Quarantining my fish!

Not sure about the different species and how well they fare with different treatments, but I do know that medications can cause them to lose weight faster than normal so be sure to feed well! This will decrease stress and increase fish health to maximize survival.

For ich, you need AT LEAST 6 weeks of treatment. There are a few different groups of people that choose one method over another. I know a two tank method works well and copper seems to work but with potentially more trouble (due to sensitivity of fish and concentrations in the water being too high if not checked regularly).

Thanks guys. I was a little worried about the prazi making them stop eating, but these guys are maniacs when it comes to food. Im hopeful that they should be ok. I dont think theres an issue that would require prazi, but I just want to be sure with my angels. Do you think hypo would be the a good alternative to cupramine? I know the tank transfer method would be good, but ill already have 3 tanks (40 brdr, 20, and 40? storage tote) and I dont know if I can manage it..

I just received some brine eggs yesterday in the mail! Good timing, haha. After doing some more reading I think I may try the chloroquine diphoshate. It sounds like its pretty good stuff. My only concern would be the gobies and the meds killing the brine. So, my initial thought is to keep them in the 20 gal tank and run hypo in that tank, then run the chloroquine in the bigger tank with the tangs and angels etc. Would that work?

Ok, Ill do that. As far as timeline goes, is 6 weeks going to be sufficient in hypo?

This is quite the undertaking. You better be really sure about this.

Adam

Adam Blundell wrote: This is quite the undertaking. You better be really sure about this. Adam

Aloha,

I just need to say this:

It sure sounds wonderful to think that all our fish could be clear of parasites and never bothered by them for the rest of our life. It's definitely fascinating to follow QT/HT procedures the way that Nikki does them, but I honestly believe the effort is more than most hobbyists want to take and... fish still die. 

A spot of Ich on a Blue Tang does not mean the end. When using a UV Sterilizer, it's good to keep a spare bulb and replace the spare as soon as it is installed. Unfortunately, I have noticed that tanks using a UV Sterilizer become dependent on the UV Sterilizer. UV creates Ozone in a special way that seems to work quite well at discouraging Ich outbreaks, sometimes even better than using Ozone via the Skimmer. Each tank is different.

Just for the benefit of other hobbyists that may be reading this, other ways to keep fish healthy and free of debilitating disease are:
- cautious not to overstock;
- avoid incompatible fish;
- provide good aquascaping with caves holes and hiding places
- feed well with good natural foods during the day and at night;
- provide macroalgae and plenty of bugs growing in the tank;
- use a garlic product that works for the individual tank; and
- use supplemental filtration equipment like an oversized skimmer and a sulfur de-nitrator.

If we spend this extra effort on trying to keep a sterile tank where fish are never exposed, what happens when some kind of pathogen accidentally gets into the tank? Remember Murphy's Law? I think a lot can be said for allowing exposure and treating it so that the organism can be strengthened against subsequent exposure of the same or a different pathogen. Those who have been responsible for children for a considerable length of time may relate to this idea.

Mahalo,
Mark


Edited by Mark Peterson - November 15 2013 at 10:22am

I agree

Last year I lost 16 fish due to ich in my 235 tank. I've had ich in my tank for as long as I could remember but one day it was like all hell broke lose and I was losing fish left and right to those little white spots. I'm still not certain what exactly caused it (I have a myriad of theories though). At the time it was happening I considered removing all the coral/rocks, catching all the fish, and QTing them while I ran Ozone on the system. I did not and I lost all but 3 fish.

Edited by Sculpin - November 15 2013 at 12:29pm

Exactly. Those are not common fish and should not be considered disposable. They need more than the common care.