I had ich. Started treating with salt and raised temp to 87 degrees. It didn't seem to be helping so I have been using the Jungle ich fizzy tabs. I used them for two days - in the past two days I have lost 5 rummy nose, 3 neons, a cory cat and a pictus. I have my last rummy nose on his way out and possibly another neon. Water parameters are good. Is this just par for the course w/ ich treatment? The guppies and platys seem to be doing just fine. They don't seem to be bothered at all. But, everything else is dying. What's going on? Also, I've been doing a 30-40% water change every day too. And yes, I am using water conditioner.
2007-07-18 18:09:59 · 8 answers · asked by Tina N 4 in Pets ➔ Fish
Bettachris - I took the carbon out when I did the fizzy. It's a 30 gal tank - only thing left are 3 platys, 4 guppies, 1 rummy nose, 2 neons and 2 corys. I don't think that it's overstocked, is it?
2007-07-18 18:18:53 · update #1
Is this the same infection that you've been asking about for a while? The current problem here seems to with your tetras, and these are the fish that are the most sensitive to medications and/or salt. You need to use (or at least start) with a 1/2 dose and build the treament gradually.
You also need to consider that any treatment is going to take 10-14 days to rid your fish of ich. You'll see the spots on your fish for a while after you start any treatment, since while on the fish, the parasites are protected within a cyst. It's not until they break out of the cyst that the treatment can begin to affect them.
When you do the water cange, are you replacing the amount of medication for the water removed only? Or the entire dose? If the latter, you're overdosing the fish. So if you add 1 tablet for 5 gallons, for instance, you'd be better to remove 5 gallons so you only have to add one tablet to the replacement water. If you remove 1/3 of the water, how do you calculate the amount of medication to replace?
Choose one treatment (along with the elevated temperature, this will help with either salt or medication) and stick with it.
NOTE: If the amount of salt you were using was 1 tablespoon per gallon (as was recommended in one of the answers to a previous question), tetras are able to tolerate that amount if introduced slowly.
2007-07-18 18:53:52 · answer #1 · answered by copperhead 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
your water parameters must be off then. My guess is too many fishes for that tank, but what your doing is right.
highwater temp and awuarium salt, plus medications such as jungle buddies is the right thing to do. Did u remove the carbon bag? that might be why the medication arent working. As they abosrb the medication.
The reason why the livebearers are doing well is because they can handle alot of salt being part brackish.
You really need to post your tank size, as that is a key role and my guess is it wasnt large enough to hold all of these fishes, also if you added any new fish lately, they may have brought in the ich, so in the years to come, always use a quartine tank.
But the treatment will work, its a matter of time as the paracites will have to go though their life cycle. while the increase in water temp will help.
2007-07-19 01:14:21 · answer #2 · answered by Coral Reef Forum 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Chris has it more or less correct the only fish you've lost so far are all from the Amazon region i'll give you 3 guesses how much salt you find in the upper to mid Amazon where the fish are found. Raising the temperature should be sufficient it takes about 7 days for the adult white spot to die then you continue for a further 7 days to make sure water born or larvae in the gravel die off.
AJ
2007-07-19 01:39:06 · answer #3 · answered by andyjh_uk 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
1. keep doing the water changes but reduce them to about 20% otherwise you will get rid of 2 much medication with each change. after the last day of medication do a 50% water change.
2. try getting a new ich treatment. (go to the pet store and ask what they recomend, though i am a personal fan of the fizz tabs)
3. Make sure your carbon filter is removed from yuor tank as this absorbs the medication.
4. ich is very hard to get rid of but keep doing what you are doing and it will work out.
5. Finally it is very comman for the smaller fish to die off because they are small it is harder for them to fight off the dieses. When i had fin rot in my tank i lost all but 2 of my small fish but my 4 bigger fish surrvive.
Hope it helps =)
2007-07-19 01:16:37 · answer #4 · answered by Darkness 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
When i was first reading your question your tank seemed over stocked and that may have caused the ich to occur, but then again you have small fish so.... just make your all the fish have enough swimming space.
2007-07-19 03:42:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I used to have a 20 gallon tank...i had different kinds of fish, then i bought 5 black skirt tetra...after i added them to the tank i noticed white spots on them, i immediately went back to the fish store and they told me that it was a disease called ich and that it could be spread to the other fish - they sold me a product by the same name and told me to remove the ich infested tetras before it spread to the other fish and treat them with the ich drops in a separate fish container...i did as instructed and within a few days the white spots on the 5 black skirt tetra disappeared and then i placed them back in with my other fish and none died. NOT ANY OF THEM.
2007-07-19 01:34:08 · answer #6 · answered by birdtennis 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
your daily water changes may be the problem, a 30-40 seems a little excessive and may be messing up the biological filter.
thats my two cents, hope your tank survives
2007-07-19 01:14:45 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is also possible your raised the water temp too fast and the sick fish went into shock a died over those 2 days.
2007-07-19 01:19:02 · answer #8 · answered by Palor 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