:sad My 20 gallon tank: 2 male platies; 3 neon cardinals; 1 cory cat; 5 ghost shrimp and then 2 danios. The zebra danio chases all my fish, the first one, one of my 4 neon cards, he chased exclusively, then the cardinal died. He started chasing all the cards, now he's chasing my platies. My platy is chasing the other platy, especially during feeding time, and even the cards are chasing eachother! Readings: 0 ammo; 0 trite; 7 PH, ? trate (kit malfunctioning, but had water tested last week and lfs said it was good). Any ideas?
Now all fish chasing!
- Thread starter renie
- Start date
The chasing and general high activity level can be stressful to other fish, yes. It won't 'cause' ich--ich is a parasite and if it's not present, no amount of stress will create it. The stress will lower the fishes immune system, and make them more susceptible to ailments and less able to resist a parasite if it's present in the tank. Keeping the water in good shape will go a long way to mitigate the stress, though--frequent water changes are a good thing.
Yes, and it is a myth. This hobby is packed with them, and this is one that's common. The reason the myth got started is that ich preferentially colonizes in the gills, where they can go undetected. The ich parasite burrows into the flesh of the fish, though healthy fish can usually ward off most or all of the parasites. But, it takes just one to create a cyst, which drops off, develops and then releases hundreds of tomites (the free-swimming, treatable stage) that swim around searching for a host. In a stress event, the fishes immune system is compromised and the fish can't ward off the parasites, resulting in a clinical infection that can be identified. Treatments are frequently applied for too short a time to kill all the tomites, but the fish recover and continue on with a low level, sub-clinical infection, with no or limited visible signs of infection. Should another stress event occur, the cycle repeats, with the hobbyist protesting that there haven't been any new fish introduced, so the parasite must always be there. Not true. A complete, full-length treatement can and will kill all the parasites and end the cycle.
There are some fish that have less resistance to the parasite. Puffers, clown loaches, and many of the small scaled fish fall in this category, but all can be treated effectively with appropriate methods and care.
There's also a very good article on Ich in the Articles Forum.
There are some fish that have less resistance to the parasite. Puffers, clown loaches, and many of the small scaled fish fall in this category, but all can be treated effectively with appropriate methods and care.
There's also a very good article on Ich in the Articles Forum.
wow oriongirl, i always believed the 'ich is always present in fish' thing... very informative ....good post!!
about the danios, i would definitly return them if you can, i had some once and they were always chasing and nipping each other and the other fish. with calm and peaceful fish like your other fish, taking out the danios would almost definitly make the rest of them happier.
about the danios, i would definitly return them if you can, i had some once and they were always chasing and nipping each other and the other fish. with calm and peaceful fish like your other fish, taking out the danios would almost definitly make the rest of them happier.
I used to believe the myth too. It's prevalent, and without understanding the biological process that's happening, it seems to describe what we see. Unfortunately, those types of myths are the worst kind to kill.