New loaches...ich

[black hills tj]

I have had 2 striata loaches in my 20g tank for a few weeks and i was waiting for more. 3 days ago I picked up 2 more. Well..this morning I woke up to 2 ich covered loaches. I think at this point it is pointless to try to qt the loaches to treat them. I can go get a heater and qt them though if you guys think its worth it. I do have a visitherm stealth 100w heater in the 20g tank so I increased the temp from 76 to 80 so far. Slowly increasing it more and more. I guess now I just wait it out. I also did a 75% PWC

 

[LandGhoti]

Oooo, I'm sorry! I've never had a loach with ich, but I know a few on here have (hsherman1986 comes to mind). I hope the heat works and they are soon back to normal. Good luck.

 

[black hills tj]

Temp is just short of 80 ATM...turned up the heater some.

 

[Zagz]

Loaches are very prone to ich, you just have to keep turning that heat up. As the temps are between 80-85 the ich will increase. I'd turn the temps up a degree an hour or two to get it up high enough quick enough. Good luck.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

A good temp level is 87-88 degrees. That way the minimum temp doesn't fall below 86 degrees. That will take care of the ick problem. And I know you have plenty of surface aggitation, so no problems there.

 

[black hills tj]

Woke up this morning and one of the loaches is swimming vertically with its head at the surface and the other is hiding in some driftwood. My temp is 86* so hopefully this thing will end quick and I won't lose anything. However, the one loach swimming vertically does not look good at all.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

How are your water parameters? Keep an eye out for ammonia or nitrite.

 

[black hills tj]

didn't have time to check the params as i am at work right now getting ready to leave town for a few days




evening update

I'm out of town but my mom told me that we lost one of the loaches today Now I have 3 striatas...one of which I know is sick.

 

[black hills tj]

Just got back in town...only the other loach that originally showed signs of ich appears to have it still. He hardly has any spots on him at this point in time. However, he is laying on the substrate for the most part and breathing slow. Occasionally he moves around a little bit.


update

Sadly he took his last breath I want to get 4 of them in the tank to prevent any aggression from them. Looks like I'll be looking for a couple helathy new ones.

 

[Zagz]

So sorry for your loss.

 

[LandGhoti]

I'm sorry!

 

[tkos]

Make sure to keep treating that tank as their is ich in it now. Keep that temp up for at least a week after you last see ich. Adding salt wouldn't hurt either, IMO.

I woudl set that 20 gallon tank up as a qt tank for any new fish to avoid a similar incident.

 

[black hills tj]

Make sure to keep treating that tank as their is ich in it now. Keep that temp up for at least a week after you last see ich. Adding salt wouldn't hurt either, IMO.

I woudl set that 20 gallon tank up as a qt tank for any new fish to avoid a similar incident.

10g tank is actually ready to be used as a qt tank(doh...after the fact). I have loaches in the tank and I have heard mixed stories about loaches and salt. I'll keep the heat up for at least 2 weeks.

 

[gheitman]

Sorry about your loss and I hope the rest of your fish stay healthy. In the future if you decide to treat Ich with medication instead of heat I can personally recommend 'Super Ick Cure' from Aquarium Phamaceuticals. I've used it at least twice to treat Ich without harming the fish that were being treated. Be aware that with scaleless fishes like loaches you should only use half a dose.

 

[black hills tj]

Sorry about your loss and I hope the rest of your fish stay healthy. In the future if you decide to treat Ich with medication instead of heat I can personally recommend 'Super Ick Cure' from Aquarium Phamaceuticals. I've used it at least twice to treat Ich without harming the fish that were being treated. Be aware that with scaleless fishes like loaches you should only use half a dose.

What is the main ingredient in this stuff?

 

[gheitman]

The main ingredient is malachite green. You can find this medication at http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsU...31/cl0/aquariumpharmaceuticalssuperickcure4oz.

 

[black hills tj]

correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't malachite green supposed to be the most dangerous of the ich treatments to fish?

 

[gheitman]

I can't tell you if it is the most dangerous to fish but it is definitely lethal to Ich. I've never killed a fish when treating them with this but, just as with any medication, it is important to follow the directions.