[mtchillin]

I have now lost 4 of my 6 G. Topajos About 6-7 days ago they were all showing signs of Ich, along with my G.Altifrons. I began treating with higher temps (86 deg) and salt (1 tablespoon/gal) and performed 2-3 water changes per week. A few days ago the Ich appeared to be falling off, but not completely. Soon after I started loosing fish...one two days ago, 2 yesterday, and another this morning. The remaining infected fish appear stressed and are swimming frantically. My G. Altifrons will rest on the bottom and then swim up and down in the corner of the tank. Could this be something other than ich?

Also in the tank are 6 Congo Tetras, two Bolivian Rams and 1 pleco. These fish are all doing fine with no signs of Ich.

All of these fish are under 2" except the pleco who is 8".

The G.Topajos and the Rams were the last fish to be added to the tank 2 weeks ago (4/19 & 4/20)

The tank is 100 gallons
Last water test, 5/2/08 Amonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 20, PH 8.2 (higher than I'd like)...

I think I am going to lower my temps and start treating with Ich Attack for now. Any other Ideas?

 

[cichlidaholic]

Are the white spots salt like in appearance?

They aren't larger and cottony or fuzzy looking, are they?

I don't like the salt and heat method. I find the heat just as stressful for the fish as meds are, so I never use it. And, it accelerates the life cycle of the ich, in some cases causing the infestation to be worse than it would be if it were treated with meds.

Also, if you make a mistake and misdiagnose what you're treating (as I did once) you can also cause some bacterial infections to spread like wild fire by increasing the heat.

I'm not familiar with Ich Attack, does it have formalin and malachite green in it? Those are the best ingredients for treating ich, IMO.

Squeeze in as many water changes as you can, as well. This helps remove the parasites from the water in various life stages.

Kim