# Best treatnment for ich ??



## Serai7 (May 13, 2012)

My tanks had ich for about 6 days i started treating it with maracyn oxy about 3 days ago and turned up the temp.. i gave each of the fish a saltwater treatment for five minutes yesterday.. whats the most successful treatment for ich? please help 5 of my fish have died =[


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

The saltwater bath will not do anything for ich, so i wouldn't repeat that as it will only stress the fish more and make it harder to get the ich under control.

I'm not familiar with Maracyn-Oxy but I gather it is a fungal medication so it will not deal with ich. Ich is a parasite, and is only vulnerable when in the free swimming stage. It shows as white spots or dots on the fish, usually on the fins first. Is this what your fish have?

Raising the temp is fine, if the fish can tolerate it. What fish are in the tank now?

Byron.


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## Shewbert (Dec 16, 2012)

With Ich we are treating the tank, not the fish, so all effective treatments are designed to kill the trophite form of the disease while it is in the tank. The mature ich organisms that cause the problems on the fish do not die from treatment, but fall off in a couple of days during their normal life cycle and then their offspring die from the treatment in the water.
Lets try to explain better,,,you buy a new fish,plants etc,,, you get just 1 Ich paracite,,,ok this paracite injects eggs into fish,,,egg sac is what you see on fish,,,this sac falls off more paracites inject fish.
You have to kill paracites when they fall off, the medication only kills live paracites not eggs.
I have never stressed more about having a small hospital tank and quarantine tank.
Anyway quarantine all fish, snails etc, anything that lives.
do not treat main tank as the paracites will be dead within a couple of days (nothing to attach to)
Treat hospital tank,,,we use a copper based treatment,,use with caution following instructions as copper is poisonous to fish, keep in hospital tank for 7 days, put your fish into quarantine for 7 days before moving them back to main tank. Remember to quarantine anddo not put then straight into tank as the fish feaces can contain paracites, but the 7 day treatment usually clears everything. 
Hope this helps


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## Serai7 (May 13, 2012)

well alot died but i don't see any with white spots now, but the ones still here didn't have spots at all i think, accept for a gourami but i dont think i see anything now. i have superick cure but doesnt seem i need it anymore : / my rosy barb still has light patches


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## Serai7 (May 13, 2012)

i have 2 gouramis, 1 rosy barb and one algae fish im posting a current vid soon


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## Shewbert (Dec 16, 2012)

I did say 7 days treatment,,,then a water change.
Give them another few days treatment until every fish looks clear.
The treatment will not kill the ich that is on the fish, it kills it when it falls off.

This is a classic case where a hospital tank is needed, your main tank will take a little bit longer to clear.
Bring your temp up around the 80s to speed up the time it takes for the spots to fall off.
you can always turn the temp down later.
Remember a couple of 50% water changes 3 days part after treatment to get rid of chemicals. 
Mandy (Marine biologist/vet)


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