Ick in a day?

[MrPlatypus]

I have a rubberlipped pleco by the name of Fido who, just yesterday, looked absolutely fine, as the wife and I check them everyday as they are the wife's favorite critters in our tank.

Today, I noticed he seems to have what I'm pretty sure is ick, as it looks like he's been covered in some salt, and I have no intentions of cooking him. Can ick develop visibly in a day? I've done some reading and upped my tank temperature to 82 (my tetras should be alright), but what concerns me is it's rapid development as it was not there yesterday. Can it develop visibly that quickly?

I will try and get a picture, but he is an extremely shy one.

Any thoughts or insight here would be helpful, because I'm really attached to him and don't want anything bad to happen to him.

Thank you in advance.

 

[macvsog23]

Treat straight away it will spread soon it is a fast thing.

http://www.fishdoc.co.uk/disease/whitespot.htm

 

[macvsog23]

http://uk.search.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=ytff1-msgr&p=white spot in fish&type=

 

[ccole]

Totally agree with mac, I had the same thing with a hardy rusty pleco, catch it quick and it should leave quick! Make sure to do a water change at end of treatment. Good luck and let us know how fido does.

 

[Brengun]

If you have a macro lens you can pick it up esp on tiny juvies as little tiny blisters raised on the skin. Very difficult to see just looking at it but its there.

Agreed, up the temp is one major good tip to speed up its cycle and let the fish get over it.
Some fish recover without any meds at all.

Chilling and stress is what usually brings it on and introducing new unquaranteened fish is often the cause of spreading it into your own tank.

 

[MrPlatypus]

Alright, this is what I've done so far:
I upped the temperature to 78F, and removed a couple of objects from the tank that developed some serious algae. The LFS tried to sell me something that was, unfortunately, financially un-feasible for me at the time, but they did sell me some stuff called Quick Cure by Aquarium Pro. They told me to remove the carbon filter (didn't need that explained as that seems to be pretty standard for most medications), and it should cure within 5 days. Not sure how much I trust my LFS, but I'll give it a shot.

I do have to be careful with it as I have tetras in the tank, and, outside of my plecos, they are my babies. So I'm trying to treat the whole tank to keep all my babies safe.

Also, the attached photo is how Fido is looking these days. He's cute, and worth as much effort as I can muster to save him. Sorry about the bad photo, as my camera is rather horrible. Need a new one with a better lens for this.

 

[ccole]

Well done m8, just out of interest what are the ingredients are in the stuff they gave you? I found turning my tank up that temp really works well. Fingers crossed for fido again.

 

[MrPlatypus]

Well done m8, just out of interest what are the ingredients are in the stuff they gave you? I found turning my tank up that temp really works well. Fingers crossed for fido again.

The active ingredients are Formalin, and Malachite Green. So far seems like things are working, but too early to tell. And thanks for pulling for Fido...he's shy, but been a part of the tank since I got him, so he's family. (I like my fish tank better than I like most of my family, so you know who's going to get the love and attention in this situation!)

 

[Ltoro]

This gives you a gr8 excuse to go hospital tank shopping

 

[MrPlatypus]

A slight status update: though Fido has some of the remaining white on him, it doesn't appear quite as raised up and pronounced as it did when this all began. His activity is normal, and I know this for fact as I've stared at him a lot over the past couple of days, so this is also a good sign. I think he's going to pull through just fine, and that definitely makes me a happy camper.

Got 2 more days of the medication, but, catastrophic error or absolute chaos aside, it appears everything will be alright. Definitely let ya know how it pans out.

 

[Lornek8]

A slight status update: though Fido has some of the remaining white on him, it doesn't appear quite as raised up and pronounced as it did when this all began. His activity is normal, and I know this for fact as I've stared at him a lot over the past couple of days, so this is also a good sign. I think he's going to pull through just fine, and that definitely makes me a happy camper.

Got 2 more days of the medication, but, catastrophic error or absolute chaos aside, it appears everything will be alright. Definitely let ya know how it pans out.

Continue treating for at least 7 - 10 days despite what it says on the med. The life-cycle of ich makes it such that if you treat for too short a period you may miss catching some that are in a point in their lifecycle during which medications are ineffective. Thus, you are vulnerable for a reinfestation & often when ich comes back it comes back stronger than before.

 

[MrPlatypus]

Okay, I'm glad you brought up the 7-10 treatment bit, because honestly, I take my LFS like I would take a shot of tequila (and I don't drink): a whole ton of salt. The only reasons I really shop there is it's within walking distance, and they occasionally run into some interesting breeds of fish. I've also had to point out dead fish to them, so you can understand why I don't take everything they say as gospel. 5 days seemed a bit too quick, and almost all of the reading says 7-10 days, so letting me know that's the best route helps in how I deal with it. Thank you!

 

[MrPlatypus]

Alright, it's day 5, and there appears to be no ick remaining on Fido! This is a good thing. However, I'm going to continue the medication for another two days, then perform a 25% water change. Appears that the problem is under control.
Thank you all for your help and advice, as it has been invaluable. Fido would thank you, but I have no way to have him suck up to the glass on camera. If I did, I would definitely post a link to the video!

 

[bigbird]

ok good news, keep up the treatment I would say 10days total from start to finish. Better be sure than regret it later. cheers jk :thumbup:

 

[MrPlatypus]

Alright, we are sitting at day 8. No remaining signs of infection, and actually, IMPROVED activity. Makes me wonder how long he's been sick. It might also explain the weird, and unexpected, death of a fish I had about 3 weeks prior to this.
So I'm going for the full 10 treatment, as well, everyone says that the best way to go, and given the combine experience of all here, I believe it is the best way to go.
Tell ya one thing though, other than getting interesting breeds and fish food and meds from my LFS, I think I'm going to get my advice from the web, because my LFS seems to want my fish to die (more money for them), and, when it comes to any animal, death is the last thing I want for them.

Will let you know how it goes on day 10.

 

[MrPlatypus]

Day 10: all is just fine with Fido. He's active, curious, and, when I last checked, snuggling with Snout. No signs of any ick, no signs of anything wrong at all.
Thank you one and all for all the help, advice, and support. When I get a chance I'm going to say thanks in a really good way- I'm going to pay for a Premium membership. Without this place I don't know if he would have made it, so a few bucks to keep this place running is worth it. The insight given made my task as "Daddy" easier, and my plecos thank you for it.