Somethings already up with my discus - is it Ick or something worst?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

sushiray

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 11, 2009
628
4
0
new windsor/cormwall, ny
1. What is the size of your tank? 72gal. bowfront

2. What are your water parameters? State the brand of test kit used.
API kit ph 6.8 am 0 ni o na 5

3. Is your aquarium set up freshwater or brackish water? freshwater discus

4. How long the aquarium has been set up?
cycled tank 6weeks with angels/pleco/albino corys

5. What fish do you have? discus, baby albino cories, baby BN plecos (angels/med. pleco removed when discus arrived)
How many are in your tank? 15, 8, 8
How big are they? juvies
How long have you had them? discus/BN since friday, corys 2weeks in tank

6. Were the fish placed under quarantine period (minus the first batch from the point wherein the tank is ready to accommodate the inhabitants)?

they were shipped & hans said ok to "flop & plop" as long as my parameters were same as his & PH7

7. What temperature is the tank water currently? 84, plenty of aeration from 3 filters & air stone

8. Are there live plants in the aquarium? No, bare bottom

9. What filter are you using? AC110, fluval 204, sponge filter


10. Any other equipment used (aside from heater and filter which are two very important components of the tank)?

N/A

11. Does your aquarium receive natural sunlight at any given part of the day? No
What is your lighting schedule (assuming you do not rely on sunlight for our viewing pleasure)? morning to evening 11am-11pm - using F15T8 flourescent light.

12. When did you perform your last water change and how much water was changed? yesterday
How often do you change your water? daily 20-40%
Do you vacuum the substrate? daily as I do WC

13. What foods do you provide your fish? tetra/topfin flakes, SF frozen brine, topfin shrimp sticks/pellet, spirulina pellets

What is the feeding schedule? morning afternoon night, flakes each feeding, frozen brine morning/ night, shrimp/spirulina pellets morning/night

14. What unusual signs have you observed in your fish?
a) didn't eat for awhile till yesterday all started foraging the floor, some went to surface, some eat flakes, some eat brine. so looks like they are acclimated - tho can still be skittish at sudden movements. but now all free swimming thru-out tank mostly at bottom/midlevel tho.
b) one looks like has a white dot on fin (ick?) with other fin clamped occasionally, 2nd has white speck on fin that sometimes is clamped , 3rd has tiny white dots like tiny bubbles sprinkled over its body & tail fin.



15. Have you treated your fish ahead of diagnosis? No

If so, what treatments did you use? State your reasons for planning ahead of proper diagnosis.

Common Causes of Unusual Behaviors
This will cover common ailments only. Again, the more complicated health conditions can be found here.

1. Fish is scratching more than usual. No

2. Unusually tattered fins or fins with punch holes. No

3. Faded or unusually dark body color. No - they still same colors upon arrival, some darker strains still dark

4. Unusual patches on the body. No

5. Graze marks. No

6. Cysts, craters or spots.
-White spot or ich, oodinium, bacterial infection. Go here. ??

7. Unusual bloating. No

8. Protruding eyes and scales. No

9. Gasping and listless movements. No

10. Red veins. No

11. Refusal to eat. They've been starved so now want to eat tho not hardy eaters yet.

So, If someone can recommend which meds to use, I was thinking of getting one of the following (or if you have other better meds to suggest):

1. AQUARI-SOL:
Effective medication and prvention for ick, closed fins, body fungus, velvet, and sluggishness in freshwater fish. 16 oz. treats over 8,000 gallons.

2. QUICK CURE:
This will quickly cure ick. This is the only 2 day cure on the market. Strong yet safe for your fish. For fresh or salt water. 4 oz. treats 2000 gallons.

3. JUNGLE LIFEGUARD TABS:
Lifeguard™ is a broad-spectrum, non-antibiotic agent that treats the clinical signs of disease at their earliest stages in freshwater fish. Added to your aquarium water, the powerful oxidizing action of HaloShield® attacks and destroys disease-causing microorganisms. You don't have to be a fish expert to use Lifeguard.™ With this all-in-one treatment, there's no need for time-consuming guesswork. Each pre-measured dose treats infectious ailments such as fungus, ick, red streaks, milky or shedding slime, flukes, bacterial gill disease, mouth and fin rot, clamped or torn fins, and ulcers. May be used as a preventive when adding new fish. 1 tablet treats 10 gallons.

4. MELAFIX:
This all natural botanical remedy is completely safe for plants, invertibrates, and all fish. This will rapidly repair damaged fins, open wounds, tail rot, pop eye, mouth fungus, and many other bacterial infections. Will not change PH or harm the biological filtration. For fresh or salt water. 1 tsp./10 gallons.

5. METRONIDAZOLE:
Treatment for internal and external parasites as well as anaerobic bacterial disease. One 250 mg. tablet treats 10 gallons of water.

