Ich Or Velvet On Fry?

[monica]

I think my almost-1-week old fry have ich or velvet. I see little things swimming around in the waster that my fry try to eat (they are small enough to fit in their mouths) they are abundant, and my fry do not like the taste. They are not BBS, they are too small. They are stick-like, and move. And I also see some whitish specs on my fry, though they are in proportion to their size. So the specs are tiny. Should I treat? Am I being paranoid?

Currently I have API Ich Medication, and I was thinking to maybe treat with half a dose. They have a very small amount of aquarium salt in their water, and the tamperature is in the 80's I siphoned the bottom 2 days ago, and topped it with fresh but aged salted water, same temp.

Again, it could be paranoia, but I would like to be sure.











Also, on a side note... does anyone have any ideas about how I should seperate bbs and the un-hatched eggs? My fry keep swallowing them when they come in with bbs, and it bloats their bellies. This of course can't be good for them...?

 

[hollyp0p]

you wouldn't be able to see ich or velvet swimming, it's much more likely some kind of bug like parasite.....I'd repost in general section about having parasites in your tank and give a good description in there, hopefully someone can help

 

[Colin_T]

the small white things in the tank sound like copepods or cyclops. They are a small crustacean that small fish will eat if they can. They are not normally an issue.

To seperate brineshrimp nauplii (baby shrimp) from the eggs have the container near a light. The nauplii will gather near the light and you can use an eye dropper or plastic syringe to syphon them out.

Bettas are not really keen on salt and baby bettas shouldn't be exposed to it if possible. If the water is clean and warm, and there is a cover over most of the rearing tank, there is no reason why the fry would have whitespot or velvet.

 

[Soaup]

If it was ich or velvet i dont know if treating them is the best idea, they are still small and young. My opinion though.

 

[monica]

There is definitely something on them, and I suppose I made the connection between white stuff on them and alike looking things swimming in the water. What should I do if not to treat? I just siphoned out some water, and I am about to top it off again.

 

[Colin_T]

The white things on the fry could be baby cyclops trying to attach themselves to the fish. Male cyclops can become gill parasites in fish. Do the white things on the fry appear to be increasing in size, shape, number, etc? Does it look like any have fallen off the fry?
Whitespot sits on the fish for a few days before dropping off and developing in the gravel or on the bottom of the tank. If the spots are still in the same spot on the fish after a week it won't be that.

 

[monica]

Well, you see, my fry are so small, and there are so many, that I would never be able to tell if they are changing spots on the fry. The white things are not growing, but their numbers are increasing. I think I have lost a lot of fry this morning. At least twenty look dead at the bottom.

 

[Colin_T]

Transfer the fry and filter to a new tank so there aren't any, or as many white things in the water. If they are cyclops then they could be feeding on the fry, it's unusual but it might be the case. Moving the fry to new premises will reduce the number of cyclops and the fry should recover. Make sure the new tank has the same temp and PH as the one they are coming out of.
When you transfer the fry out catch a couple in a jar and look at the white spots on them. See if they look like the other white things in the tank or something else.

 

[monica]

How could they have developped? I do not have any live plants in the tank...

I think I would only be able to save a few... They pretty much all look dead. And I do not have a spare tank. Can I treat?

 

[Colin_T]

you may as well treat them if they are dieing anyway. A half dose of protozin or something like that would probably be ok. Before you do treat them scoop a few young out and put them in an icecream container. Float that in the tank or peg it to the inside. Don't treat the fry in this container. If the medications does kill the fry and it isn't whitespot then at least you will have a few left to grow up.

 

[monica]

Will do.


Will my API ich med be okay to use?

And will ich medication kill of copepods?

 

[Colin_T]

the API stuff should be fine. There is a possibility it will kill the copepods too.

 

[monica]

I read about the copepods on a site that said you should be worried with young fry and cyclops as they are vulnerable, and the copes will take advantage of that. So if it is only a possibility that it may kill the copepods, should I maybe not use it?

 

[Colin_T]

try it and see what happens. Unfortunately I don't know what is in the API medication but if it contains copper or malachite green it should kill the copepods.

 

[monica]

I treated half dose last night, woke this morning to find only 2 srill near the top. The rest are dead I believe. Instead of killing the creatures, there are more of them... Nobody is eating.