Here is a brief summary of the events in my tank over the last 9 days with my Ich nightmare...
Monday: Lionhead "dad" unusually swimming at the water surface, no signs of disease
Tuesday: As above
Weds: As above, but then notice my goodeids are not just at the water surface as per normal, a few of the group are tilted head up as if gasping for oxygen. I do a ~75% water change, my hunch is something is wrong, but not toxins (both 0)
Thurs: True cause reveals itself, my decora are coated head to toe in spots, on close inspection some on the goodeids too. I turn 300W heater to 32C, water reaches 29C in matter of ~3 hours, raise spraybar above water fro extra rippling. Add half dose Protozin, knowing bottle >12 months old, but worried about fry/synos. Just before bedtime, two decora are in full view unusually and desperately trying to stay high in water column in line of spraybar.
Fri: Two decora dead. Buy new bottle of Protozin, add half dose, I panick and wonder if the rapid raise of temp 23-29C was a bad move and maybe I diagnosed wrong (cronic Velvet with high temp can be fatal), so I turn off heater to let temp drop back to 23C naturally. Just before bedtime, three decora are up high.
Sat: Half dose first thing. Three decora dead at 1300, but then really upset to find Lionhead "dad" dead too (with no signs of spots... oxygen levels at high temp, bad water from dead decora?). ~60% water change, later add another half dose Protozin (so tank has really had ~75% dose on the day). Upside Down in really bad way dies later that afternoon. Temp raised to 25/26C
Sun: Full dose Protozin. Last remaining decora found dead at ~1215. Sainsburys Coarse Sea Salt bought and 0.25g/l added slowly (dissolved in boiling water, then mixed with cold to tank temp).
Mon: Decide to do a "day 3" full dose Protozin, add another 0.25g/l of dissolved salt. No new deaths. Temp raised to 27/28C
Tues: No more Protozin until Thursday. No new deaths.
Weds: Might be hiding, but one of the goodeid youngsters (~5 weeks old) is AWOL, can only count six (but very overcast outside so natural lighting in tank is dark).
My biggest regrets once I knew I had Ich is that in hindsight, I would raise the temp up more gradually from their normal 22/23C to 30C, the oversize heater for the tank volume rapidly heated the tank and quickly reduced oxygen levels for fish showing stressed breathing. In this respect, I also wish I had the salt to hand from the start, it would have helped the fish respire while covered and may well have saved some of the decora.
Good luck with your battle.
My stock is in my sig, are they tolerant? Thanks podna!
