Basically, I had (have?) Ich. Treating with Rid Ich Plus (full strength) and slight increase in temperature to speed up cycle. I am on day 10 of treatment (11 by the time anyone sees this). maybe even day 12 (first two days were using old bottle, possibly expired). Symptoms (sids flashing, spots on betta) increased for a few days, but I have not seen a single white spot in at least five days, and the flashing has significantly decreased, but its still continuing (with the tiniest loach in particular). they may be breathing a little hard, but i'm not really sure what their normal breathing is, since they are so new, so it's hard to say. they seem to take a few more breaks to hang out and rest at the bottom than when i first picked them up. Rid Ich says to watch "scaleless" fish for adverse reactions, BUT DOESN'T SAY WHAT THOSE ARE. is flashing one of them? i would think, all things being equal, since i KNOW there was ich, and there is still flashing, it's likely there is still ich in their gills or something. but if gill irritation is a symptom of Rid Ich, and not the parasite any longer, i don't want to continue treating for something thats already cleared since medicine is so rough on them. At the same time, i'm hesitant to stop the treatment too soon and end up with a full blown occurrence.
so to my actual question(s): should i continue Rid Ich as long as there is still ANY flashing? or, should i continue Rid Ich through a full two weeks (4 more treatments) and then stop no matter what and just monitor them closely? should i stop Rid Ich NOW? if stopping, should I be treating with PraziPro or something if flashing doesn't stop but no white spots reappear? i only ever saw ONE white spot on a loach...but i know it's ich from the betta's multiple white spots.
one of the loaches is pretty tiny, but he isn't sunken in really (just thin and little)...i'm keeping an eye on him to make sure he doesn't look as though he is losing weight. everyone is eating (although the loaches are kinda picky - the smallest will only eat frozen bloodworms, the larger only bloodworms, brine shrimp, and peas).
Type of fish that are affected (common name and latin name if possible - common names vary worldwide, latin names don't!). 1 male betta splendens, 2 a. sidthimunki loaches, now just one lonely otocinclus
* How long has the tank been set up for? one-ish months
* Size of tank (dimensions and volume). 15g long (24" long, 12" wide, 12" high)
* How is the tank being filtered? Aquaclear 20
* Water temperature. currently 82 - 84, depending which thermometer you believe (typically 78 - 80, raised due to ich)...third thermometer in the mail, so should know by tomorrow.
* Your maintenance regime (e.g. how often water changes are carried out, what percentage of the water is changed each time, how often you clean your filter/s and how do you do this?) change 20% of water weekly (although i may need to do this differently...maybe 10% twice weekly? as i'm finding my tap pH is about 8.4, but the tank is running about 7.4). i'll swap out various parts of the filter as recommended...although probably not as often since i tend to get a bit lax about that. CURRENTLY i am doing daily 20% water changes first thing in the morning (6:30am) followed by full-strength Rid Ich Plus dose. i was using Tetra AquaSafe conditioner, but switched to NovAqua Plus yesterday since it claims a pH buffer. currently, no carbon in the filter due to meds.
* Has anything new been added to the tank recently? (fish, plants, live food, decor etc). yes...loaches, oto cats, a plant, a piece of spider wood, and ich
* What other fish are in the tank? see affected list: one oto, one betta, two sids
* As detailed a description as possible of the symptoms the fish are exhibiting (remember a photograph can speak a thousand words). started with three otos. two died (one after flashing, no other parasite signs, one after seeming stress from water change...pH?? so dead otos. Then, a single spot on the betta (i was inspecting them closely). This is when i started to act. the ich spots increased over the first few days of treatment, but have now been completely gone for several days (maybe six?). the loaches started flashing a day after the sole ich spot. flashing definitely increased for a few days, then decreased. now, flashing is the only remaining symptom. it is seemingly random, and usually not often...a few random flashes throughout the day (i've done a lot of staring at the tank), but primarily seems to occur at night, especially after feeding. oh, and the oto seems to be a bit of a spaz, but not flashing...he swims in circles on the wall sometimes though...he might be stressed by heat and/or meds and/or lack of buddies (i have two more in a quarantine tank, which i have learned my lesson about and will always use...these new friends get to join him after i'm sure ich is clear from main tank and they have been in Q for 2 - 3 weeks to ensure they are clear).
* How long ago the affected fish were added to the tank, and how long the fish have been displaying symptoms. betta I've had for ~2.5 years (in a 5.5 gallon previously). otos about a week before the sids. sids have now been in there for...three weeks now? showing symptoms for two.
* Your current water parameters - ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH. ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 5ish, ph in tank is 7.4 (tested using regular and high range pH kit).
oh - another note. i started to try heat/salt method but then i panicked because research told me loaches are salt sensitive and i thought the loaches were showing signs of stress (they were doing a dominance battle, i had never seen one before and thought they were doing something terrible to each other), so i did water change to reduce the salinity (i hadn't worked up very high yet...maybe 1 tsp/gallon, end goal was 2 per gallon), then started Rid Ich Plus the following morning (or maybe two days later, depending if 2004 Rid Ich was expired). trying to stay the course, but becoming nervous about the flashing without spots now...
help, please :/
). Wetspot has them for $13 now ($10 if one buys 6+). But check others too. Check Aquabid... well, I just did, there are two more vendors but I'd be reluctant ordering even free fish from these two.... next week there may be others.
Esteemed? 