bristlenose placo

Question
we suspect our bristle nose placo may have ick.He has small white spots all over him.I would like ot know what treatments are safe for this type of fish. Should we use salt or an premade ick medicine?

Answer
Hi Carmen
Ich looks like the fish was sprinkled with salt.  I've always read/heard over the years that catfish and scaleless fish don't like/do well with salt in the tank, and they don't do very well with certain meds also.  Kinda puts you between a rock and a hard place.  But, lately I've been seeing a lot of those same sites saying they're ok to use now.  I always prefer to try to go the route of no chemicals, but sometimes you have to.  I'd try out first raising the temp and salt.  I think that's going to be the lesser of two evils.
 
Here's a link for a good article on ich on wikipedia.  Has several treatment options.  I'd first start with a water change, about 35-40%, and be sure to vacuum the gravel real good.  Then slowly raise the temperature to 82 degrees.  Be sure to add a bubbler to the tank, at higher temps, the oxygen in the water depletes. If you chose to also add salt, be sure to dissolve it in a bucket of water before putting it into the tank.  I'd also go a bit less then what's usually recommended for the salt dose, I'd try 1/2 tsp per US gallon(also taking gravel and decorations into account).

If you end up going with a med for treatment, I believe Quick Cure is somewhat safe, just follow the dosage instructions for scaleless fish/tetras on the back. With meds, you'll also need to be sure to remove the carbon from the filter if you use it.  When done with the meds, do a good water change, and replace the carbon to absorb the meds.  Then remove it after a few days.

I've also noticed a lot of sites are recommending to keep the tank "treated" for about 10 days to 2 weeks.  I think ich meds only call for a few days, but I guess the diseases are starting to become immune to a lot of the meds now, and are requiring longer treatments.

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

Good luck and hope that all helps you !!

Christy