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I noticed tonight while I was looking at her sides. One has 2 little spots and the other has only 1, all 3 no bigger than a grain of salt. Is it true that this pesky little parasite can be passed on by feeding frozen live foods? What does this meen for the other fish in my 20 gal.?

6 Rummynose Tetras
2 Bala Sharks
2 Dwarf Gourami's

Aquarisol should do the trick? And add no salt right?

2 days ago I bought a pack of frozen Hikari blood worms and fed some to the fish in the 20 gal. I hope it wasn't from that, because I was hoping to be able to feed my fish a treat now and then

Thanks in advance

its unlikely it has come from the food, Hikari have a 3 step sterilisation process which would render the parasite very very dead

it is contagious, so if your betta girl was in the 20, the others may contract it.

Aquarisol should work.

Is there a particular reason you are avoiding salt? Its not like it will help much, but i can't see why you are steering clear completely.

Do you have a heater in with your girl?

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

Some hobbyists may refuse to dose any med with copper salts, the main ingredient of Aquari-sol...

Ich Guard II or Rid Ich Plus may be a better choice for the Betta and others.

Salt is great on a salad rather than in a tank.

--garyroland.

on a salad? I use vinegar myself. Salt on a salad seems like a big waste of fresh veggies.

maybe salt on fries or something?

Aquarisol is quite hefty. Ridich seems to be a favourite for bettas, but i was under the impression that he already had Aquarisol in his possession.



Last edited by Callatya at 09-Jan-2005 10:28

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

Yes, Calla, I think he has the Aquari-sol...

I usually say "put the salt on a hamburger" but some may be vegetarians so I thought better of it.

In the northern States where snow rules in the winter, salt is thrown on the ice for melting purposes.

That's where all salt should end up.

--garyroland.

I had read that aquarium salt is not good for live plants, and can actually kill them. I have 4 plants, so I didn't think that was a healthy decision for the tank. Please correct me if I'm wrong on that one I've yet to get any sort of Ick medication yet, got some choices to make now.

Yes I do have a heater on my 20 gal. It's a Marineland Dual Temp 100 Watt Heater with 2 temp settings, 76F - 82F (24.4C - 27.7C) I use the 82F setting. The only fish/plant in the aquarium that's not used to an 82F temp is the Rummynose Tetra's, they prefer a max temp of 79F (26C). The Betta should be fine with that temp, it's almost in the middle of her range.

One more thing!... looking at the back of the tank today I noticed 2 very small white specks on the glass. I stared straight at them and noticed movement!! So I reached into the water and squished whatever it was with my thumb. It wasn't a bubble stuck to the glass, it was live! Any Ideas what it might have been? Thanks everyone.

ok, its been about 24 hours, have the spots on the fish multiplied at all? sit and watch them, do they move too?

the things on the glass are probably planaria, common in newly setup tanks where there is more food going in than is being eaten. They are harmless.

Salt, although for the most part not all that effective for treating anything, should not harm live plants, and if it does, you have probably dumped in enough to knock your fish off too
Some plants would be less tolerant than others, just like some fish can't stand salt, but its not correct to say that any amount of salt will kill plants.

I would suggest a bottle of RidIch. It should also cover you if the things turn out to be wiggly parasites and not ich.

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

Hey Callatya,

I took a good look at my FM Betta last night (Sunday) and noticed the small white spots had vanished! But looking around the tank walls I spotted something odd. It was smaller than a grain of salt, and about as thin as a single strand of hair. What made it so easy to spot was it's color (bright white) and the dark scenery I have on the back of my aquarium. Watching it closely, without blinking I could see it making it's way along the back glass. So I reached in and with my thumb, squished it, and watched float away, to be inhaled by my Penguin 125 I haven't really noticed any others besides the 2 on the back glass

I'll be off to my LFS later today to pick up some Ich meds, another live plant or two, and to see about getting a algae eater... when I have algae for it to eat of course. Have you used RidIch alot? does it work well?


Thanks for your help.

OK, i do think you should get an ich medication, but to be honest, i don't think you have it.
[I have never personally used RidIsh or RidIch Plus, or Aquarisol, They are not available in Australia.]

I think what has happenned is that the fish has either gotten food dust on its skin, which does sometimes look like little white specks, or that it has had a flatworm stuck on it.

Planaria don't seem to be a big problem. All you need to do is to vacuum the gravel regularly, and be careful that you do not overfeed. Also, have the light on for 12 hours a day, as they are light-sensitive, and will multiply more in the dark.

Most sites say to clean your aquarium thoroughly, however as your tank is reasonably new, that could be a bad thing, so just gravel vac once a week (about 25% of the water)Otherwise, you risk a mini-cycle.



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For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett