So I'm a huge advocate of QTing fish. My normal routine is roughly 8 weeks in QT getting every medication to treat any disease possible. All fish in my DT are very healthy and disease free. I have been very unsuccessful getting wrasse through QT. I lost an exquisite, a melanarus, and a beautiful splendid pintail wrasse recently. So now I have just a mccosker and a yellow coris wrasse in QT but I'd like to avoid medication if I can since I've lost a lot of money in wrasse now. Is it safe to not use any medication if I see no signs of disease? Also how long should I wait and watch if this method is okay? I have a purple tang in my DT so if no medication is too risky then I'd rather treat the wrasse then risk my purple tang getting ich or velvet
QT without medication
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Not treating wrasse is as risky as it gets IMO.
They are typhoid Mary's. They can carry about anything without symptoms. They have a really thick mucus coat and are very good at hiding symptoms of ich/velvet etc.
Curious, what are you using to treat wrasse? Copper? What kind and what level are you treating at?
Big G
captain dunsel
Awesome question. The problem we run into is that wrasses are very good at being carriers of disease and or parasites, with their thicker mucous coats protecting them to some extent. Usually until some stressor event that lowers their immune system then we see the disease/parasite manifest itself.
Have had good result using Copper Power at 1.75ppm and then when done, using General Cure 2x to clear my wrasses of parasites and disease. I give huge profs to @jsker for giving me his fish "smoothie" that tremendously helps fish through the QT process: Several frozen fish food cubes like chopped clam, cyclops, mysis, seaweed, brine shrimp, reef mix, etc. the more variety the better. Take one of each and place into a tupperware. Allow them to "slump." Pour off excess liquid. Add vitamins like Zoecon/Selcon. This mixture will be ok in the fridge for a few days. The fish love it.
Have had good result using Copper Power at 1.75ppm and then when done, using General Cure 2x to clear my wrasses of parasites and disease. I give huge profs to @jsker for giving me his fish "smoothie" that tremendously helps fish through the QT process: Several frozen fish food cubes like chopped clam, cyclops, mysis, seaweed, brine shrimp, reef mix, etc. the more variety the better. Take one of each and place into a tupperware. Allow them to "slump." Pour off excess liquid. Add vitamins like Zoecon/Selcon. This mixture will be ok in the fridge for a few days. The fish love it.
I’ve been in your shoes, I would stick with the medicated QT though just because a wrasse can carry ich, velvet without symptoms and are typically fluke magnets.
I have found that getting my latest wrasses out of copper at 14 days and into a sterile tank yielded better results than previously trying 30 days in copper. I currently have a yellow and purple wrasse and a Ruby Head Fairy wrasse finishing up in QT. I also bought the Hanna checker, ramped the copper up over a three days, and maintained it at 1.75ppm (Copper Power).
I have found that getting my latest wrasses out of copper at 14 days and into a sterile tank yielded better results than previously trying 30 days in copper. I currently have a yellow and purple wrasse and a Ruby Head Fairy wrasse finishing up in QT. I also bought the Hanna checker, ramped the copper up over a three days, and maintained it at 1.75ppm (Copper Power).
I use copper power at 1.75 ppm. I usually ramp it up over about 3 or 4 days. While in the copper I feed a variety of good pellet foods, flake foods, nori, mysis, brine. I now have a culture of live blackworms and LRS reef frenzy food as well. I usually do 2 rounds of prazipro first. Then the copper.
I also soak all food in selcon
I also soak all food in selcon
Big G
captain dunsel
+1 to this ^^^ some wrasse just can't take copper for more than the minimum 14 days to kill off the velvet parasites. You can usually tell if yours is one of these as they lose apatite and become somewhat lethargic. But if they eat well and are swimming with vigor, I let them stay in copper for the full 30 days just to make sure. Observation is the key.
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