Mandarin Goby ich

[user17482]

Hi, My parents recently purchased this Mandarin from an LFS that is known for pests in my books. My parents picked it up and decided to surprise me with it on Sunday. I closely examined the fish before it entered the tank and it didn't have any visible diseases. I did a normal acclimation, I let the bag float for 15 minutes then did a drip acclimation for 1hr and included a bubbler. The fish hid immediately and I didn't see it until Sunday evening. Its now Monday and it almost looks like the fish has Ich, I did dose Rally to the tank when the fish was in for about an hour. So I'm curious whether this fish just has a bit of sand on it or this is Ich and further steps need to be taken. Thank You!

( I know the Mandarin is thin, I already have an established populations of copepods he just needs to get warmed up !)

I apologize for a bad picture.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

IME, mandarins often get sand stuck to their thick mucus coats...
That being said, better pictures would be helpful.

 

[user17482]

IME, mandarins often get sand stuck to their thick mucus coats...
That being said, better pictures would be helpful.

I can try to get a better picture for you in the afternoon, I do have a sand sifting goby so I'm not sure if the sand sifter dumped a bunch of sand on this fish or not.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I can try to get a better picture for you in the afternoon, I do have a sand sifting goby so I'm not sure if the sand sifter dumped a bunch of sand on this fish or not.

Tbh, the "spots" in the picture look too large to be ich to me...

 

[user17482]

Tbh, the "spots" in the picture look too large to be ich to me...

The sand in the Aquarium is quite tiny so there's a good chance this could just be sand... I'll check in the morning and see if the ''spots'' has reduced or gone away all together.

 

[ReefingDreams]

Agree on both counts. Ich is VERY uncommon in mandarins. Likely detritus or smaller sand particulates.

 

[user17482]

Agree on both counts. Ich is VERY uncommon in mandarins. Likely detritus or smaller sand particulates.

I've had a close eye on this fish and haven't really noticed it breathing heavy or not moving much and its always hunting picking away at the rock work so I think he's in the clear