Does my new clown have ich?

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Thank you.
He's quarantined in that tank so for now he'll stay a solitary loach. I have another 6 loaches which he'll join once I am sure I am in the clear.
I haven't seen the loach flashing in nearly a week. And I accidentally caught him flashing when taking a video.
As for the "chasing" other fish, he actually does that each time I drop food in the tank and he chases them away from it quite aggressively actually. He might be stressed but he's been in salty water for over a week which is not helping. Yesterday, when I approached the tank to take a short video, he came up to the glass like a puppy and did the "chasing" ritual, kicking the platies away in case I drop food. If there's no food, he doesn't chase anybody, just browses around happily.
 
Here is a shot of him just when I dropped food. He goes bananas immediately as if he's never seen food.

ClownLoach6_zpsukkwlsyr.png

ClownLoach6_zpsukkwlsyr.png
 
Just to explain what I am saying.

I just took 2 videos in the space of a few minutes.

First video is the clown loach in normal mode when there's no food around.......

[video=youtube;UXWVSvAXr2Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXWVSvAXr2Q&feature=youtu.be[/video]
 
Then I dropped a few mini sinking pellets, the clown loach turns into a monster......

[video=youtube;fh3zPrsk09E]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh3zPrsk09E[/video]
 
Took a video of my some of my other clown loaches today as they were out. They act spooked because there's a sofa next to the tank and the dog was up and down constantly while I was taking the video.
I was really scared I'd infect the tank with ich by accident when the small one in the other tank showed signs but so far so good.

[video=youtube;ii1WbNxpMD8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ii1WbNxpMD8[/video]

And my biggest clown who wasn't out for the video.
View attachment 1072041

The little loach is doing well, still no sign of ich anymore. I've been doing daily water changes to lower the salt content but with just 20% at a time it's going to take ages. I don't want to stress the fish so I am lowering the TDS gradually.
 
You're going a good job. Good to hear he seems to be doing ok. It's true that ich can be hidden in the gills so just keep an eye out. Little dude is spunky. :) You're other loaches are really nice, especially the big one.
 
Thanks guys.

There is no sign of ich in the small tank. It's been 12 days since I started treatment and 14 days on high temps, right now it's sitting at 29C because the heater won't do less although set on 26C. But the fish are fine with it for now and once I get all the salt out I'll lower it a bit.
I am doing daily water changes. TDS is still 500ppm, started at 300ppm presalt, reached 800ppm at salt peak so they've actually been in various doses of salt and still are until the water changes eventually get it out.
It seems to be working if they ever had ich.

Zangkrast said:
Nice Loach pack!
Click to expand...
Thanks. I love them.

evabug1 said:
You're going a good job. Good to hear he seems to be doing ok. It's true that ich can be hidden in the gills so just keep an eye out. Little dude is spunky. :) You're other loaches are really nice, especially the big one.
Click to expand...

I must get him on a video with the lights on. I think the bigger they get, the better they look. He's a bit of a loner, likes his own company. My other 5 are very close and are seldom out without at least one other for company where this one does his own flips.

He's gone a long way since I got him a year and a half ago.

1.5 years ago when I purchased him:
Clown2_zps3b00a3c5.jpg


6 months later:
DSCF5982_zps5decf43a.jpg

And below just a few days ago, which is 1 year after the 2nd pic.

View attachment 1072531

Clown2_zps3b00a3c5.jpg

DSCF5982_zps5decf43a.jpg
 
evabug1 said:
I like your timeline photos. Whoa, big difference between when you purchased him and six months later! What are you feeding them? I find the larger ones to be more reclusive.
Click to expand...

Staple is NLS cichlid pellets. I've fed all my fish with various NLS pellets for years.

They also get daily(30% of the food) algae/spirulina pellets which I vary depending. I have found out the clowns don't touch the plants if they're given enough algae wafers. I used to buy New Era plec pellets for years, war over them as all fish I have love them. This tank being a bottom dweller tank, it was a problem, common pleco, corys, clown loaches all over the few big pellets and it was my fault as I was lazy breaking it down. So for the last 6 months, it's been it's been small spirulina sticks, and peace and quiet has returned :)
I used to give them hikari algae wafers for a period of time too which went well as well. My clown loaches click a lot on "algae" wafer food. Sometimes I wonder if they are vegetarians :)
And they prefer NLS pellets to blood worms. I basically drop the blood worms, they let them pass, other fish dive into them, clown loaches keep staring at the surface for NLS pellets, really odd clown loaches :)
But if I burry the blood worms with a syringe in the sand, they love digging them out.

I give them frozen stuff occasionally, once a week or two when I am in the mood but I have to admit not as much as I should and that's because the rest of the fish I have in the tank shouldn't be fed on high proteins that much.
Also, clown loaches with big distended bellies from overfeeding isn't that nice of a view although some like them this way. I find it unnatural given how wild ones look like.
 
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