Quadricarinatus and ich treatment?

Oxydoras · 02-07-2009, 6:30 PM

I'm keeping my quad in with some platies and guppies and several of them have contracted ich. I was wondering if the ich treatment would be un-safe for my quad. Can anybody help?

black_sun · 02-07-2009, 7:08 PM

I don't off hand know if it would be harmful to your quad, but just an idle thought... check the medication for any ingredients containing copper (or other metals). Copper and some other metals can end up killing your quad. Also, look for any invert warnings that may be on the box or bottle, some medications will have a warning saying that it's unsafe for use in tanks with inverts.

I don't think ich medications contain anything that's harmful to inverts, though. But don't take that as a definitive answer, someone else will probably chime in.

Oxydoras · 02-07-2009, 7:19 PM

Thanks for the reply! I'm heading to the LFS in the next couple minutes and I'll make sure the med's dont have any metals in them and I'll check for an invert warning

Lupin · 02-08-2009, 3:05 AM

Most copper meds do work on ich however why use the harmful chemicals when you can have salt? Treat with heat and salt. Inverts can tolerate them temporarily although generally, I prefer to separate the inverts and keep them isolated until the ich clears up in 14 days. They won't contract ich but most will harbor the cysts of ich when the parasites lay eggs on their exoskeleton. It's possible but the ich needs hosts (fish) in 48 hours or less otherwise they will die.

Yabbadoo · 02-08-2009, 5:45 AM

What ever you do, don't treat the tank with anything containing metals, especially copper. If a treatment is required that does have copper in it, always always always remove any crays/inverts from the tank until the medication has cleared up/water change.

To kill any bugs stowed away on the cray, give it a salt bath before returning to the tank.

nuggets · 02-08-2009, 6:10 AM

salt and raise temp dont use chemicals you dont bath in chemicals so why do you want your fish to swim in them?

black_sun · 02-08-2009, 10:43 AM

Hey, Lupin does salt really get rid of Ich or just hinder it?
I know I use salt baths for my crayfish if they have parasites or they managed to contract Ramularia/Didymaria (shell rot), and works rather effectively with them. But I was always told that to get rid of Ich (or other issues with fish) you had to raise the salinity levels to near brackish levels, wouldn't that be bad for the fish?

(Side note, as you can tell... I don't really do fish, I'm an invert gal lol)

Oxydoras · 02-08-2009, 4:45 PM

So here's the scoop. I went to my LFS of choice and talked to the fish specialist Kent (the owner of the store, as well as a very good friend), and he also said to avoid any treatment with copper or other metals in it. He gave me this stuff called "Ick Clear" made by Jungle. He said that it would be completely harmless for my quad and that he had used in with several crays in the past. The active ingredients are: victoria green, and acriflavine. It's in these wierd fizzy tablets that dye your water a very vibrant green. I put in some in the early evening last night and this morning the green color of the water is gone and my fish have significantly less ich than the night before! I think one more treatment should clear it right up!

Thanks to all of you for your helpfull advice!

Lupin · 02-09-2009, 3:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by black_sun

Hey, Lupin does salt really get rid of Ich or just hinder it?
I know I use salt baths for my crayfish if they have parasites or they managed to contract Ramularia/Didymaria (shell rot), and works rather effectively with them. But I was always told that to get rid of Ich (or other issues with fish) you had to raise the salinity levels to near brackish levels, wouldn't that be bad for the fish?

(Side note, as you can tell... I don't really do fish, I'm an invert gal lol)

Salt gets rid of ich but in some cases where salt is regularly added for no reason, ich becomes so adapted to such conditions, meds are the only way to get rid of them. Why people add salt in their tank for no reason other than alleging that it helps "prevent" diseases is beyond me.

As far as the salinity is concerned, a tablespoon per 5g is sufficient enough to destroy the ich and not harm the fish. The fish can take to the slightly increased salinity temporarily but as salt adds electrolytes, in the long run, it will eventually harm the fish especially as its osmoregulation is not designed to absorb any more electrolytes than what is necessary.

Lupin · 02-09-2009, 3:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oxydoras

So here's the scoop. I went to my LFS of choice and talked to the fish specialist Kent (the owner of the store, as well as a very good friend), and he also said to avoid any treatment with copper or other metals in it. He gave me this stuff called "Ick Clear" made by Jungle. He said that it would be completely harmless for my quad and that he had used in with several crays in the past. The active ingredients are: victoria green, and acriflavine. It's in these wierd fizzy tablets that dye your water a very vibrant green. I put in some in the early evening last night and this morning the green color of the water is gone and my fish have significantly less ich than the night before! I think one more treatment should clear it right up!

Thanks to all of you for your helpfull advice!

Victoria green appears to be malachite green to me. It has also been disguised as benzaldehyde as most people were not convinced by the fact malachite green won't harm the beneficial bacteria. Overdosage of malachite green can have detrimental effects to the beneficial bacteria.

Glad the ich seems to be diminishing but do not stop yet. Keep the treatment ongoing for 10 days just to be sure.