Help! Whats wrong with my clown loach? I think its dieing!

[Mantis_22]

Ok today I turned on the light of the tank and all of the clowns were ok, same for the corys. I started to notice one of the loaches lately has been laying on his side. Which can be normal as a sleeping method. But a few minutes ago I started to get more worried. So I got the fish net and pushed him gently about half a inch and he still doesent move into a horizontal position. He is breathing because I see his gills move and his fin fan gently. Everything in the tank is ok but him, whats wrong with him????????? :confused:

[shyguyjon]

I'm sorry I dunno what is wrong w/ your clown but yes sometimes mine do that but quickly get up when something happens like me going toward the tank or another fish swims by.

[Mantis_22]

Its dead.... It had to be ich in the gills. I see a very small white looking cyst on his gill under the torso. Im gonna treat the whole tank. What chemical should I use to treat for ick?

[valerie]

i don't know much about ich meds as i have only had it once but i used jungle labs Ich guard 2 for scaleless fish. Make sure it is safe to use wth scaleless fish as clowns are very sensitive to meds. Also turn up the heat to around 82*

[OrionGirl]

Ich with just one spore visible is highly unlikely to kill the fish.
How long have you had the clowns?

[Mantis_22]

2-3 weeks is how long I have had them. Also I still have the fishes corpse in a bag and Im examining it. As of right now I only notice that there is that white dot in in the gill I was talking about earlier and now there is a white like worm thing coming out of the left nostril of the loach. I dont think its a worm but it is translucent white. I just did a 50% water change and replace the filter medias.

[OrionGirl]

Not ich. At 78F, the parasite would have completed one full life cycle in your tank, and other fish would likely have become infected.

There are other internal parasites that are frequently found in wild caught fish. I think this is more likely what killed this fish, and feeding a medicated food targetting internal parasites would probably be a good thing. Many people swear by garlic--you can purchase the garlic extract at a health food store, and soak your prepared, non-flake foods in this prior to feeding. The verdict is still out, but there is a lot of anecdotal support for garlic treatments for parasites.

[Mantis_22]

ok thx, if any other fish start to show signs of distress or pain i will post asap. Same for deaths...

[Mantis_22]

its attacking another one of the loaches, its ich for sure. On one of the active loaches there are white spots on the tails... What should I use to medicate these guys with but wont hurt my plants?

[OrionGirl]

Standard: gradual increase in salt and temperature. The plants won't be thrilled, but it won't kill them. Many people report success with the safe-for-scaleless fish ich treatments, and these should not harm your plants either.

Make sure you treat for at least 2-3 weeks AFTER the last visible ich cyst. Otherwise, some may escape and reinfest the fish.

[Mantis_22]

Ok I bought some ich medication (Nox-ich) Works on scaleless fish also. I will treat this tank for about half a month non-stop. Im getting fed up with ich killing my clowns. This is my plan to stop it...

Use Ich med
1 Teaspoon of salt every week
Water changes every 3-7 days
Heat increased to 80*
and rationed food supply (no extra food for thought)

I hope this works...

[OrionGirl]

Adding the salt on a weekly basis won't help. Do so on an hourly basis until you've achieved 1 T./gallon, replacing the appropriate amount with water changes, for the course of the treatment. Once treatment is over, don't add any more salt with water changes.

[Mantis_22]

im kinda odd on salt, especially on loaches and corys but I guess i'll give it a try...

[steeltown]

I had a horrible outbreak of ich on my loaches a while back. Used Rid Ich+ (by nordon) full strength, turned up the heat a little and did a water change every 3rd day. Although it took almost 2 weeks they held on and are just fine now.

Watch out for signs of intolorance of the meds you're using. They will go nuts on you by swimming very erratically. Mine we're flashing like crazy with the ich but nothing compared to when i added a med that didn't agree with them (nevermind that the bottle said it was ok for scaleless fish):mad:

Keep in mind that young loaches are not as hardy as the older guys. That said don't give up on them. I hope it turns out ok.

[Mantis_22]

the healthy loaches seem to be keeping the sickest one company. I hope all works out, I will buy a better med when I get more $$$ if this one doesent work the best.

[Mantis_22]

What are symptoms to ich? What actions does ich take on a fish, like how will the fish respond. From the two loaches I have had they all seem to have that Dropsy Diesease or Swim Bladder problem. I added a Quickcure Tablet by Jungle for Fungus which cures the two problems I said above and while treatment the remaining two loaches started swimming correctly? Yet they still have ich.