Ich is a common disease of freshwater fish. It is caused by a parasitic protozoan called Ichthyophthirius multifiliis.
The Ich disease is very easy to identify. The fish infected with Ich will start showing white spots on its fins, tails or scales.
The parasite goes through three following life stages:-
Feeding stage: - It first finds a host body to feed itself from that host body part.
Encapsulated dividing stage.
Completion of divide stage and thus attack to the host party begins.
How does the whole thing happen?
At first the parasite penetrates fish’s skin to feed itself and grow further. It causes skin irritation and osmoregulatory disturbance which in turn opens the door for other bacteria and/or fungi to enter into the skin of the fish. In most cases, Ich doesn’t take a fish’s life alone, it’s the combination of them and secondary bacteria and/or fungi that causes the most of the damage.
To make the situation worse, Ich is very much a contagious disease. If you don’t take necessary steps in the early stages of the incident, it may spread through water and may infect other fishes also which will be a difficult thing to handle. So it is always best to take the essential steps as soon as you identify a ‘White Spot’ incident.
What are the signs of White Spot/ Ich disease?
The fish infected with Ich shows a couple of signs like:-
Rapid breathing
Swim to surface more often because of breathing difficulty.
Disoriented swimming
Rubbing against objects
Loss of appetite
Reference: Complete Ich Care Guide
So what are the precautions we can take to prevent White Spot / Ich disease?
Heat Treatment: - The temperature of the water should be raised to 30 degree Celsius.
The parasite after getting done with the first host will look for another host and that is when it is going to come out of the first host’s body to the water to look for its next host.
The raised temperature will kill the parasite instantly.
This should be continued for a couple of days. Whenever you are sure that the disease has been completely eliminated from the system, you can drop the temperature of the water to normal.
Heat treatment is a very popular treatment against white spot diseases. It is very cheap and it always gets the work done. Though it is not a full proof treatment, as it cannot save the already affected fishes. It waits for the parasite to come out and then only it can play its part.
Use of Salt: - Parasites are less tolerant of salt than fish. While this can work for small closed systems like an aquarium but it is practically absurd to try the same on the bigger system like a pond.
Chemical Treatments: - It is a very useful way to kill the parasite in its cyst stage. The chemicals used for treatment of Ich are formal in, methylene blue, copper sulfate, potassium permanganate and quinine. This is a very practical treatment, although it is very costly compare to the first two treatments.
Medicated Foods: - It has been proven that the use of medicated foods in case of diseases like this can be really helpful. If for some reason you cannot move/ isolate the fish to any other safety area, then you do need to make sure that the fish eats the prescribed medicated food and eats enough of it.
So whenever you buy an aquarium with exotic looking fish, you need to make sure that all the precautions are taken for the safety of the fish. If any fish gets infected with white spot/ ich disease you need to stay calm throughout the whole thing. It is because the treatment takes time to eliminate the disease completely.
One can follow these precautions to prevent any kind of disease like this:-
One must change water in every month and should use high quality water only.
Feed your fishes regularly to make sure they are healthy and their immune systems are working perfectly.
One must not introduce a newly bought fish to the main place. The fish should be kept in a quarantine place where it would be examined properly. After 2-3 weeks if no infection is found, then only the fish can be moved to the primary place. This is to prevent disease like a white spot/ich because once a fish gets it, it spreads very quickly through the water and it becomes literally impossible to take control of it in such short period.
One should also think about the fish compatibility factor. Don’t just buy a fish just because you like it, you have to research a little bit. See if the fish is compatible with the rest of the group or not. If not, he won’t be able to survive in that environment.
You should boil any kind of stones or objectives before putting them in the aquarium.
One must always check the ammonia levels of the water. This can happen when a new set of fish is added together in the system at the same time. To remove this from happening, one must remove the uneaten food, change water regularly.
Buying a fish or a whole aquarium is only a smart job when the buyer knows the process, he/she has to deal with if any of the fishes get infected with diseases.
The key is to not panic when you face a situation like this. Always do a little bit research for your own knowledge, that always helps in case of emergency.
Do keep in mind that there are medicines available for most of the fish diseases. You should complete your part correctly in such scenarios so that the infection doesn’t get spread across the water. It is important to keep the basics right.
At the end, it can be said that Ich or ‘White Spot’ disease is a common disease. So there is enough information about it to fight against it. While it can damage a great deal if not taken care properly, it should also be said, with proper followings of the guidelines and instructions it is not that a hard hurdle to overcome.