6. JUNGLE ICK GUARD II:
Ick Guard II (Liquid) For Scaleless Fish • Clears Ick Fast,"Also guards against secondary infections as a result of wounds left by the ick parasite. No need to raise the water temperature. Use on small, weak or scaleless fish.","Change 25% of the water before treatment, increase air flow and remove activated carbon during use. Second dose may be added in 24 hours. 8 oz. treats 480 gallons

7. KORDON RID ICH +:
Controls Ich And Other External Protozoan, Dinoflagellate And Fungal Diseases Of Fish. For Fresh and Saltwater Home And Non-Food Fish Aquariums and Ponds. Will Not Harm Biological Filters When Used As Directed. The Foremost Ich White Spot Chemical Treatment For Aquarium and Pond Fish

thk u all once again!

:feedback:
 
This type of response I am really in approval of..^^^

This is definitely ich. The odd thing is with discus, ich is not the norm due to high temperature. I would venture a guess the protozoans came from one of your fish and ich was just a low level infection. There is no dormant stage for ich. Considering all discus are kept in temperature no lower than 84 degrees which is typical and recommended, ich would not have come from the discus at all. Discus are easily stressed and would be one of the first to show unusual symptoms.

Of all the medicines available, go with Kordon Rid-Ich. What is the Aquarisol's ingredients? Quick Cure is far too strong and with formalin added, it can severely deplete oxygen levels.

Edit: Ingredients list
Jungle Ick Guard 2-formalin, victoria green, nitromersol, acriflavine
Looks like we have malachite green here disguised as victoria green. Too powerful to me.

Jungle Lifeguard
This is on "iffy" list claiming it can cure everything. This would be too powerful. Ingredient is 1-chloro-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-4-imidazolidinon unless I got the wrong med's ingredients instead.
 
Once again Lupin advice he has it covered. Brilliant guy A+!
 
next time if possible have a seperate qt tank without any other fish discus can get pretty stressed during move and the fish you have can easily pass on something even if they look fine
 
thx all. will get kordon rid ick soon. yeah, my original tenants looked ok to me - damn diseases sucks!

btw - I just ordered from www.kensfish.com - many had recommended that site! the prices are excellent & shipping is unheard of cheap cheap cheap. he must have some big corporate rate & other vendors are making a lot off charging such high shipping charges!
 
sushiray;3283859; said:
thx all. will get kordon rid ick soon. yeah, my original tenants looked ok to me - damn diseases sucks!

btw - I just ordered from www.kensfish.com - many had recommended that site! the prices are excellent & shipping is unheard of cheap cheap cheap. he must have some big corporate rate & other vendors are making a lot off charging such high shipping charges!


Lupin - I received my supplies. I noticed Kordon Rid Ich has both M.green & formalin.

I have applied 2 treatments so far along with salt treatment. Is this ok?

I had noted prior that one discus had Ich sprinkled on its body & thought it had disappeared to 1dot when I raised temps to 87 & b-4 my treatment, but I was mistaken due to the lighting in the tank & the angle I looked at. so it's still there.

also, when doing W/C's I see the bluish/greenish color disappear even tho I took out all my carbon. Could my biomedia be filtering out? Hate to think so & I am wasting product.

So I just kept sponge filter on with 2nd airstone - AC110 & fluval 204 off for a day & a nite so far.

will be doing another W/C shortly.

wanted to know about the salt additions & W/C impact - I have added 10 teaspoons so far - need to add just 3more. but upon W/C I am diluting it now so what should I do about the salting?

thks
 
sushiray;3292730; said:
Lupin - I received my supplies. I noticed Kordon Rid Ich has both M.green & formalin.

I have applied 2 treatments so far along with salt treatment. Is this ok?
I wouldn't have combined both. Just make sure the water is well aerated since you have formalin included in the treatment.

also, when doing W/C's I see the bluish/greenish color disappear even tho I took out all my carbon. Could my biomedia be filtering out? Hate to think so & I am wasting product.
The malachite green can bind on the organic matter. I'd vacuum and wash the filter media slightly.
 
Lupin;3293547; said:
I wouldn't have combined both. Just make sure the water is well aerated since you have formalin included in the treatment.

have pretty strong air pump going thru my sponge filter & air stone. I just turn back on my fluval.

The malachite green can bind on the organic matter. I'd vacuum and wash the filter media slightly.

I need to vacuum daily as the discus eat a lot & poop a lot. I thought it was the baby BN's but with the frequency of feeding & eating, those newbie discus of mine finally are acclimated & not as skittish so they are producing a lot of waste.

I just did W/C & the one sprinkled discus looks like they disappeared off the body but in the tail fin it's not dots but more like a little smear patches.

Now when & if I do get rid of the Ich & do a major W/C & rinse out my filters (rinse lightly my biomedia bags) - my understanding is the parasites will always be there waiting to break out again when the moment suits their fancy?!

No need for any preventative additives right?
 
Don't add any more meds. Stick to the ones you just added.
 
Lupin;3293631; said:
Don't add any more meds. Stick to the ones you just added.

so, the one discus that had it sprinkled all over basically has disappeared, even the tail fin little "smears" fading away. I used Rid Ich & salt combo. so far 4 days of Rid Ich. Now when I see no more evidence - say by tomorrow, should I still add Rid Ich for 1,2,3 more days?
 
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