steve-s said:
stresco said:
That type of activity usualy stresses the fish a great deal. But as i said, i have not seen any signs of ick.
Stress does
not cause ich. Stress reduces the effectiveness of the fishs' natural immune system.
Once the parasite has been eliminated it
cannot come back unless introduced. The only way to prevent re-introduction is to QT
everything when purchasing anything that came from a tank containing fish.
C irritans cannot survive without a fish host but it can be transmitted via the
tomont (cyst) where the parasite attaches to a solid structure like substrate, coral rock base, live rock and so on. Plus obviously any new fish.
The chances of infection due to the
tomont are rare but there is still the chance.
Cheers
Steve
Steve,
I understand all this, but you have to understand why i started this thread.
This thread is a log that I have been keeping for other reefers to see my success or failure in using this controversial product. I am NOT staying that stress causes ich, just that stress IS a catalyst for the infestation. If you look back in some of the other posts, you will see that the theory of treating ich has been reviewed and duly noted.
Overview:
I have dosed my tank with a product (No-Ich) to remove the parasite. It is said to be non-effective by many people. I have not QT the fish, dosed the tank with copper, nor have i used hyposalinity, the "Only proven methods" for fighting ich. What I have done is dose my main tank with No-Ich according to the directions stated on the bottle, and soak the fish food in garlic guard.
The reason the last post was entered was to show that I have finished treating the tank with No-Ich 1 week ago, and I have caused a great deal of stress in the last few days to my fish. Luckily, I have not seen a re-infestation of ich.
I leave it open to debate:
-Did the No-Ich work?
Possibly. I had a fish that looked like he was near death (TuskFish) when I started dosing my tank. He is healthy now, and eating veraciously.
-Did feeding garlic to the fish help?
I'd say that it didn't hurt. I didn’t see any change in the eating habits of the tang or the tusk when I started using the garlic. My eel will not touch any food that has been soaked in garlic however.
-Did the fish develop an "immunity" to ich? I don't like to use the word immunity when discussing a parasitic infestation. Did the fish develop a slime coat that repelled the ich more efficiently (i think is a better question), naturally?
I don't know.
-Did No-Ich hurt any of the other tank inhabitants?
No. Everything, all of my inverts, are still alive and healthy.
I do not plan on adding any more fish to this tank, so I will keep a close eye on its inhabitants. If I see another out break of ich, I will know for sure that the No-Ich product is a failure. However, if I do not see anything in the next 2 - 3 weeks, I will be able to say that it is possible that No-Ich actually did what it claims to do.