Should ich be treated? Opinions about ich?

[ashleykw]

Ok, so I currently have a 10 gallon with 2 African dwarf frogs, a baby platy, and Marimo moss ball. Had this setup for less than a week, currently going through the cycling process. I do 25% water change every other day and monitor ammonia to ensure it stays below 0.25ppm. (Should receive master test kit in the mail today, will check total water parameters asap). Add SeaChem stability to help with cycling, plus PetSmart girl said it was a good product. So the baby platy shows signs of ich, white specks, flashing etc. (been having these symptoms for over a week) I've been treating this with 86 degrees and 1/2 tsp aquarium salt per gallon. The white specks disappear and reappear on the platy. He seems to be doing alright, swims against the glass occasionally but eats pretty well. Ive been doing some never ending research and read multiple opinions about ich. Some say stress induces an infection. Well if that's the case then ich was already a pre-existing condition and the lowered immune system predisposes the fish to infection, RIGHT? If that's the case then ich pretty much exists indefinitely? I even came across an article and I quote

"The Ich parasite can be introduced by new arrivals of fish, or be dormant in the aquarium itself. Healthy fish can live with a balanced host–parasite relationship for a long time. The healthier the fish the more difficult it becomes for the parasite to re-produce, which in turn keeps their population under control." (Ich (ick) and your aquarium fish - Algone)

In my opinion, the temperature of my aquarium itself is what's stressing my fish. What do you think about just returning my tank to the average temp of 78F and keeping a constant salinity of 1/2tsp per gallon? Ich treatment seems to be a catch 22: treat the ich and the fish will be under stress... if the fish are under stress ich will infect them.

What are your opinions/recommendations on this matter?

 

[Delapool]

In all cases I can trace ich back to a recent addition to my tank. Stress lowers natural fish defences but apart from large fish in large tanks where it may sit in the gills, imo our tanks are just so suited for outbreaks of ich that if it is present you will notice it. This also considers the life cycle of ich by temperature (coldwater goldfish ponds may be different).


In a tropical tank I always favour treating it.

 

[Toad]

How are your dwarf frogs handling the salt? When I had ich it was 2 straight weeks of 82f+, no salt (had pleco and cories) and lots of water changes with a gravel vac each time. It's not something that's going to clear up in a few days, regardless of the method used, and some fish may not make it it either way.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[BBradbury]

ash...

Tank problems are the result of poor tank management. This means not enough water changes, either not done often enough or not enough water is removed and replaced. Fish that live in pure water conditions all the time are rarely, if ever, infected by a parasite.

Small tanks require most of the water removed and replaced a couple of times weekly. The larger tanks, say over 30 gallons need the same changes weekly or can go a bit longer. It's the dissolved fish waste that builds up over time and weakens the fishes' immune system. By changing out a lot of the tank water and doing it frequently, there's not time for waste material to build up before it's removed by the water change. The small amount of old, toxic water that's left in the tank is diluted to a safe level in all the new, treated tap water.

Pretty easy,

B

 

[Buckfins]

As stated by Toad....raise the temp. I would go to 85 to 87 degrees. When it is this warm and when the parasites fall off the fish to reproduce, the heat will kill them quickly, thus preventing the white spots from coming back. You don't need chemicals and you don't need salt. I would add a good airstone or powerhead to the tank to help distribute oxygen better cause the hotter the tank the less oxygen you have so you want water agitation. Plain. Simple. Good luck and keep me informed.

 

[ashleykw]

It seems now that the symptoms of ich are going away (just temp at 86 and 1/2 tsp salt per gallon for 3 weeks). I no longer see any spots on my fish. My baby platy is looking very happy, healthy, and growing! Still in the cycling process doing 25% pwc every other day, monitoring ammonia and nitrite every day. (No nitrite yet). I introduced a Dalmatian molly (was just so tempted) and she is doing well. Had her for about a week now, very active and good appetite. My frogs take the salt well. Whenever I drop bloodworms in they come out of their hiding spots and start munching around until they find it. So far, I think I have the ich situation under control! Thanks everyone for your help and opinions. will keep you updated on anything new.

 

[ashleykw]

Here is a picture where you can see all 4 of them if you look closely