ICH/ICK and what to do about it.

[d3sc3n7]

Hi guys, I've noticed alot of threads popping up about the all to common fish disease Ich. I decided to write a article on it, instead of having to answer every thread.

Here Goes:

Ich is a parasitic disease which effects alot of fish in alot of tanks. It looks like small white dots on your fish. Almost like you sprinkled salt on them. Dont worry about the fact that you have ich in your tank. Almost all of us have dealt with it, at one time or another. The trick is, knowing how to deal with it, and how to prevent it from happening again.

Technical Name: Ichthyophthirius multifilis

Here is the only amusing part of ich. The translation of the name "Fish Louse With Many Children" thats the only funny part of it though. What really happens is when those little white dots turn up on your fish? The ICH is multiplying!! Each parasite, can spawn up to 1000! more!

Symptoms of ICH:

Infected fish are covered with small white spots. Some will only have a dot or two, at the beginning stages of the infection. However, ich won't remain unnoticed for long. Don't think that just because the spots are gone, the ICH is gone. ICH has a 3-Stage life cycle. It can start as a dormant parasite in your tank (stage 1). You wont see it, you will have no clue its there. Once matured, it will become free swimming in the tank (stage 2)...on an endless search for a host...I.E. your poor fish. It's looking for those tasty fish, and it WILL find them! Now is when your fish show the white dots (stage 3). Very early into your outbreak, your fish wont really notice the problem. You may see them rubbing on the substrate, plants, decorations. At this point, only having a few parasites on their skin...its just annoying.

The parasites will burrow into the fish's skin, getting under the slime coating. Thus making them immune to medication. They are also immune during stage 1 as mentioned above. What does this mean? You can only kill the ICH in stage 2. The other problem here...stage 2 is a 3 day process. So, thats all the time you have to catch it.

The total life cycle lasts about 2 weeks. However, water temperatures can effect this. Colder water will make the life cycle longer, and warmer water will make it faster.

[d3sc3n7]

Ok, now that we know what it is. How do we get rid of it?

There are many different ways to treat ich. I personally suggest Coppersafe
This is what I use, and it works wonders. There are lots and lots of meds out there, some work some dont. Some call for you to treat for 8-10-15 days. I cant list them all here. Obviously raising the water temp will quicken the life cycle...however raising it high enough...I believe 84+ degrees F. Will kill the ICH in stage 2. You have to make sure your fish can take temps that high though. I'm sure others will post more ways of treating ICH.

[d3sc3n7]

Prevention: The easiest way to prevent ICH? Is using a hospital tank. Have a 2nd (or 3rd,4th,5th LOL) and put every new fish you get in that tank for at least 2 weeks. Monitor their health, if after the time period they are still in good health, move them to your main tank. You should also treat any plants you have purchased, before adding them, as they to can possibly carry the parasites.

I hope this helps everyone...and I also hope the the people with more experience will add their wisdom.

[pwrmacG4]

i purchased some coppersafe to have just in case. great thread.. thanks

[roark fishies]

Ok, I was just fixin to post a ? on ich and seen this thread. I currently have a black molly that showed up one white spot on the belly. Later the same day another smaller white spot on the side. I'm guessing ich? Never dealt with it before. I began treating with Quick Cure. It says it will cure ich in 2 days. I'm on day 3 and the 2 spots are still there. No more have showed up. Do I keep treating? How do I know when to stop treating?

[TabMorte]

As noted on another thread it should be pointed out that Coppersafe has copper in it so you can NOT use it in a tank with invertibrates such as snails, shrimp and crayfish.

[pwrmacG4]

i would go with the coppersafe.. multiple people here swear by it.. and no problems reported with it not working..

[d3sc3n7]

Originally Posted by roark fishies

Ok, I was just fixin to post a ? on ich and seen this thread. I currently have a black molly that showed up one white spot on the belly. Later the same day another smaller white spot on the side. I'm guessing ich? Never dealt with it before. I began treating with Quick Cure. It says it will cure ich in 2 days. I'm on day 3 and the 2 spots are still there. No more have showed up. Do I keep treating? How do I know when to stop treating?

See, this is were people get confused. You cant harm the ich, if its visable. It has dug down under the slime coat of the fish. Keep a close eye out...when the spots are gone THEN treat

Originally Posted by TabMorte

As noted on another thread it should be pointed out that Coppersafe has copper in it so you can NOT use it in a tank with invertibrates such as snails, shrimp and crayfish.

Thanks Tab, I forgot to mention that!

[roark fishies]

Will more spots appear before they go away?

[d3sc3n7]

If the ich is still in the 3 day window, you may get some more. If not, then you should be done with spots.

Did you add anything new to the tank latley?