Fighting Ich

[cbort]

Just wondering how many people fight Ich the same way i do?

I got a nice fat 4-5" PBT. About 24 hours she formed white spots on her. She never showed any signs of distress, flashing, or anything. So i did not panic.

I made sure to keep at least a nori seaweed clip loaded, and she ate constantly. I fed mysis/brine/krill/clam etc. mixture 3 times a day which she ate. It got a little worse the next couple of days.

I kept temp consistant +/-1 degree of 79 degrees.

I added a second skimmer to my sump and kept the feeding. All along she seemed in good spirits.

Today i have had her about 2 weeks and almost in the clear "knocking on wood" I only have 3 other fish in the system, none of which aquired any ich signs.

She is still eating and her body only shows very little signs of ich. She seems to be kicking the ich with no problem. I would have went to purchase a pair of cleaner shrimp but i live in the middle of Iowa and haven't been able to get outta town with the bad weather we have been having, but all in all I think she is doing great!

I feel the best way to kick ich is just making the fish feel at home, lots of hiding places, lots of flow, consistant temp, feeding lots, and good skimming!

I know a lot of people panic and pull all the fish out, but i feel as long as the fish is happy, fat, and strong it should be able to beat it by itself!

 

[Troylee]

Amen my friend... That's always been the best for me also... Mess and hospitality tanks cause to much stress IMO..

 

[Kbra]

UVs and Cleaner Wr*****?

 

[Kbra]

lol cant say Wra_sses

 

[wicked demon]

no on the wrasse, yes on the U/V, add garlic to the food to stimulate appetite and boost the immune system of the fish in a way that does not stress, other than that- yup, nailed it.

 

[Paul_N]

My purple tang got it a few months back real bad. I thought it was a goner. I just kept feeding it and it fought it and month later no signs of it.

FWIW cleaner shrimp do nothing for ich. And honestly the UV won't even put a dent in the ich.

 

[wicked demon]

U/V wont help an active infection, but can help prevent and keep additional parasites from reaching 3rd stage of the life cycle.

 

[Paul_N]

U/V wont help an active infection, but can help prevent and keep additional parasites from reaching 3rd stage of the life cycle.

That's what I meant by not putting much of a dent. They are in the rock/sand and display tank and water column. The UV 9 times out of 10 is in the sump. It will get very few to make a difference.

*edit even if you have UV HOB on the display it still won't get that many. UV is mainly for other parasites/bacteria.