ich treatment and shrimp

[tedr108]

I know I need to get a quarantine tank, but for the time being...

I got 11 new ember tetras yesterday to go along with my current cardinal tetras. The new tetras had ich this morning, this is my first time having any diseases. A friend loaned me some Quick Cure, which has a warning on its label about shrimp. My friend has cherry shrimp and they all survived his treatment with Quick Cure (half strength recommended for tetras). Would it be safe for me to use this stuff? I do not have an extra tank to which to move the shrimp.

If there is a better treatment, please let me know.

 

[Gerryd]

Ted,

I have used Mardel brand Maracide with good results in my planted tanks for several years.

They also have amano shrimp and I noticed no losses from treatment.

However, I also dose about 50-60% of recommended dosage, to be sure I don't cause harm....

Takes a little longer for the ick to clear, but IMO it is worth it. Plus, the parasite lifecycle is longer than the treatment duration, so I figure it works out okay. At least for me so far.

You may also want to remove any carbon, as this will remove the meds, and raise your temp slightly. From what I understand, this hastens the life cycle of the parasite.

I cannot recommend a quarantine tank enough. I have lost lots of fish (esp cardinals) by adding 'just a few that looked okay' to my display tank and have deeply regretted it. DEEPLY.....

Even a small 10 gallon can be setup quickly, by taking some substrate from the display tank, and keeping a couple of sponges in your tank/sump, if you cannot maintain a constant quarantine tank.

When needed, you can start up the quarantine tank in a shorter period of time with the sponges/substrate as they are 'seasoned'. I leave mine going, and keep some live bearers in there....

Hope this helps.

Good luck!

 

[tedr108]

Thanks, Gerry ... just went out and bought some Maracide. First time I've ever mail-ordered fish. Lost a few, which I'm not used to -- maybe I just had beginners luck. I imagine that being shipped is rather stressful. A few more of the embers are not looking great, so I really want to protect my cardinals.

I like the idea of going half-strength and will give that a try with the Maracide. Thanks.

 

[creighton]

You could try raising the temp up to 85 or so. The shrimp should be able to handle it and the ick should dissapear in a few days. Its worked for me in the past.

 

[tedr108]

Well, raising the temp is easy enough ... I'll give it a try ... I'm at 82 presently. I have some Cory cats, SAEs and Otos in there too, I'll double check that they can handle the higher temps.

This is going from bad to worse. The ember tetra that is hurting and not eating now has is eyes bugging out. One other ember's tail started fraying and it had blood in its body from base of tail to stomach -- that one died already. I think I'll put the bug-eyed guy out of his misery -- someone told me to put him in a small container and put ice in it. Sounds reasonable.

The remaining 8 (of 15) embers are eating and look good -- but this was definitely a disheartening day. My main concern now is the cardinals and other inhabitants of my tank. I already have a tiny little 5-gal tank someone loaned me that I will be setting up as a quarantine tank today.

 

[tkos]

Raising the temp will speed the life cycle of ich up but but not enough to kill it off in a few days. Generally you need to be ich free for at least a week before stopping treatment to assure that it is in fact gone from your tank. Medications are rarely good to use for so long. Especially things like quick cure that contain copper.

Have you heard of the salt and heat method? It certainly works and is not so hard on the fish. Aqua Facts
Look under fish diseases. It is always a good idea to know the life cycle of the parasite you are combating.