Treat for ich/velvet or flukes? Occasional flashing for months, no other signs

TraverseCity

New Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 30, 2020
Messages
20
Reaction score
2
Location
Traverse City
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Trying to decide which way to treat…

Most of the fish have done occasional flashing for months, have never seen a white spot or a definitive sign of velvet before. Flashing seems to come and go. May have been getting a little worse lately. Then today my royal gramma is up high in the water column and flashing a lot. Other fish are also flashing more. He’s near the return water flow, but not right in it which I think is a sure sign of velvet. His color is a little splotchy I think on his sides too. But not exactly like velvet. More like a fish that is circling the drain.

I can’t imagine it’s velvet because last fish added was 6 weeks ago and I think velvet usually kills faster right?

It could be ich, but wouldn’t I see white spots eventually?

I’ve read about flukes or other less deadly parasites causing flashing too.

100 gallon fish-only with a few crabs and shrimp. 13 sized fish including clowns, damsels, melanarus, an anthias, sixline, and blennies. Rock is bare “live-rock.” Tank is 8 months along. Most fish have been well established for a while now.

I’ll see if I can post a decent pic of the gramma but catching him alive won’t happen.

My quarantine methods are moderately safe (aka not foolproof) - I’m not extremely careful so let’s just assume something could have gotten through.

If it was velvet, I think my fish would be dead weeks ago, if ich I believe I would have seen a white spot by now.

But there is a lot of flashing today, the royal gramma is in distress, it’s beyond just a few pesky itches, and I feel I need to do something.

Would you assume flukes or something like that, dose prazi, and see if flashing goes away? Or start hypo? Or something else.

Thank you!

3A8F0606-A3D6-42B4-A211-76C3E0944667.jpeg
 

vetteguy53081

Well known Member and monster tank lover
View Badges
Joined
Aug 11, 2013
Messages
90,860
Reaction score
200,134
Location
Wisconsin -
Rating - 100%
13   0   0
Ich, you can count the dots whereas velvet you will see what looks like sand or dust looking like the solar system on the body. Flashing can also be gill flukes and a simple freshwater dip may alleviate that.
If you can access ruby rally reef, it will be a broad treatment for many symptoms. Do maintain good water quality and diet
 
OP
OP
T

TraverseCity

New Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 30, 2020
Messages
20
Reaction score
2
Location
Traverse City
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
A damsel just died today. No signs from him before he died. Was not scratching at all. No spots or anything.

I put him in fresh water and do not see any flukes.

The royal gramma is doing about the same, spending a little time up near the surface close to, but not directly in front of the return jet. He hides in the rocks the rest of the time.

His color looks splotchy, but I wouldn’t say it looks like velvet. I don’t see that dusting appearance. You can see a couple light red spots on him too if you look carefully. But mainly his color is just splotchy and faded on places.

None of the other fish show white spots or dusting.

A good amount of scratching though.

Which do you believe is more likely- ich / velvet without any spots or dusting? Or flukes killing fish without seeing them in the freshwater dip?

I’m trying to decide whether I remove them all to the hospital tank and add copper, or add prazi and see if it helps.

Thank you for any thoughts. Thanks, Vetteguy for your input- I’m not seeing any of the signs you mentioned to indicate ich or velvet. But fish are dying and flashing so…

1810A15D-6796-4A81-8062-EF892C767932.jpeg 499D6317-678B-4DC1-AC59-EB59807E18F5.jpeg 863EE120-F885-418F-B17C-752E2805ECB4.jpeg 55F3CA67-6762-4981-AE86-8858C1950AAE.jpeg 2CBFD8A5-5613-44A7-A5D2-2F8FB019FA59.jpeg
 
Back
Top