hey all, i have a 20 gal tank with 10 neon tetras, and a betta fish, and recently i had an outbreak of ich on the neons. I slowly raised the temp, which is currently at 77-78,and began treatment with a product called nox-ich...i have used it in the past and it worked well. Today is my third day of treatment and some neons are looking better and other are not... so i will continue for another 3 days...my main concern is with the betta....he doesnt appear to be showing any visual signs of ich but he is acting strange.... he spends a lot of time tucked behind the heater, or laying in the plants....sometimes when he is swimming he will touch a plant or part or the thermometer and react spastically for just a moment. I am worried about him. Currently he is laying in-between the tank glass and plant and i dont think this is normal...any suggestions? I suspect it is the meds that im adding....but i am only using half the dosage as the bottle instructs when treating tetras. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
sick betta?
- Thread starter patola_l
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Rosenweiss
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If he's "touching and reacting spastically" that is what is known as flashing. Your betta has probably caught ich.
Though I personally don't prefer using chemicals to treat ich, it may be advisable to finish your cycle.
But a safer way to treat would be to raise the temp higher (to do any good it needs to be over 80--bettas should be at 77-78 anyway, normally). Adding salt might help too.
Though I personally don't prefer using chemicals to treat ich, it may be advisable to finish your cycle.
But a safer way to treat would be to raise the temp higher (to do any good it needs to be over 80--bettas should be at 77-78 anyway, normally). Adding salt might help too.
Rosenweiss
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you're welcome. I think the plants will be okay with salt, but it depends on what kind they are?
Also, to add salt, start slowly. eventually you may add as much as a teaspoon per 1-2 gallons but I wouldn't start this way. You should be doing daily PWC's with ich anyway (as well as vacuuming to pick up the cysts that fall off), so just add salt to the PWC water. Start with a small amount, like a teaspoon per five gallons. Slowly raise it after that. Make sure to dissolve the salt in the PWC water and don't just pour salt in.
Also, to add salt, start slowly. eventually you may add as much as a teaspoon per 1-2 gallons but I wouldn't start this way. You should be doing daily PWC's with ich anyway (as well as vacuuming to pick up the cysts that fall off), so just add salt to the PWC water. Start with a small amount, like a teaspoon per five gallons. Slowly raise it after that. Make sure to dissolve the salt in the PWC water and don't just pour salt in.
Rosenweiss
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Okay. You're welcome! I hope it works!
Oh oh oh oh wait, you know to use aquarium salt, not just table salt right??
Edit: Oops, read your post again. Sorry!
Oh oh oh oh wait, you know to use aquarium salt, not just table salt right??
Edit: Oops, read your post again. Sorry!
Rosenweiss
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Are you still using Nox-Ich? I'm really sorry they're dying.. at this point it sounds like you're desperate...
If you don't have inverts, you could try a copper treatment... I've also heard Malachite Green is pretty effective...
If you don't have inverts, you could try a copper treatment... I've also heard Malachite Green is pretty effective...
i have the temp up higher now....my heater only goes up to 80f.....i have it on max, when i do my water change now, ill try putting in warmer water, around 86 so it raises a bit...im only doing a 25% PWC. I have not added any more nox-ich today.. i was planning on adding another dose with this water change, along with a bit more salt...Any ideas?
Rosenweiss
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I think 86 is too big of a jump for water changes. You should only do maybe 82* water changes, otherwise it's too much of a shock to the fish.
I'm honestly not the expert on this, I'm just trying as best I can and telling you what I would do. I guess I would continue with the noxich...
I'm honestly not the expert on this, I'm just trying as best I can and telling you what I would do. I guess I would continue with the noxich...
Rosenweiss
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I don't want to be the reason your fish die though.. you might want to try private messaging severummama or mfd rookie... do you know who those are?
ooo good point, luckily i let the water sit for a while and it cooled down before it went it....my current temperature is 84F...and don't worry, your advice is as good as mine, i wouldn't blame anyone here who was giving honest advice. Thanks for all your help. Ill continue to do 25% PWC and keep the temp constant at 84F....wish me luck!
uh oh!!! things are not going well, 2 more neons gone, 1 laying in the gravel not looking good....what do i do at this point? the betta is getting worse, flashing like crazy at times....I understand we are not all experts but any advice is good at this point, i have never had any sickness in my tank before so this is new to me. Thanks for any help.
things have gone bad to worse, as i tested my tanks levels.....ammonia and nitrate 0ppm and nitrates were only 10ppm at most....i notice 3 more dead neons.....they were caught in the filter....this leaves me with 3 neons left and my male betta....uhhhh this is so frustrating
dkpate
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I would go get some meds for the ich, I think you are past the point for heat and you need treatment ASAP. Since you used Malachite, it most likely killed all of your good bacteria, and you will have to cycle your tank all over again.
If you ever add salt to a tank, make sure you dissolve it in a different container before adding it to the tank.
Remember you need to put the carbon back in to remove the meds you have in there.
Also, neons and bettas are especially sensitive to meds, so you only use half doses with them.
If you ever add salt to a tank, make sure you dissolve it in a different container before adding it to the tank.
Remember you need to put the carbon back in to remove the meds you have in there.
Also, neons and bettas are especially sensitive to meds, so you only use half doses with them.
i have been using half doses of medicine, as well as dissolving the salt in the water before i add it during thE PWC... thankfully the ich medicine i use only affects [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica]protozoan strains, and not gram positive bacteria, which are the benificial bacteria that keep the tank cycled. My ammonia and nitrite are currently 0 and my nitrates are under 20ppm...
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