Scrapping Ick Off a Fish Manually

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Redbellypiranha

Fire Eel
MFK Member
May 13, 2010
2,097
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Colorado
so my baby bass has pretty bad ick, im treating with salt and heat and some Kordon Ick Attack, and could i take the fish out of the tank and use some sort of utensil that wont hurt the fish and scrape the ick off and then add slime coat to the tank?
 
Not a good idea. That is a good way to spread it to other fish. Just treat with temp and salt.

How could it spread to the other fish if im taking the infected fish out and and scrapping the ick off just on the counter or something
 
Stress is a huge factor in ich. Even if you scrape it off, the fish will be super stressed and the outbreak will pop back up worse and likely to infect other fish.
 
The white spot is a reaction to the parasite, and not the parasite itself. There is no guarantee you got the parasite. I don't think it will work

Another interesting way of doing it actually might work: Set up 5 aquariums, and set the temperature of the water to very warm water that ich life cycle speeds up; then all you do is transfer the fish to a new aquarium every 24 hours and then after wards, completely disinfect and dry the used aquarium before using again...the theory behind this is that by switch to new environment every time, ich will not be able to attach the fish any more and thus breaking the cycle. I guess if you don't have 5 tanks, 2 will do; rotate the aquarium every day and disinfect.
 
The white spot is a reaction to the parasite, and not the parasite itself. There is no guarantee you got the parasite. I don't think it will work

Another interesting way of doing it actually might work: Set up 5 aquariums, and set the temperature of the water to very warm water that ich life cycle speeds up; then all you do is transfer the fish to a new aquarium every 24 hours and then after wards, completely disinfect and dry the used aquarium before using again...the theory behind this is that by switch to new environment every time, ich will not be able to attach the fish any more and thus breaking the cycle. I guess if you don't have 5 tanks, 2 will do; rotate the aquarium every day and disinfect.

If you have 5 hospital aquariums


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It's a good idea in theory, but it won't work in actuality. From my understanding, the white spots aren't actually the parasite itself, but the fishes skin where the parasites are buried underneath. This link is really informative http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/ich.php
 
The visible stages of Ich are carried out within the host fishes' skin. The first stages are called trophozoites and are highly resistant to drug therapy. Trophozoites mature into trophonts and leave the host, falling to the bottom of the aquarium or pond. These mature trophonts release from 200 to 1,000 tomtits.
These tomites move about looking for a host, which they must find within 2 to 3 days at 75° F (24° C) or they will die. Cooler temperatures will lengthen this time. IT IS THIS FREE SWIMMING STAGE that is most vulnerable to treatment. It is important to note that during these intermediate stages Ich tomites may also attach themselves to plants and be accidentally introduced into an aquarium or pond along with the new plants. Once the tomite attaches to the host, it matures and the cycle begins anew.
The parasite forms a nodule under the skin or gill epithelium of the fish host. It constantly turns and moves under the skin, feeding on destroyed cells and body fluids. It continues to feed on the cells until it matures, causing damage to the skin tissue. This leads to osmotic stress, often resulting in secondary bacterial or fungal infections.
 
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