For a while now, I've been treating my dwarf gourami for what I thought was ich, using protozin. He's only had three or four spots on him that I can see, one of which has now disappeared. However, the very first spot we noticed has never gone away. It's on the side of his body, unchanging, and it's been probably at least a month, maybe more, since we noticed it. He has displayed no signs of flashing or other unusual behaviour. No other fish show symptoms at all. Some of the spots on the gourami are very hard to see and might not be ich spots, but this one single original spot looks like the classic description of ich. I'm beginning to wonder if it's not ich at all but a damaged scale, or dwarf gourami disease or something. But then there was at least one other spot that came and went. Why is this one spot not going away?
Endless Ich, Or Is It?
- Thread starter Bugdozer
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Whitespot.
Fish will look like it has been sprinkled in salt.
The spots will be the size of a grain of sugar, or salt.
Is the spot bigger than a grain of salt, or sugar?
Does the spot have a pink, or red centre.
Does the spot have a circling of red, or pink around the edges.
Is the spot raised. Filled with fluid.
Fish will look like it has been sprinkled in salt.
The spots will be the size of a grain of sugar, or salt.
Is the spot bigger than a grain of salt, or sugar?
Does the spot have a pink, or red centre.
Does the spot have a circling of red, or pink around the edges.
Is the spot raised. Filled with fluid.
The spot looks exactly like a grain of salt or sugar stuck on the side of the fish. It does not have a coloured edge or centre. It doesn't look very raised but it's hard to tell. There are a couple of very hard to see spots on the shiny blue fin surfaces which may or may not be raised. The spot that definitely disappeared and the spot that is refusing to go away both look like textbook descriptions of ich spots. However, there is no flashing. There is no change in behaviour at all. The number of spots is not increasing. All descriptions of ich say the spots drop off the fish within a couple of weeks MAXIMUM and this spot has been there at least a month.
Treatment has been continuous and not stopped. But unless the parasite drops off the fish the medication won't kill it. This spot is not dropping off the fish. Water temperature is 28 celsius, which should have moved it beyond this life cycle stage by now.
In summary: it LOOKS like a fish that has a mild case of ich. It does NOT behave like a fish with ich and the spots do NOT correlate with what ich is supposed to do.
Treatment has been continuous and not stopped. But unless the parasite drops off the fish the medication won't kill it. This spot is not dropping off the fish. Water temperature is 28 celsius, which should have moved it beyond this life cycle stage by now.
In summary: it LOOKS like a fish that has a mild case of ich. It does NOT behave like a fish with ich and the spots do NOT correlate with what ich is supposed to do.
Is it possible to load a pic onto the site of the spot.
How long have you been using the whitespot med?
Did you use the full dose, or half dose?
Did you remove black carbon from the filter before adding the medication?
How long have you been using the whitespot med?
Did you use the full dose, or half dose?
Did you remove black carbon from the filter before adding the medication?
I could load a picture of the only easily visible spot, which you would look at and say "that looks exactly like an ich spot", because that IS exactly what it looks like according to all other pictures of ich I've seen.
I've been using the medication for over two weeks now, and since no new spots are appearing it may be working. However, I can't stop using it until after the spot drops off, which isn't happening. I am using the full dose of protozin. There is no active carbon in the filter. Absence of new spots would suggest the medication is working.
I've been using the medication for over two weeks now, and since no new spots are appearing it may be working. However, I can't stop using it until after the spot drops off, which isn't happening. I am using the full dose of protozin. There is no active carbon in the filter. Absence of new spots would suggest the medication is working.
I could try touching it, but I was worried to hurt the fish. I suppose if I'm gentle he will be OK. Second round of medication finished yesterday. The problem is if it isn't ich the medication won't be doing anything 
I netted him out and touched the spot that's persisting. It doesn't seem to be raised on the skin at all, even though it looked a bit like it was when it was underwater. It feels level with his skin and didn't have any difference in texture. Since the ich spots are little cysts I'd have expected to be able to feel it, which now makes me think it can't be ich. I haven't put any more medication in, but should I try some melafix instead?
I would preform a water change and gravel vac first. Add some new black carbon to the tank to remove the whitespot med.
Then a few days later maybe half dose melafix. NoT all fish tolerate the full dose.
Could it just be a mark that the parasite has caused?
Then a few days later maybe half dose melafix. NoT all fish tolerate the full dose.
Could it just be a mark that the parasite has caused?
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