# My gold dojo loach has ich! and I don't know what to do..



## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

Please help guys, my gold dojo loach (scaleless fish) has a couple white dots on him; one on his side and one on his fin. How do I treat it? I also have snails and shrimp in my 20 gallon tank, how can I treat the ich without killing my snails and shrimp? :[


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## Polarshrey (Nov 15, 2011)

Increase temp to 26-28 ASAP, also med the tank with copper free ick treatment. Also try to give the loach a salt bath ( in a bucket with a heater for ten minutes ).


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## Loachutus (Aug 27, 2010)

> Increase temp to 26-28 ASAP,


If you go this route, do it slowly over several hours. Also know Dojos are a cold water fish, so keep an eye on it. What kind of shrimp?



> Also try to give the loach a salt bath


PLEASE don't do that! Do you have another tank (5-10 gal) you could turn into a hospital tank?

Good article on loaches and ich by Graeme Robson, http://forums.loaches.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=16721


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

For the Ich med use 1/2 of the recommended dosage.
I've been keeping my golden dojos and weather loaches @ 80-82F for years


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## wetworks (Jul 22, 2011)

Add a UV sterilizer and raise the temp of your tank to about 82 F. The heat will speed up the life cycle of the ich, causing the fish to be sick less time, and the UV will kill the 90% of the ich that is in the water column. Most ich meds will still harm your other tank inhabitants, and there are often specific warnings about using with scaleless fishes such as loaches.


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## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

Alright so I checked on my loach today and I noticed that he has a red wound now, I'm guessing the ich now turned into 400+ more of those things.. 
I already have a UV sterilizer in my tank and the temp of my tank is normally at 80, I will be increasing it to 83 today, it's no wonder my dojo only had 2 spots (didn't know my UV killed ich). 
My shrimp are ghost shrimp, and okay I will buy ich med right now and use half dose.

I do not have a hospital tank =\


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## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

Alright so I bought Rid-Ich Plus and used half-dose and temp. is upping as I type. I moved all of my snails and ghost shrimp to a seperate container using water from my main tank. I'll keep you guys updated. (I also turned off my sterilizer)


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## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

UPDATE - The ich is already gone! I will keep using it with even a lower dose for the next 3 days, should I lower the temp back to normal and turn my UV back oN?


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## wetworks (Jul 22, 2011)

JustDoinMe said:


> UPDATE - The ich is already gone! I will keep using it with even a lower dose for the next 3 days, should I lower the temp back to normal and turn my UV back oN?



A lot of ich medicines contain copper, which is not only bad for your inverts but also some plants. With this in mind, check the ingredients of the medicine you used. It may also be worth your while to get a copper test kit from your LFS and test your water before you put your inverts back. Good luck!


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## m00se (Jan 8, 2011)

This would be a better choice.

It's harmless to inverts and scaleless fish. And it works. Rid Ich is basically Quick Cure (malachite green and formalin). Nasty for inverts and dyes your silicone green.

Good luck.


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## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

Oh, I forgot to mention that I took out all of my snails and ghost shrimp and put them in a separate container, I'm feeding them algae wafers.

I wish I would have bought the all natural one =\ my pet store did not have it though.
I will be using a very small does of the one I already have, as long as water changes before every dose.
Hopefully my plants will survive, they seem to be fine for now.

How much longer should I keep the dose going for? Or should I just stop and keep my UV sterilizer running again?

I noticed that the red dot (that was probably ich) on my loach is already healed and the other 2 white dots are gone.
(Was definitely not a severe ich outbreak but this is my first time experiencing it so it feels like it)

I'll invest in a copper test kit if I can, do you know if my UV sterilizer will get rid of all the copper?

Thanks for the support!


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## m00se (Jan 8, 2011)

Rid-Ich doesn't have copper in it. 

Just to give you a heads-up though, copper will bind to substrate, rocks, plants, silicone, and anything else it comes in contact with in the aquarium. Once you treat with copper you're doomed to live with it for a while, possibly forever. If you have a fish-only tank and have no intention of ever putting inverts (and some smooth skinned fish) in it, you're fine. There are alternatives now. Best use them instead.

Also, Ich-Attack is MUCH cheaper mail order than LFS prices I've found. It's in my medicine cabinet along with bulk erythromycin, kanamycin, Quick Cure, and methylene blue.


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## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

Oh, thank god; cause I do have scaleless fish (my gold dojos) and I will be putting my ghost shrimp and snails back in my tank once the ich is gone. 

The medicine I'm using says it has Formaldehyde and zinc-free chloride salt of malachite green.

It's really good to know there is no copper; copper sounds like trouble haha.
I will definitely invest in ich-attack if ich ever crosses my path again!


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## m00se (Jan 8, 2011)

JustDoinMe said:


> How much longer should I keep the dose going for? Or should I just stop and keep my UV sterilizer running again?


Dose per instructions. If it was ich, it's not gone yet. There are many sub-species of ich and they have varying gestation periods. I would say at least a week, maybe longer...

I point you to Kordon once again because they've been in the biz a long time, and have some pretty smart people on staff. The directions they have on their site for Rid-Ich is comprehensive and gives you lots of info.

http://www.kordon.com/kordon/ridich/index.htm

Good luck.


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## Loachutus (Aug 27, 2010)

> How much longer should I keep the dose going for?


 Follow the directions on the treatment part. Last thing you want is it to come back. When the treatment is done, stick some activated carbon in your filter to suck the med's out.


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## JustDoinMe (Jan 23, 2012)

I checked on my loach and there is still one white dot near his fin =\

Instructions say use 3-4 after last visible sign, so I probably have a long ways to go.
And carbon after I'm done using the meds, got it.

Thank you guys!


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