My puffer does have ICK.....

Oh no! Sick fish?! Come here and see if someone can help!
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Read this before posting!!

Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.

1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.

2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.

3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)

4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.

5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.

We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.

While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.

Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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herefishy
Puffer Fry
Posts: 28
Joined: Sat Dec 09, 2006 1:35 am

My puffer does have ICK.....

Post by herefishy »

I was so mad at the pet shop I went there today and told them he had also given my baby cichlids ick. They advised me to immediatly put chemicals treating ick in the tanks. Since i just moved the puffer to its own brakish tank and raised the temp I hope he will be okay I also bought some melafix and added to his tank becasue it said on the melafix not to water change for 7 days I also bought ammo chips to reduce the ammonia as the tank was not cycled and the puffer had to be removed from the big tank asap. Is all this okay? And my cichlids I have raised the temp to 86 degress and added aquarium salt in order to speed up the life cycle of the ick and hopfully kill it with the salt added ammo chips to it to cause all of the sudden the ammonia spiked in it and added melafix to it. All fishys are eating fine but you can tell they are stressed. Yesterday I cange 25% of both tanks and resalted the frsh water before adding any ammo chips or melafix. The puffer however this morn had a raised discolored spot on him and when i got home from work the spot looks kinds cotteny now. OHHHH please help me. i am frakin out. I got up every 2 hrs last night to check on all of them to make sure they were ok.
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Boxermom
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Post by Boxermom »

Do NOT use the ammo chips. Use Prime instead to declor the water and detoxify the ammonia and nitrites. Chemicals are NOT needed to treat ich, all you need is heat and salt (1-2 tablespoons per 5 gallons). Melafix is not for treating ich. It can help prevent problems from the would left when the parasite detatch from the fish but does nothing for the ich itself.
Tina

Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
herefishy
Puffer Fry
Posts: 28
Joined: Sat Dec 09, 2006 1:35 am

Post by herefishy »

The pet shop ia the one how told me about the amonia chips. Prob cause they had a lack of anything elsa. I also bought jungle ammona tablets would this be better in a 911 sitiuation
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Boxermom
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Post by Boxermom »

Pet shops will tell you all sorts of things that are garbage. Ammonia tablets are just as bad as the ammonia chips. All you need is Prime. Anything else is going to interfere with the biological cycle and will end up killing your fish.
Tina

Puffers: Auriglobus silus x1, Tetraodon travancoricus x1, Tetraodon turgidus x1, Tetraodon miurus x1, Tetraodon nigroviridis x2, Tetraodon baileyi x2, Tetraodon lineatus x1, Tetraodon palembangensis x1
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Pufferpunk
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T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
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Post by Pufferpunk »

Do large water changes (80-90%) & re-add the Melafix after each WC.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
Gomez
Dwarf Puffer
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Post by Gomez »

I hate how lfs will do any thing for a sale including endangering your fish. I wonder if its ignorance or that they just dont care.
What's the difference between a fish and a piano?
You can't tuna fish!
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Pufferpunk
Queen Admin
Posts: 32979
Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
Gender: Female
My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles
Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
Location: Greenville, SC
Contact:

Post by Pufferpunk »

both
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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