Free Ich

[Ayrianth]

It's been a week and things aren't so good. I'm wondering what's going on. I've lost two of the new fish and one of the originals. The two new ones are still sick and covered with white fuzz (fungus?). I started adding Rid Attack by Kordon three days ago with no positive results. The two sick fish are actually worse then before. The other fish in the tank appear healthy but I don't see how they possibly can be with the sick fish in there as well.

I've turned off the heater and allowed the temp to return to normal. I'm going to remove the obviously sick fish tonight and do a huge water change - 75% or more. I'm also going to remove and wash all my live plants, clean the 'decorations' in the tank and either clean the gravel well or maybe even replace it with crushed coral.

Basically I'm at the point where I'm willing to start over and see what happens. I'm so mad at myself to sticking new fish in the tank. Arrrgggg!

 

[daveedka]

Dave, I found this article you reference in another post by you. I read it and that's why I went searching further because that's where I first read about three days treatment after seeing ICH.

You are correct, that could be best said as a point of confusion on my part. I don't trust myself to be sure that all cysts are gone especially with my Pictus which is impossible to see ich on. So I went with a full week after all signs are gone to make sure the job was done. Apologies for any confusion I caused with my comments.

The fungal infections are usually a result of some other damage such as the holes left by ICH. I have not had this issue that I know Of, but do know it can occur. The other fish in the tank may or may not be infected. Fungal and bacterial infections, are not really contagiuos, becuase they only attack weakened, damaged or stressed fish. The fish who had ich depending on the severity are the most prone. Isolation is never a bad idea, so I certainly wouldn't advise against it, cleaning the tank and starting over may prove futile though. the ich could survive it, the fungus, and bacteria are part of a normal tank, so your efforts may or may not be rewarded.
Lastly, I am sorry your are going through this, please keep us posted on progress, and maybe we can help a little more in the future.
Dave

 

[Ayrianth]

dave, it's been three days now since I cleaned the tank and things are looking good so far. I did a 75% water change and vacuumed the rocks while doing the change. I cleaned the plants and decorations in the tank and removed the sick fish. Everyone else seems to be doing well. The fish are no longer stressed (they were breathing rapidly in the high heat, high salt, medicated tank) and they all appear healthy so far. *fingers crossed*

I trimmed back the plants removing and stalks that had leaves that were turning colors. I did notice that most of them had a majority of the root system turning brown. I'm not sure if it's discoloration due to the medicine or if the roots are dying. They didn't seem as 'firm' as the roots that were still white but I didn’t trim them. I simply washed them well and replanted them. I've added some liquid fertilizer to the tank and they seem to be doing ok too.

Hopefully I'm past this fiasco!

Thanks for all your help.