# Is this Ich?



## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

Close up show of my peppered corydora, I'm curious if this is ich? I think it's just sand, as the sand in the tank is very close to white. I was adding a new plant and stirring things up a little so I'm betting he just swam through a cloud of sand and got some on him. I'd rather play it safe and have the experts put eyes on it though.


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## jeaninel (Aug 24, 2007)

That looks like ich. I know sometimes sand settles on them and can look like this . But it will usually fall off as they move around. Does he still look like this? Has he been doing any flashing (flicking or itching against the sand or other objects)?


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## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

He still has a little on him, but noticeably less than earlier, and considerably less than when I first noticed it. I'm betting it's just sand as I'm assuming ich would pretty much be constant right?


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## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

The whole thing kinda has me nervous. He still has these spots on him... I've looked the other cory cats in the tank over and none seem to show signs of these specks. Upon close inspection they seem to look like little specks _on_ the fish, they also appear to kind of shine in the light as he moves. This leads me to think it's sand, but it's been several hours since I first noticed this and he still has a few specs on him. He's the smallest of the cory cats so, from what I've been reading, he would be the most susceptible to ich. I've been watching him closely an he doesn't appear to be behaving odd (rubbing up against things all the time). I'll keep a close eye on him.


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

It certainly looks like Ich to me. :-(


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## Blabomb (Jan 30, 2011)

I've never seen ich first hand but from what I have read about it I would say it is ich.


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## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

Yep. Time to do heat and salt treatment. 80 degrees Fahrenheit and a teaspoon per gallon dose of salt. Dissolve salt before adding. Keep water well aerated.


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## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

Raised the tip to 80F, I'll raise it up to 82 when I get home from work, then maybe 84 before bed. I added a little bit of salt (about one tablespoon) to the tank, and will add more every few hours. I also added a pump and air stone to help aerate. Here's an updated shot:


I did notice that he kicks sand up as he's sifting around the sand looking for bits of food, and some of it does get on him. So I'm still hoping it's just sand but would rather be safe than sorry.


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## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

Definitely ich. Add a teaspoon per gallon dosage.


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## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

Got the salt added and temp is at 85F. Everybody in the tank seems to be doing fine, I'm checking on things every hour or so.


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## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

How long lasting should those white spots be? Those are actually the little holes that the ich is burrowing right? I checked the cory today and he shows no signs of those white spots. They wouldn't disappear overnight would if it was ich would they?


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Here's an article that explains the Ich life cycle:
(yes, they do fall off but that's not the end of it) 

The Skeptical Aquarist


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## Ferret (Feb 22, 2011)

I posted this in my journal of the tank, but thought I'd repost it here as it's relevant to this particular thread as well, and I'd like some input.



> Quick update, I've finished my heat treatment for the ich. I had the temperature running at 89° F for 10 days. I understand this is very high for cory cats, but I monitored them closely (just about hourly) for the first few days and they really didn't show any signs of stress. Yesterday was the last day of the treatment so I lowered the temp (slowly) back down to the normal 78° F(ish).
> 
> I added in the anubias (will have pictures up eventually), and moved some rocks around a little. Shortly after the remodeling I noticed one of the cory cats was covered in white specs. He had showed little of no signs of this until I noticed it after moving things around so I'm assuming it's just sand. He was covered when I first noticed, but now he just has a few specks. This is almost exactly what happened with the other cory cat, leading me to believe it might have all been a scare over some sand.
> 
> Is it possible the little guy could go from no signs to covered in a matter of hours after having spent 10 days at 89° F? I've read about some strains of ich that can still reproduce in 86° F+ temps but he wouldn't have just started showing signs all of a sudden right? Anybody else have white sand with the darker cory cats, is it common for it to tag along on them for a while?


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