ich

[wabassoweird]

Does anyone know how long a fish will live for from when you first notice the white spots on the fish. Because i noticed white spots on one of my fish 2 weeks ago and he is still healthy and eating and acting normal. i wonder if he doesnt have ich at all but something else. any help would be appreciated

 

[roka64]

Does anyone know how long a fish will live for from when you first notice the white spots on the fish.

I would think this depends on the tank condition/stress level/health of the fish and probably a lot more. Have you seen any other white spots?

1st, I would set up a QT
I would get some:
garlic to boost their immune systems
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=12022&N=2004+22763
Selcon
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=12022&N=2004+22763
Soak the food for about 30 mins.
I would also suggest
Zoe.

Keep us posted

 

[zacusmaximus]

I believe it is possible for a fish with ich to live indefinitely, but you must account for the added stress of carrying a parasite. Any other additional stress may put it over the edge. Other diseases, disorders, and/or parasites certainly won't help, nor will poor water quality or feed.

 

[zacusmaximus]

Oh, just noticed the double link from roka. Here's Selcon: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1

 

[roka64]

Good point zacusmaximus, if the ich doesn't kill the fish, some other 2ndary infection might appear, due to the stress, and kill it.

 

[macman7010]

Actually it is unlikely a fish with Ich would live indefinitely since at some point or another the parasite would infect gill tissue and strangle the fish off from oxygen. Ich goes through a number of life stages and it can appear like your fish has cysts and has been cured only to re-appear worse then before.

Many people treat ich by feeding vitamins, better foods, garlic based additives etc and while this can work it certainly does not change the fact that once ich is in your water, has hosts it will be there until it is either killed or the tank runs farrow long enough to allow the parasite to finish its lifestyle. I just wrote an article on my website concerning all this, http://www.reefwise.org/ich.htm - hope it can help!