Ichy Blue Tang

[Demm]

hey what's up all.

I know there are prolly a ton of posts about this, but I'm at work posting from my cell phone. just wanted to get some quick opinions.

sunday I introduced a little blue tank to my 55g reef. it was doing fine. last night at midnight it looked perfectly fine. this morning (not 6 hours later) I woke up and it had ich. not a lot. but about 10 or 15 spots. mostly on its nose.

now my delema is that its in a 55g tank without about 85lbs of rocks. so there's really no getting it out of there without taking everything out of the tank.

I have 2 clowns, an emperor cardinal, a spotted mandarin, a cleaner shrimp and a peppermint shrimp in the tank. also quite a few LPS. so I can't really use the medicine in the tank I don't think.

right now I'm warming up the water to about 83 or 84 degrees slowly from 78. the cleaner shrimp is also spending a lot of time with the tang.

what's my best course of action to treating the tank? can the shrimp just keep workin on him and it'll get rid of the ich?

the tang looks happy right now and is eating fine and swimming around.

this is the very first time I've ever had to deal with ich so I'm kinda afraid. I could use any advise given.

thanks a lot
-Demm

 

[Demm]

hmm i came home real fast on my break. all the white spots are gone now cept for one near it's left eye. it was 80 degrees in the tank when i went home. so i'm guessing the ich is in the sand now perhaps

 

[Lynden]

Keep up good maintainence, and introduce spirulina and garlic into the diet.

 

[Demm]

hmm well it looks like the ich is back, just smaller spots lol

as far as the garlic goes how do i go about that? how much do i put in? do i cut it up? the spirulina i already feed them.

 

[Lynden]

Garlic can be used as an extract or fed directly as diced bits. Expect the ich to disappear and come back every few days; it'll do that, but they can recover.

 

[Demm]

so pretty much like this i will be battling it forever? it'll just keep on coming back after a couple days?

i was thinking about getting a UV sterilizer. i heard that when ich is in free swim stage itll get killed by the UV?

what if i dont get a UV, it'll just stay forever like this since i cant treat it with medication?

 

[SkiFletch]

Feed it often, in fact, its prolly a good idea to get an autofeeder to feed for you. Stressed Tangs exhibit spots of ich, as do hungry Tangs. Dunno if you'll be dealing with this forever, but probably the first couple weeks-month

 

[Lynden]

May have misstated something here; the duration of time is variable, and it will often disappear and return every few days during this time, but it shouldn't last forever, as a fish that gets ich is often in a stressed or weakened state. When the fish recovers it's immune system will gradually overpower the Cryptocaryon parasites.

 

[Demm]

i feed my fish everyday. i get a cube of frozen (mixed with brine, spirulina and all kinda of stuff), and i use my turkey baster and put about two 2 squirts in there, and i always make sure every fish eats.

right now i'm sure the tang is probably still scared from being rehomed?

 

[Lynden]

You're on the right track.

 

[Demm]

alright cool, i'll keep on it then, thanks alot for the help! much appreciated

 

[mbu man]

i HAD a powder blue tang.
was fine the first day
second day had a few spots
third day all gone!
nothing for 2 weeks
saturday morning of the third week was fine, went out for few hours, came home had white spot really bad
sunday mornibg dead!!!!
gave every thing in my tank white spot!
didnt lose any other fish, i still have my 2 clowns, 6 chromis, fire shrimp, cleaner shrinp, hermit crabs, 2 anemones, pulse corals, leathers and other corals.
my blennie that i still have got, had white spot really really bad, thought that i was going to lose him.
went to my lfs and was given some eSha oodinex, its coral and invert safe.
do a google search on it.
i put it in my tank,everything is still alive and the blennie has got over the spot.
well worth a go

 

[Demm]

hmm i read about it and i'm trying to find a place where i can get it, but everything seems to be in the UK or the czech republic

thanks alot for the info, i'll keep looking for somewhere to get it!

 

[mbu man]

hmm i read about it and i'm trying to find a place where i can get it, but everything seems to be in the UK or the czech republic

thanks alot for the info, i'll keep looking for somewhere to get it!

can it be sent from the uk to you?
is their any restrictions on sending it?
find out, let me know,pm me sort out a price if you cannot find it.
where are you in the world?

 

[Demm]

I live in texas, usa. I'm gonna be getting a 15watt uv sterilizer today or tomorrow. so well see how that works out. I have high hopes that, that will help cure the fish.