Ich problem

[Chilled27]

I have a small 60 liter tank with a male and female swordtail, plus 10 Harlequin rasboras. About a week ago my female swordtail got ich. I got meds that are supposed to be dosed on days 1,2,3 and 6. I got to day 3 and the spots were gone... For only a day. She has about 6 spots again.

I know the preferred method is heat and salt but my heater doesn't seem to be strong enough to raise the temp, much to my dismay... Should I restart treatment in the hope that it'll just work this time, or should I get rid of the female and do the final treatment hoping none of the others get it?

 

[Mumma.of.two]

No need to get rid of any fish. If you insist on using medication it's a good idea to continue the treatment for a few days after the recommended time. The ich might not be visible on the fish but it can still be in the tank. Only one stage of the ich life cycle is on the fish. The others are in the water and substrate.
http://www.aquahobby.com/articles/e_ich2.php
This article explains the life cycle.

 

[Chilled27]

Okay, so it wouldn't hurt to keep medicating every other day or so? It doesn't seem like the recommended 6th day treatment will finish it.

And it's not that I insist on using meds, it's just that I have turned my heater up full and I've seen no change in temp... So I want to get rid of the ich before I start losing fish.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

How long have you medicated? Have you stopped now? If so id start the treatment from the beginning and do the full 6 day course plus a couple of days. Will it harm your fish. It could. When adding chemicals to a tank there is always that risk.

If possible purchase another heater that will heat the tank. Heat, IMHO, really is the best way to treat. You can wrap the tank in aluminum foil and blankets to help retain some of the heat.

 

[Chilled27]

Okay, thanks! I have managed to heat it a bit using blankets. But I am only heating it to 28C because of the meds (I read you don't want to use full heat if using meds) plus the spots seem to be going away. So I will probably do the 6th day of treatment tomorrow and follow up with a dose two days later, and again two days after that.

Thanks for the help, I'll post how it goes.

 

[Chilled27]

Everything seems to be fine now, ask spots are gone. But up until about an hour ago the female swordtail was very lethargic and not eating. Now she's moving around and even running her favorite circle around a plant. Hopefully that'll be the end of it.

Thanks Mumma.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Glad to here everything's going well.