white dots or ick

Question
QUESTION: Hi Christy,

How are you...after a long and tumultuous 3 month period of the new
aquarium cycle. I got 1-2 weeks of peace. But then I noticed some white
spots or dots on my fishes. They are on my gouramis and serpae tetra for
now.
Mostly on the fins and some on the body. I removed the carbon filter, raise
the temp to 82 degree and keep the filter pump on all the time and treated
the tank with super ick cure from API that contain Malachite Green and
Nitrofurazone.
After about 48 hours, there is no reduction but an increase of the white dots
on more fishes. I believed they are ick but can't say for sure. The fishes are
still active and eating. Should I just wait for the medication to take affect or
do something else?

Thanks,
Tom C.

ANSWER: Hi Tom
Fine thanks and glad your tank finished cycling :)

Ich looks like someone sprinkled salt on the fish.  It usually will start out on the fins.  If that's what yours looks like, then sounds like you're doing the right treatment.  Ich has several life cycles/stages, and it's only killed during it's "free swimming stage".  Raising the temperature increases the speed of the life cycle, so that's common to see more dots on the fish.  Ich is starting to become resistant to a lot of the treatments available, so it's recommended to keep treating for about 3 weeks.  I'm going to post a couple of good articles that explains a bit more in depth about ich and the life cycles, and various treatment options.  Also, when you do your water changes, be sure to vacuum the gravel/substrate and any decorations really good.  A lot of the ich will be hanging out in those areas, though you won't see them.  The only time you see it is when it's on the fish.

One thing you have to watch though, a lot of fish-tetras, cory cats, plecos, loaches, any scaleless fish are very sensitive to a lot of the ich meds and some even to the salt treatment.  If the medicine package says to use a different dosage for tetras, then be sure to follow that advice.  Some meds will actually burn some fish like loaches.  

So keep doing what you're doing, treat for at least 3 weeks, vacuum good during water changes, and that's all I can think of :)  If it doesn't look like salt grains on the fish, let me know so we can figure out what it is then, but it does sound like it's ich.  Let me know if you have more questions and good luck :)

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=16&cat=1791&articleid=2421

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ichthyophthirius


Christy

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Christy,

As always, you are extremely thorough. You mentioned at least 3 weeks? That
is really a long time as compared to one of the article that mentioned about
4-5 days.
The medication I'm administrating has 2 set of releases. 4 doses the first 48
hours and another 4 doses in another 48 hours. Then change 25 of the
water after that. Then add the carbon filter back. It has been about the third
day now and Ick is still on the fishes.
Should I get another set of medication and administrate them again if after
2-3 days I still see them? That will leave a high concentration of the
medication in the tank. Like you mentioned, some fishes are sensitive to the
medication and some have already pass over to the other side. I'll wait and
see.
Thanks you,
Tom C.

Answer
Hi Tom
Sorry, I should've clarified better, I intended too but got distracted by a wee one running around while I was typing.  Treat for at least 4 or 5 days after there's no more spots on the fish.  Usually that's about 3 weeks-depending on the temperature of the tank, but that's about the average time.  That's because of the ich life cycle, again, they're only killed during the certain stage, and that occurs generally a few days after the ich falls off the fish.  You could continue with the meds you're using just do a little larger water change and don't add the carbon back in, or go with the heat/salt method.  That's the one I usually use.  With the tetras though, both treatments can be stressful for them, but with the salt method, you add the salt slowly over the course of the day, so they can slowly (hopefully) adjust to it.  I'm not familiar with that med you're using, that's a weird dosage schedule they have.  There's other meds that work as well, Coppersafe-you add once and it stays in the tank for a month, but is removed by water changes as well as carbon.  I believe that one is a bit safer for tetras as well.

Let me know if you have more questions.

Christy