Got a pair of A. Cacatouides....one has ick :-/

Last week I called one of the nicest fish stores in Charlotte and asked if they had any apistos in stock. They said that they got some recently from a local breeder so I headed down to check them out. I picked out the nicest looking female and also took the nicer of the 2 males that were in the tank. The female looked older and "thicker" than the male but I figured that the male was just young...no big deal; he will grow. I typically quarantine new fish but I didn't with these guys because they were from a local breeder and also because I had been working on the water parameters for my main tank to suit the apistos. I put them both in my main tank around 6pm the night I got them and the female was doing great but it was obvious that something was wrong with the male. He was very shy and lethargic and even the cories were bullying him around and nipping at him. I felt bad for the little guy. The next morning I noticed the tell tale signs of ick on his pectoral fins. I immediately moved him to my 10 gallon QT. I called the fish store back and told them what was going on so that they could keep an eye on that tank for an ich outbreak which I can't help but assume will happen. And also to let them know that I was fine treating the fish but that if he died, I was going to want him replaced or my money back. They agreed so the treatment begins.

I am using Wardley's Ich Away...basically malachite green. So far, all the cysts have fallen off of the fish's body but there are still some on his pectoral fins. Anyways, I am not really looking for advice but just wanted to share my story and a few pics of my new cockatoos.

It's really strange that the male came with ick and the female who is still in my main tank is doing great with no signs of ich whatsoever. Stranger things have happened I guess.

Here is my female in the main tank:


Here is my male right after I got him into the QT:


And here is a pic I snapped of the male today. Recovery is going well. Keep your fingers crossed for him:

 

Hi,

Sorry to hear your new fish aren't doing so well. I suggest raising the temperature and doing daily gravel vacs in both tanks. Here is a great link that will explain how to get rid of ich. Curing ICH Naturally

 

Absolutely, raise the heat to about 86 (do this slowly as directed) and daily DEEP gravel vacs to ensure that you get all of the spores out.

 

Good advice in the two posts above but, don't raise the heat now that you have started a chemical treatment. The two treatments shouldn't really be combined. Chemicals affect how much oxygen is in the water and so does increasing temperature being as warm water can't hold as much oxygen as cooler water. Chemicals can also harm the beneficial bacteria which can cause ammonia and nitrite spikes. These toxins get even more toxic with heat, and also affect how well fish can obtain oxygen.

I think it is likely best to finish the chemical treatment on the quarantine tank. The main tank will also have been subjected to the ich parasite though and should also be treated. For the main tank, the heat treatment would be the best way to go. It's the safest for fish and beneficial bacteria so it won't harm your cycle. Add an extra airstone or drop the level of water in the tank some to promote more surface disturbance which will help the water absorb oxygen from the surrounding air.

Click on the link in RogueAgent's post. It will guide you through the steps of the heat treatment process. Any questions you may have about it you are welcome to ask.

 

+1 to Toosie's advice. The affected fish was in the display tank, so, better safe than sorry.

 

+1 to Toosie's advice. The affected fish was in the display tank, so, better safe than sorry.

Yes, but he was only in there for about 12 hours and this was during the parasitic phase so the ick at this point was embedded in the fish's skin and hadn't started to "fall off" and begin the reproductive cycle. It's been 5 days since I removed the infected fish from the main tank and there are no signs of ick on any of the fish in that tank. Tank temperature is 80 degrees F - so if the ick was there, it would have found a host(s) and presented itself by now. I'm still keeping a close eye on all the fish in the main tank but until I see evidence of ick, I am going to hold what I've got. I have several species like harlequins and rubber lipped pleco that will be really stressed by the high temps so I am not going to subject them to that unless I have to.

Does this logic seem sound?

 

It's sound enough. The only problem there is the other apistos could be carrying because they were in the same tank as this guy. Ich is often present in a fish's gills but the fish's immune system can keep them under control. When a fish becomes sick or stressed for any reason, it gives ich the opportunity to take over and can cause a full blown ich attack. The ich that is present in the gills will drop off and be able to attach itself to other fish and if their immune system is strong it may also keep the ich under control, but if it's not, the ich will be happy campers.

It's definitely up to you whether you choose to wait and see if yet another fish becomes obviously infected before treating the main tank, but if any flashing occurs even if you cannot see any sign of ich (you probably won't if it's only in the gills) it would be a good idea to treat the entire tank with the heat treatment.

 

Just wanted to provide an update. I did not do any sort of treatment on the main tank and all fish are healthy and doing great - no signs of ick whatsoever. knock on wood.

My young male is doing fantastic. Once the ick fell off, he had some fin rot on his pectoral fins. I dosed my 10 gallon QT with 2 TBS of aquarium salt and 5ml of Melafix per day for the past 3 days and he looks to be in perfect health now. He is swimming around a lot, foraging for food in the substrate, and eating well at feeding times. Its hard to believe that this is the same fish that I started out with.

How much longer should I keep him in QT until I move him into the main tank?

Here is a great pic that I was able to snap with my iPhone:

 

Yes, but he was only in there for about 12 hours and this was during the parasitic phase so the ick at this point was embedded in the fish's skin and hadn't started to "fall off" and begin the reproductive cycle. It's been 5 days since I removed the infected fish from the main tank and there are no signs of ick on any of the fish in that tank. Tank temperature is 80 degrees F - so if the ick was there, it would have found a host(s) and presented itself by now. I'm still keeping a close eye on all the fish in the main tank but until I see evidence of ick, I am going to hold what I've got. I have several species like harlequins and rubber lipped pleco that will be really stressed by the high temps so I am not going to subject them to that unless I have to.

Does this logic seem sound?

Ich can exist in the gills for a long time. That's where it starts. From there, it spreads to the fins and the body. If the fish got the spots while in the main tank, then the life cycle has begun. If your other fish are healthy and not stressed, and the water is good, then it's likely they would not show spots, even if they were infected. It's only when the fish is weakened in some way that the parasite starts to get the upper hand, spreading to other parts of the body.

The high temps are not going to have any impact on the fish. For the 2 weeks of treatment, you won't notice any difference. You really ought to do a heat treatment on the main tank, which means that you don't need to wait to add the male back to the tank.