How do you get ICK???

Tanker...

We recognize ICH based on the trophont "white spot". Lacking this, we assume fish are ICH free.

Best subclinical explanation I've seen hinted at has to do with the size of the trophont during the infection cycle.

Depending on a fish's immune response, not all trophonts reach the visable maturation size of 1000um (1mm) or so. Research has shown that trophonts forced to exit prematurely can be viable as small as 100um and encyst to a tomont. This usually takes around 48 hours. At this size, spots if any can be unnoticeable and the life cycle continues.

An individual fish's immune resistance determines the residence time and subsequent size of the trophont after theront infection.

It's also worth noting that infections also occur within the gill chambers, mouth cavity, nasal passages, and the tongue of fish. Probably not the main reason for prolonged subclinical cycles of reinfection.



Tom

I *think* what Tanker is asking, is how can it develop in a tank that didn't have it before, and hasn't had any new additions. How can Ich, or any other parasite or illness, suddenly exist out of no where.

I was recently wondering the same thing on a broader scale when a friends betta suddenly developed velvet, and one of my bettas developed dropsy, both out of the blue. No additions, no changes, healthy for years...

Anyone with the answers here?

angyles said:

I *think* what Tanker is asking, is how can it develop in a tank that didn't have it before, and hasn't had any new additions. How can Ich, or any other parasite or illness, suddenly exist out of no where.

I was recently wondering the same thing on a broader scale when a friends betta suddenly developed velvet, and one of my bettas developed dropsy, both out of the blue. No additions, no changes, healthy for years...

Anyone with the answers here?

Click to expand...

Velvet and Dropsy are two vastly different situations. Velvet is a parasite similar to ich. It would have to be introduced on a host or as water containing a free swimming stage of the parasite. Dropsy is not a disease per se but a symptom of disease. It could have any number of causes from bacterial to viral to fungal to a genetic defect. These could enter the tank through the air.