ich treatment

[featherblue]

So my puffers have been at 86 degrees for 7 days now and still have spots. I have just increased the temp to 86*, and increased my wc schedual to 3 20%/wk, as natural treatment

Should I add salt at this point because of my lacking results? Shouldn't the spots have dropped off inntge first four days? They haven't spread, still look like salt specks onnthe nose.

Hopefully ill have a better camera Friday......but I really hope I'm just snapping pics of their cheetah spots not ich hy then.

 

[Jaysee]

I would give it a couple more days and then kick it up to 90 and see if that doesn't do the trick. There are heat resistant strains - occasionally 86 isn't enough.

Do you have any more pics?

 

[featherblue]

Not with decent clarity. I'm going to try some more with the camera.....hopeing for new camera with better macro for the holidays

 

[featherblue]

So here's my best try with the camera phone


The spots I'm concerned about look almost like nostrils in the photo, but they are symmentrical. This one has the 2 nose spots, all of them have at least one like this, same area, but one has four.

 

[Butterfly]

It takes at least the full 14 days of heat and water change treatment to get it gone Are you also vacuuming the substrate as well? if not please do It will remove the ICH that drops off.
I agree with Jaysee you may have to up the temp a little more. But do it slowly.

if you notice any distress due to the high temps(since warmer water holds less oxygen) You can drop a bubble wand in to get some water agitation going for more oxygen.
carol

 

[featherblue]

I'm not going to stop early, I'm just worried about my progress removing it. Yes I'm cleaning the gravel as deeply as I can each wc (dirtied tank, can't go too deep). Running bubble ring, air stone and sponge filter......no panting or odd gill movement so far.

How would I decide (what am I weighing) to increase temp?

 

[Butterfly]

If you don't see any improvement in two or three more days I would up the temps for sure.

Otherwise sounds like you're doing everything right Keep up the good work.
carol

 

[featherblue]

Problem with 90*......2 75w jager heaters (diff models). One heats to 90, but thebothrr is at its Max at 86*. Am I going to hurt my gear cranking one to carry the load? Can it even get the tank that high? Ive already had a separate heater nightmare this week and I'm pretty tapped on heater costs for a few weeks.

 

[Butterfly]

Shouldn't cause a problem but wait to see if you need to
Carol

 

[featherblue]

ive started moving the heat up towards 90*, the spots are still there. none are spreading, but the originals have not fallen off yet.

heres a video of some snail hunting with the new camera. I could see the spots in the zoom shots, I hope its not just because I know what I'm looking for.

 

[Butterfly]

I really don't see any spots but that doesn't mean anything
Sounds like you're doing everything right Keep it up.
Carol

 

[Jaysee]

I didn't see any ich spots on any of the fish.

 

[featherblue]

They move so quick, its almost impossible to focus on a white spot on a yellow fish.

I can see 1-4 spots on the face of all 6 puffers. I knew they'd beennexposed so id been watching for it. Little grain of something almost on their lips, or where their nostrils would be. One spots looks to have fallen off, the skin is still discolored. No dimension to it now, but kinda like a scar or just healed tissue ( which makes sense)

I'm going to trust my eyes for now and keep trying with the camera.

 

[Jaysee]

Ich is really easy to identify and I just don't see it - they weren't moving too fast. Also, it usually starts on the fins and sides of the body. The fact that the spots are localized to the face further leads me to believe that you don't have ich. When 90 degrees doesn't work, that will confirm it.

 

[featherblue]

What else could they be? I did some googling and I couldn't find anything else simmilar
The spots are all around the mouth, no more have appearered after the first 3 days with heat. Really small, mm, raised, clear/white to white.

 

[Jaysee]

I really don't know. I'm taking a stab in the dark and will say maybe it's an abrasion of sorts, from the gravel?

 

[featherblue]

So found an online pic withmuch better than mine.here's the.link , the photo I'm refering to is halfway down the page, directly next to the phase "the first exception is the popular dwarf puffer"

The white spot on its nose is identical to my babies. I really hope ive mistake this for ich

If I didn't post /this online photo correctly pleaselet me know.

 

[Butterfly]

You posted it just right
Carol

 

[Jaysee]

The white spot on its nose is identical to my babies. I really hope ive mistake this for ich.

I didn't see ich in that picture either. To be honest, if I were you I would be hoping it's ich, because that's easy.

Are you looking at it's nose flaps?

 

[featherblue]

Sothat's what I thought at first, oh they have little nostrils, but ive seen the same spot on 2 of their chins.

 

[featherblue]

The chin and cheek spots are gone! The light just came on so I could check.

The only spots left on anyones face look like 2 symmetrical nostrils. Do DPs have a "nose" that would be visible? Is that what's visible in the link I posted #17?

I know I need to continue the heat treatment for the full two weeks to kill any unattached ich, but do I need to leave the temp quite as high? I raised it to 88* yesterday because of the lack of results at 86*.

 

[Jaysee]

Glad they are gone - like I said, ich is the best case scenario. Leave it the way it is and finish the 2 weeks at 88.

Yes, what I saw in the pic you linked was a nose flap

 

[featherblue]

Hurray! Just nose flaps now. Should the 2 wks be counted from when I first raised the heat, or from when the heat did the trick? (I'm on day 10 of the initial heat increase, day 2 of heat level that did the trick)

 

[Jaysee]

You've got 12 days to go.