# Ick



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

MY FISH HAVE ICK! i got some threadfin rainbow fish and they have ICK! how do i treat it?! i have baby fry in the tank!


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## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

newbiefishfanatic said:


> MY FISH HAVE ICK! i got some threadfin rainbow fish and they have ICK! how do i treat it?! i have baby fry in the tank!


There are tons of different meds that will treat ick. I usually use Quick Cure or parasite clear in a pinch if I have nothing else. If you have any scaleless fish/snails or shrimp in the tank you'll have to move them before you treat the tank.


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## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

I have meds if you want we arent far ....... just holler for me lol

mardel .. coppersafe mardel -two
melafix 
Quick cure 

maybe someone can suggest which is best i could run down to you


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## desjardo (Aug 30, 2008)

I like the ParaGuard by Seachem. No chemicals at all that will harm fish in anyway. I use it for new fish as well.
I also would add a lil aquarium salt and up the temp.
Salt is 1tbsp/10gallons I believe.


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## Sunstar (Jul 29, 2008)

if no scaleless fish, add some salt (remove snails). Increase temp to 30c


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## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

thanks all. i added aquarium salt as soon as i knew it was ick. i had added salt before though so i didnt add as much as 1 tbsp per 10 gal. is it possible for snails to get ick also? if i put them in another tank, wont they just spread it? and what about my fry! can they be sustained in 30*C water? (i have upped the temp to 84F not sure what that is in celcius) 

ok, so doreen brought over some quick cure (thanks so much!) and im not sure if it will kill my fry. anybody know?


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## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

It was nice getting out ......... was supposed to go out for lunch grrrrrrrrr.
julie wants to go back see the kitty lol
nice tanks!!!!


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## proud2bcanadian (Nov 13, 2006)

Unforunately most medications are not safe for fry. Aquari-Sol (if you can find any) works best. Your best bet is to reduce to half dose on anything else. I've never used quick cure with fry in a tank, but I'd say if you treat with 50% and keep the lights off, you should be fine.
Follow the instructions and make sure you carry out a good water change (get right deep down into the gravel to reduce the spread of the parasite) after completing the treatment.
Ick usually doesn't survive in temperatures over 81 degrees, but it is become stronger and stronger. Hopefully this is not your case.
Main thing is to keep stress levels down for the fish and let the medication do the work.

Hope that helps,


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## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

Quick cure is absolutely fine to use with fry, I've used it with inverts as full strength without any problems. As previously suggested half doses are always a good idea to try especially if you are unsure how a fish is going to react to a specific medication. 

Aquarisol may or may not help the problem unfortunately, it is good to use with fry because it is so mild. However because it is so mild I have never had any success with using it to treat anything other then velvet.


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## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

newbiefishfanatic said:


> thanks all. i added aquarium salt as soon as i knew it was ick. i had added salt before though so i didnt add as much as 1 tbsp per 10 gal. is it possible for snails to get ick also? if i put them in another tank, wont they just spread it? and what about my fry! can they be sustained in 30*C water? (i have upped the temp to 84F not sure what that is in celcius)
> 
> ok, so doreen brought over some quick cure (thanks so much!) and im not sure if it will kill my fry. anybody know?


What temperature was your tank at initially? 84 is a bit warm.

Snails do not transfer diseases between fish however if there are tomites attached to their shells and you transfer them to another tank it is possible to spread the disease. You should take the snails out of the tank as they salt will kill them and 84 degree's is too warm for most snails, what type are they? I'd transfer them to a bowl of water or a spare tank/rubbermaid for a few days at least.

If you've gone the salt route I'd keep a watchful eye on the tank and see how they do. 84 may be a bit high threadfins are usually kept between 72-77. I'd lower the temp SLOWLY over a day or two back down to 80 which is warm enough to speed up the lifecycle of ich.


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## desjardo (Aug 30, 2008)

I think the Paraguard by Seachem would be fry safe as it as 100% harmless to any fish.. In proper doses...


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## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

desjardo said:


> I think the Paraguard by Seachem would be fry safe as it as 100% harmless to any fish.. In proper doses...


I have heard only good things about Paraguard, hopefully I won't need to try it in the near future. Touch wood!


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## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

ok, so ive been treating for ick for 5 days now. is it safe to stop? the HEAVILY infected fish is now 98% better, and the others are perfect...

i would ideally like to put the threadfins and the bolivian rams into my 75 gallon, and leave the 38 gallon as a breeder tank where i put my preggos...


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## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

newbiefishfanatic said:


> ok, so ive been treating for ick for 5 days now. is it safe to stop? the HEAVILY infected fish is now 98% better, and the others are perfect...
> 
> i would ideally like to put the threadfins and the bolivian rams into my 75 gallon, and leave the 38 gallon as a breeder tank where i put my preggos...


I would treat ICH for no less then 14 days. The one time I had it I kept the tank salted for 30 days to make sure it was good and dead.


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## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

how much salt should i use? should i be putting in some everyday? i hear that its hard to get rid of, once its in there....i dont want to brackish my FW tank....


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## xxprudencexx (Sep 3, 2008)

1 tsp per 5g. You don't put everyday. To get rid of salt just water change.


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