Pleco wih ich?

[Luna112]

I have a rubber lipped pleco about 3 1/2 inches. And he looks like he has ich. I was under the impression that it's very hard for places to obtain ich.
Nitrate 0-5
Ammonia 0.25
Ph 7.0
Nitrite 0
Temp- 79
I'll posts some pictures when I get home. My question is, would normal ich medications work? And should I treat my whole tank with ich medication? I have many loaches and eels who won't make it. Could I take the pleco out and dip him in ich medication like a bowl or something. Any info will help. thanks (:

[Luna112]

Is it ich?

[dkpate]

Yikes! I would say that's ich. If it was my tank, I would get some Ich-Attack and dose the tank, it's safe for inverts and scaleless fish, and won't mess up your boilogical filter. Since the ich is so bad on him, I would go the meds route.
You can also turn the heat up to 86*F, which will cause the ich to go through their life cycle faster and it can't reproduce in that high of a temp. Make sure you add an airstone.

Treat the whole tank, most likely the other fish have it too.

[Luna112]

Have you personally tried it in your tank?

[Luna112]

I have many eels and loaches. And catfish.

[mudraker]

Loaches will definately hold up.

Where did the ich come from? Is the pleco new or are there other new fish in the tank?

[Luna112]

The pleco has been in there for about a month. After he was added I added a eel. But the eel look really good eating and very friendly. I didn't even know plecos could get ich till now. It's suppose to be really hard for it to catch.

[mudraker]

Any and all fish can get ich. Its a parasite, so you have to treat it quickly, as DK said.

I had to treat loaches and cory cats for ich last summer, they went through it just fine, and I used salt and heat. The Kordon is supposed to be pretty good stuff and not toxic like other ich meds.

[Tahl]

I keep my rubber-lip in a tank that stays around 82 degrees and he seems pretty happy and active in it. Assuming it's okay for the eel, I would start raising your temperature to 86. The ich life cycle is more than likely going on in your tank and will have an effect on the rest of your tank. My understanding is that if you've got ammonia in your tank that your fish will be more predisposed to conditions like ich and unable to fight them off if they're available, so you'll also need to do frequent water changes (to get the ich eggs as well).

[mudraker]

DK is also right in that you do have to treat the whole tank. The parasite has probably been hiding in their gills and its only a matter of time before they start dying if you don't get on this right away.

[WendiDell]

I think this is the 4Th time I wrote this about ick but, here it is again.
Ick grows rapidly on the gills of infected fish. Making it very difficult for them to breath. I'm surprised that your Pleco is still breathing, by the looks of him in the picture.
If you want to help him breath while your treating your tank with ick meds. give him and any other affected fish a salt bath.
Put 1 tablespoon of Aquarium salt in 20-28 oz of fresh clean tank water. Not the water that has ick growing in it. Soak your Pleco and other fish for 5 min., give each fish their own bathwater. This will help your fish to keep breathing and give whatever meds. you chose time to work.
I've done this with several types of FW fish and it does help them breath easier. You can give them a bath every day, without harm, while the meds. are doing their thing. But don't rely on the salt alone it's not a cure, it just relieves the symptoms.
Also, given how bad your Plecos case of ick looks, you need to be aware of secondary bacterial infections. The ick leaves fish in a weakened condition and vulnerable to other types of diseases.
I always use a med. called Polyguard, it thoroughly kills the ick while also treating any possible fungal or bacterial infection. It won't mess with your water or filtration. But it will turn everything blue. So any Decor you don't want blue, remove before treating. Polyguard only costs about $6.00 and it treats 1000 US gallons. And since it treats everything, you won't need to use any other medications.
Best of luck to you and your Pleco

[Luna112]

I found out I had a spike in my ammonia. It was from the black worms dying in my tank.

[dkpate]

The ammonia will make it harder for your fish to heal, so it's best to do water changes to keep it below .5ppm.

[Luna112]

Yeah I woke up today and did a pwc. And the Lvl of ammonia went down. I got this all nature ich medication. It's suppose to be safe for all fish. But do you think I should take out my mud puppy?

[dkpate]

What are the meds called?

[Luna112]

It's called microre-lift

[Luna112]

Is this one any good?

[dkpate]

I have never used the second one, I always go all natural with my fish. I think you should try the first one, and see how it goes. Leave all fish in there though, because they have all been exposed to ich, and there is a 99% chance they have it too.

[Luna112]

Can I take it the frogs and mud puppy?

[Luna112]

Can I take them out?