ich question?

[ducksarefun]

ich question? -HELP!

I think Mufasa, my beautiful red betta, may have ich, but I am not sure what the beginning stages are like.

Ok. He's in about gravel bottom 1g bowl, gets ~50% water changes of good settled water, or tank water. Temperature is around 75 degrees.

He had two ghost shrimp in with them which were added Monday, and yesterday I put a plant in (a small anubias) to try and get him to leave the shrimp alone.

Today when I got up, both ghost shrimp were dead and there were white spots floating on the top of the water. Mufasa was swimming around the plant brushing up against the leaves.

I removed the shrimp and the plant and did a massive water change. (75%) He's now swimming around the sides of the bowl (I can't really tell if he's rubbing or not) and when I took out his food container he did nothing. (Usually he gets all excited and swims around like crazy).

So, how does ich start? Does it sound like ich? Or any other ideas?

 

[ducksarefun]

oh, and I just did an Ammonia test - between 0.6 - 1.2 !!! That's after the 75% water change!! I don't know what made it go up so high so fast!? That's probably the problem right?

What should I do? Would he be better off with a complete water change or another partial?

 

[Leopardess]

Okay..I wouldn't do a 100% water change (unless you have reason to believe something may have gotten in the water..) because that could stress Mufasa (cool name btw ). The beginning symptoms of ich are that the fish rubs up against things, may stop eating, hangs out at the surface, and has tiny, salt like white spots on the body. I don't think the white spots at the waters surface was ich - you can't see it. Did you add anything to the water? What was that new anubias in before you put it in there? Did you bleach it - and maybe forget to dechlorinate it? Also, it may possibly have been something that the shrimp brought in. How long has teh tank been set up?

It sounds like it is still cycling to me, since your ammonia is so high. And that could likely have killed your shrimp and stressed Mufasa to the point where he is developing ich.

If it is ich, add some extra salt, raise the temperature if possible (you probably don't have a heater...but maybe you could get one?) and add some sort of ich medicine. I have good results with Coppersafe by Mardel. I would also add some stress coat and maybe melafix to help prevent infection. BEFORE you add all of this however, make sure you can reasonably determine that it is, in fact, ich.

 

[ducksarefun]

He seems better now, he gets excited for his food and stopped going around the sides of the bowl (which I thought might have been rubbing). He even has a little bubble nest started. I'm thinking it was the ammonia. I was just freaking out when the shrimp died. I *do* think my female betta has velvet, though. She has a gold splotches when I shine the flashlight and she has moments where she swims like crazy.