The Ich disease is very easy to identify. The fish infected with Ich will start showing white spots on its fins, tails or scales.
The parasite goes through three following life stages:-
Feeding stage: - It first finds a host body to feed itself from that host body part.
Encapsulated dividing stage.
Completion of divide stage and thus attack to the host party begins.
How does the whole thing happen?
At first the parasite penetrates fish’s skin to feed itself and grow further. It causes skin irritation and osmoregulatory disturbance which in turn opens the door for other bacteria and/or fungi to enter into the skin of the fish. In most cases, Ich doesn’t take a fish’s life alone, it’s the combination of them and secondary bacteria and/or fungi that causes the most of the damage.
To make the situation worse, Ich is very much a contagious disease. If you don’t take necessary steps in the early stages of the incident, it may spread through water and may infect other fishes also which will be a difficult thing to handle. So it is always best to take the essential steps as soon as you identify a ‘White Spot’ incident.
What are the signs of White Spot/ Ich disease?
The fish infected with Ich shows a couple of signs like:-
Rapid breathing
Swim to surface more often because of breathing difficulty.
Disoriented swimming
Rubbing against objects
Loss of appetite
Reference: Complete Ich Care Guide
So what are the precautions we can take to prevent White Spot / Ich disease?
Heat Treatment: - The temperature of the water should be raised to 30 degree Celsius.
The parasite after getting done with the first host will look for another host and that is when it is going to come out of the first host’s body to the water to look for its next host.
The raised temperature will kill the parasite instantly.
This should be continued for a couple of days. Whenever you are sure that the disease has been completely eliminated from the system, you can drop the temperature of the water to normal.
Heat treatment is a very popular treatment against white spot diseases. It is very cheap and it always gets the work done. Though it is not a full proof treatment, as it cannot save the already affected fishes. It waits for the parasite to come out and then only it can play its part.
Use of Salt: - Parasites are less tolerant of salt than fish. While this can work for small closed systems like an aquarium but it is practically absurd to try the same on the bigger system like a pond.
Chemical Treatments: - It is a very useful way to kill the parasite in its cyst stage. The chemicals used for treatment of Ich are formal in, methylene blue, copper sulfate, potassium permanganate and quinine. This is a very practical treatment, although it is very costly compare to the first two treatments.
Medicated Foods: - It has been proven that the use of medicated foods in case of diseases like this can be really helpful. If for some reason you cannot move/ isolate the fish to any other safety area, then you do need to make sure that the fish eats the prescribed medicated food and eats enough of it.
So whenever you buy an aquarium with exotic looking fish, you need to make sure that all the precautions are taken for the safety of the fish. If any fish gets infected with white spot/ ich disease you need to stay calm throughout the whole thing. It is because the treatment takes time to eliminate the disease completely.
One can follow these precautions to prevent any kind of disease like this:-
One must change water in every month and should use high quality water only.
Feed your fishes regularly to make sure they are healthy and their immune systems are working perfectly.
One must not introduce a newly bought fish to the main place. The fish should be kept in a quarantine place where it would be examined properly. After 2-3 weeks if no infection is found, then only the fish can be moved to the primary place. This is to prevent disease like a white spot/ich because once a fish gets it, it spreads very quickly through the water and it becomes literally impossible to take control of it in such short period.
One should also think about the fish compatibility factor. Don’t just buy a fish just because you like it, you have to research a little bit. See if the fish is compatible with the rest of the group or not. If not, he won’t be able to survive in that environment.
You should boil any kind of stones or objectives before putting them in the aquarium.
One must always check the ammonia levels of the water. This can happen when a new set of fish is added together in the system at the same time. To remove this from happening, one must remove the uneaten food, change water regularly.
Buying a fish or a whole aquarium is only a smart job when the buyer knows the process, he/she has to deal with if any of the fishes get infected with diseases.
The key is to not panic when you face a situation like this. Always do a little bit research for your own knowledge, that always helps in case of emergency.
Do keep in mind that there are medicines available for most of the fish diseases. You should complete your part correctly in such scenarios so that the infection doesn’t get spread across the water. It is important to keep the basics right.
At the end, it can be said that Ich or ‘White Spot’ disease is a common disease. So there is enough information about it to fight against it. While it can damage a great deal if not taken care properly, it should also be said, with proper followings of the guidelines and instructions it is not that a hard hurdle to overcome.