don't show symptoms doesn't mean they don't have the parasite. It can host in its gills and mouth. All it takes is one cyst to complete the life cycle.
Click to expand...

I agree. Also, no fish gets ich from stress, they can only get ich from ich. You could do anything to stress the fish in any of my DTs and they would never get ich; because there is no ich to get.
 
Yose said:
So in essence, from the first section, water quality is a huge trigger, which brings us back to my question of, "what is the water quality?"
Click to expand...

Water quality can only be a trigger if ich is present and any fish can become infested with ich even under the best conditions. Only a good quarantine program can insure ich free tanks.
 
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