Ich??

[Scavenger]

Maybe one natural helper you may concider in your ich battle is adding some cleaner shrimp and or neon gobies if your tank conditions allow it.
I'm sure this wouldn't be a complete fix of your trouble but it would probably help.

[Bob I]

Originally Posted by Scavenger

Maybe one natural helper you may concider in your ich battle is adding some cleaner shrimp and or neon gobies if your tank conditions allow it.
I'm sure this wouldn't be a complete fix of your trouble but it would probably help.

Actually not. My readings indicate that Cleaner Shrimp have no effect on ich. That was verified during my last battle.

[bulletsworld]

Originally Posted by Scavenger

Maybe one natural helper you may concider in your ich battle is adding some cleaner shrimp and or neon gobies if your tank conditions allow it.
I'm sure this wouldn't be a complete fix of your trouble but it would probably help.

I totally agree with scavenger. No product on the market gets rid of the ich actually on the fish. The cleaner shrimp & neon gobies (known here as the cleaner wrasse) are the only thing to help relief the ich ON the fish. Although my cleaner was a ich picking off machine, the shrimp favoured certain fish, from my own experience anyway.

Hyposalinity is tricky. Has to measured with a refractmeter only to properly maintain salinity at 1.09 and kept at that level with no fluctuations for 30-40days with main tank empty (of fish) for this time as well. Keeping in mind water evaporation, all the water chemistry you go through during this process of the P.H dropping after the salinity drop pasts 1.16 & the encounter when algae grows & you try to remove it (ammonia spike) or over populating occurs (ammonia spike) or water changes are not kept up (nitrate rises fast & ammonia spike). Long process & stressful at first but worth it in the end. Tank has to be monitored everyday & recorded everyday to notice changes. I have found myself if salinity goes up past 1.09 then you have to start all over again as ich has show me that it can survive. Patience needed for this method.

Only other method besides that that i have found is copper. EEK!

Are you sure you have ich? Check out these for other possible known diseases. Brookynella or Amyloodinium.

http://www.petsforum.com/personal/tr...marineich.html

http://www.petsforum.com/personal/tr...oklynella.html

http://www.petsforum.com/personal/tr...loodinium.html

And there treatments:
http://www.petsforum.com/personal/tr...reatments.html

[DOO-E]

Sorry to be so late but i wanted to see if this would work
My coral beauty came down with ich because of the ride home (1.5 hour trip). She didnt get it really bad just one day when she was constinaly. I let it pass with no medication because i was afraid that anything might kill the corals. Beauty my angel wasnt in any pain just a little irritation but she came over it in 2 weeks with no medications just regualr feedings of frozen mysis shrimp. I am now glad to say that beauty is fully healed and an active member of my aquarium.

[Scavenger]

Originally Posted by bulletsworld

The cleaner shrimp & neon gobies (known here as the cleaner wrasse) are the only thing to help relief the ich ON the fish. Although my cleaner was a ich picking off machine, the shrimp favoured certain fish, from my own experience anyway.

Actually a neon gobie and cleaner wrasse are 2 different fish. I suggest the gobie because it is a cleaner fish but not an obligatory parasite eater. It will also eat other food. Also, I've read the cleaner wrasse is hard to keep alive compared to the gobie. Is this because they starve when all parasites are off fish???? I don't know. The gobies only have a 1-1.5year life span but according to my reading are very easy to breed in an aquarium and a large number of sold gobies are tank raised.

But I believe for each ich pod (can't remember real name) that is picked off a fish, that is one less ich that will drop off and reproduce in the substrate. If all ich pods get picked off and eaten then the ich has run out of breeding stock. This makes sense to me. Or did I miss something??

[bulletsworld]

You know what I think your right. I guess I took the LFS (big Al's) word for it when he told me. But could be. I had another person tell me there is a difference to so you gotta be right.

Yeah I here the wrasser dont live long either, not really sure why. But mind eats brime shrimp so maybe thats the difference if the others only eat parasites. That I am not sure. Minds still alive so can't tell ya.

[Beverly]

Originally Posted by Bob_I

Is Garlic Xtreme something one gets at a LFS The reason I ask is because I have two True Percs I purchased last month, which are in quarantine. They of course have ich, and are currently under treatment with KickIch, as I want to see if it will work when used correctly for the right amount of time. They are not terribly bothered, and continue to eat well. I would like to try garlic in conjunction with the medicine.

Kick Ick is supposed to be reef safe, which is why I used it, but it didn't work worth a darn Was like flushing $50 down the toilet twice I used it as directed and for longer than directed, too, due to the long life cycle of ich.

boB, the fish won't be terribly bothered by the first round of ich because there are only a few of them on the fish. But wait 2-3 weeks for the new batch to be ready to latch onto your fish. By that time, there will be many, many more little ichs that will want to attach. That's when the fish get really sick

Wish I could give you a fool proof, easy method of attack against ich. All I know is that I used LOTS of garlic on their food for 3 weeks in the display tank, then when they showed no signs of ich, I moved them to QT for 6 weeks to make sure the ich was out of the display tank. Kept feeding them LOTS of garlic with their food while in QT as well.

Garlic Xtreme should be available at some lfs. I'd phone around to find out which ones stock the stuff before driving all over town.

Good luck

[Quagmire]

So far I've been lucky I've only had to deal with FW Ich.My fingers are crossed but I sure its only a matter of time.What would happen if you didnt use any meds. or garlic and just waited for the Ich to fall off, then moved the fish to a different tank?Would this work or is it too much to hope that all the Ich would be off the fish at the same time?

[Bob I]

A final update is in order. After the tank move the fish looked far worse. Whatever the disease was it did not act like ich. I then went away for the weekend as I always do in summer. Upon returning both fish were found dead. I will now move the tank back upstairs and leave it fallow for the next few months. I will have another shot at it in the Fall.